How your AHV pension is calculated
What decides your Swiss AHV pension: contribution years, the determining average income, splitting for couples, and the 2026 minimum and maximum.
In one line: Two things set your AHV pension — how many years you contributed, and the average income those years are measured against.
The AHV (Alters- und Hinterlassenenversicherung) is the first pillar of Swiss retirement provision. It is compulsory for everyone living or working in Switzerland, and it is designed to cover basic needs rather than your full standard of living. This guide explains how the amount is worked out.
What decides the amount
Only two inputs matter:
- Your contribution period — the number of years you paid in.
- Your determining average annual income — your career earnings, revalued, plus any credits you are entitled to.
Because the AHV is solidarity-based, the gap between the smallest and largest pension is deliberately narrow: the maximum is exactly twice the minimum. High earners do not get a proportionally larger pension, which is precisely why the second and third pillars exist.
Contribution years: the 44-year rule
A complete contribution record runs from 1 January after your 20th birthday to the reference age, which is 65. That is 44 years.
Every missing year reduces the pension by roughly 1/44. Gaps arise more often than people expect — years spent studying abroad, arriving in Switzerland mid-career, or a period without gainful employment where no contribution was made.
If you stop working before the reference age, you are still liable to contribute as a person without gainful activity. Skipping that creates a gap that permanently lowers the pension.
The determining average income
This is not a plain average of your salaries. Two adjustments apply:
- Revaluation. Earlier income is uprated to reflect wage growth since it was earned, so a salary from 1995 is not compared against 2026 francs.
- Credits. Years spent raising children (Erziehungsgutschriften) or caring for relatives (Betreuungsgutschriften) are added as notional income, which raises the average.
For married couples, income earned during the marriage is split 50/50 between the two spouses when the pension is calculated. This is called splitting, and it applies to both partners' records.
Income is only counted up to CHF 90'720 per year. Earnings above that ceiling still attract contributions, but they do not increase the pension.
What the figures look like in 2026
For a full 44-year contribution record:
- Minimum old-age pension: CHF 1'260 per month
- Maximum old-age pension: CHF 2'520 per month
- Ceiling for a married couple: CHF 3'780 per month combined — 150% of the maximum, applied to the two pensions together
From 2026 the AHV also pays a 13th annual payment, so the yearly total is thirteen times the monthly figure rather than twelve.
Your own pension sits somewhere between the minimum and maximum, depending on your average income and how complete your record is.
Drawing early or later
The pension can be drawn before or after the reference age. Drawing early reduces it permanently; deferring increases it permanently. Across the full range the adjustment runs from about −6.8% to +31.5%, and the change applies for life, not only for the years affected.
Common questions
How many years do I need for a full AHV pension?
Forty-four, running from the year after your 20th birthday to the reference age of 65. Each missing year cuts the pension by roughly one forty-fourth.
What is the maximum AHV pension?
CHF 2'520 per month in 2026 for a single person with a complete record. Two married pensions together are capped at CHF 3'780 per month.
Does a higher salary always mean a higher AHV pension?
No. Only income up to CHF 90'720 a year counts towards the pension. Above that, contributions continue but the pension does not grow — which is what makes the second and third pillars decisive for higher earners.
How do I check my own contribution record?
Request a free extract of your individual account from your compensation office (Ausgleichskasse). It lists the income recorded against your AHV number and is the only reliable way to spot a gap while there is still time to act.
Sources: AHVG (SR 831.10), in particular Art. 29bis–29quinquies (contribution period, splitting, revaluation), Art. 34 (pension formula), Art. 35 (couples ceiling) and Art. 40 (early and deferred drawing); Federal Social Insurance Office (BSV) key figures and Leaflet 3.01 on old-age pensions.
Educational information, not financial advice. Figures are for 2026 and may change.