The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the digitalization of everyday life. Especially when it comes to working and shopping, Swiss people want to see most of these changes remain in the long run. These are results of the World Internet Project – Switzerland 2021. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, everyday life in Switzerland has been severely restricted since March 2020 and many activities have increasingly shifted to digital spaces. This forced digitalization push is most pronounced in the area of remote working: Whereas before the pandemic, employed internet users spent just under 20 percent of their employed hours working from home, during the pandemic it was more than 60 percent. Post-pandemic, they wish to work from home about two days of the week.

"There are clear differences between the digitalization push forced by Covid-19 in the short term and what is desired in the long term," emphasizes Prof. Michael Latzer: "Many Swiss internet users discovered the advantages of working from home and of using cashless payments during the pandemic, but the limits of digital alternatives also became apparent, particularly in personal relationships." For example, the share of social gatherings taking place online increased from 9 to 25 percent because of the pandemic; in the long term, the ideal share is 12 percent.

95 percent of the Swiss population use the internet in 2021. Among those under 70, it is almost 100 percent. 86 percent of the total population also use mobile internet in 2021, which is more than four times as many as ten years ago. Internet usage time doubled between 2011 and 2019 to 3.5 hours and experienced another significant increase during the corona crisis, reaching 4.5 hours a day in 2021.

• News Release WIP-CH 2021 (in English)
• News Release WIP-CH 2021 (in German)

Special Report 2021: Digitalization Push due to Covid-19

• Digitalisierungsschub durch die Covid-19-Pandemie in der Schweiz

Research Reports 2021 (Themenberichte)

• Internetverbreitung und digitale Bruchlinien in der Schweiz

• Internet und Politik in der Schweiz

• Internetanwendungen und deren Nutzung in der Schweiz

• Vertrauen und Sorgen bei der Internetnutzung in der Schweiz

Infographics

• How has the Internet in Switzerland evolved during the past decade? (English / German)
• How has everyday digital life in Switzerland evolved during the past decade? (English / German)
• How have applications of everyday digital life in Switzerland spread during the past decade (English / German)
• Digitalization push due to Covid-19: Short-term forced vs. long-term desired (English / German)
• Digitalization push due to Covid-19: Icrease in concerns remains low (English / German)
• How do the young and the old differ on the Internet? (English / German)
• How common are digital assistants and self-tracking apps in Switzerland in 2021? (English / German)