Register a .ch domain: costs, process and what to check first

You register a .ch domain with a registrar accredited by SWITCH, i.e. with a hosting or domain provider, not directly with SWITCH. Any person or company may hold a .ch domain; a Swiss address is not required. After payment the domain is usually registered within minutes. The registrar sets the price: do not just look at the first-year price, but at the renewal price, which you pay again every year.

Who may register a .ch domain?

According to SWITCH, you need neither Swiss citizenship nor a residence or registered office in Switzerland. Any natural or legal person can hold a domain: private individuals, sole proprietorships, GmbH and AG companies, associations or foundations.

There is one restriction: if a Swiss authority requests it, a holder without a Swiss address must provide a valid correspondence address in Switzerland and prove their identity within 30 days. Otherwise the domain is deleted. If you enter your details correctly, this practically never affects you. In addition, names of municipalities can only be registered by the municipality concerned.

SWITCH, registrar and holder: who does what?

• SWITCH is the registry for .ch and .li. On behalf of OFCOM (and, for .li, Liechtenstein’s Office for Communications) it runs the central database and the DNS zone. SWITCH does not serve end customers.
• The registrar has a contract with SWITCH, takes your order, bills registration and renewal and gives you the auth code for a later move.
• The holder is you: the person or company that owns the domain. Make sure you yourself are entered as the holder, not your web agency.

Which registrar manages a domain is shown by the domain lookup on nic.ch or any WHOIS lookup. Since 2021, the personal data of .ch holders is no longer publicly visible; status, registrar and name servers remain visible.

How much does a .ch domain cost per year?

Many providers advertise a low first-year price. From the second year on, the renewal price applies, and it is often higher. So always compare the cost over several years. As an example, here are the prices at HostOn (CHF incl. 8.1 % VAT, as of October 2026):

For a .ch domain over three years that makes CHF 6.90 + CHF 14.90 + CHF 14.90 = CHF 36.70. Do the same calculation for every offer: a low entry price with an expensive renewal can cost more over the years than a price that stays the same. Also check whether DNS management and retrieving the auth code are included. Also ask whether domains are available without hosting and whether there are fees for a change of holder or for retrieving the auth code.

Tip: To run a website or email addresses you also need hosting or an email plan. The domain alone is just the address.

Checking availability

Whether a name is free takes seconds to find out with a registrar’s domain search or the domain lookup on nic.ch. If the domain is taken, the lookup shows the registrar and the name servers, but not the owner. If you want to contact the holder, ask the registrar or use the option of asserting a legitimate interest with SWITCH.

A deleted .ch domain does not become free immediately: it stays in the transition period for 40 days. Only then can it be registered again, on a first-come, first-served basis.

Choosing a name: rules, umlauts, typos and variants

• Length: at least 3, at most 63 characters before the .ch.
• Characters: letters a–z, digits 0–9 and hyphens; a hyphen may not be at the beginning or the end.
• Umlauts and accents are allowed (e.g. café-léman.ch). Technically such names are converted in the background, and not every program displays them nicely.
• Capital letters make no difference: Your-Company.ch and your-company.ch are the same domain.

Good domains are short, easy to pronounce and easy to spell over the phone. Think about which variants customers might type and secure the most important ones as well:

• With and without accents: café-léman.ch and cafe-leman.ch are two different domains.
• With and without a hyphen: cafeleman.ch and cafe-leman.ch.
• Common typos and abbreviations of your name.
• The same name under .com if you also operate internationally.

You simply redirect additional domains to your main address. This also protects you against fraudsters who use similar-sounding domains for fake emails. Before registering, also check whether the name infringes third-party trademark or name rights: SWITCH does not check this. This is general information, not legal advice.

Step by step to your own .ch domain

1. Write down your preferred name and variants.
2. Check availability with your registrar.
3. Compare the first-year and renewal prices.
4. Add the domain to the cart and enter the holder details: name or company, address, email address and phone number. Use an email address that is not under the new domain, so you can still be reached if something goes wrong.
5. Pay. Registration usually takes a few minutes.
6. Set the name servers or DNS records for website and email. SWITCH adds new name servers to the zone within one hour at the latest.
7. Leave automatic renewal on and note the expiry date.

After registration, a quick check is worthwhile: keep the holder’s email address up to date, because renewal reminders and, depending on the provider, the auth code are sent there. If a domain expires anyway, it is deleted and during the 40-day transition period can only be restored by the previous holder through the registrar, usually for a fee. After that it is free for anyone. For business-critical domains, some registrars also offer a Registry Lock: changes to the domain can then no longer simply be made through the registrar’s interface, which lowers the risk of an unauthorised takeover. DNSSEC, which secures the authenticity of DNS responses, is also supported for .ch.

.ch, .li or .swiss?

For most websites aimed at people in Switzerland, .ch is the obvious choice. .li is Liechtenstein’s extension, is also managed by SWITCH and, like .ch, is open to people and companies worldwide. .swiss, on the other hand, comes with conditions: companies, organisations and authorities need a UID number plus a registered office and real presence in Switzerland. Since April 2024, private individuals with Swiss citizenship or residence in Switzerland can also apply for a .swiss domain if the name contains their surname. Every application is checked by OFCOM. We compare the extensions in more detail in our guide to choosing a domain extension.

Changing provider later

Your .ch domain is not tied to one provider. To move, you need the auth code (transfer code) from your current registrar and give it to the new registrar. The current registrar is obliged to allow the transfer at any time. With .ch and .li, a transfer only changes the registrar: the term stays the same and no extra renewal is purchased.

Tip: Choose a registrar where you can retrieve the auth code yourself in the client area at any time. Then a later move does not depend on a support request.

At HostOn you check the availability of your preferred domain directly on the domains page. Registration and renewal prices are always shown side by side, and you can retrieve the auth code in the client area at any time.