Guide · Drivetrains
Plug-in hybrid in Switzerland: what it really uses in everyday driving
In everyday European driving, a plug-in hybrid uses 5,9 litres per 100 kilometres on average. That is close to the 7,0 litres a new combustion car needs, and the study puts the gap to the type-approval value at around 300 per cent. The basis is on-board measurement data from around one million vehicles. This article covers what the data measure, how the test rule is changing, what it amounts to at Swiss petrol prices, and the question to settle before you buy.
What the data measure
The on-board devices (OBFCM) of plug-in hybrids count fuel and energy use over the vehicle’s life so far, split by driving mode. The data sit with the European Environment Agency. In February 2026 the Fraunhofer ISI, together with the Öko-Institut and ifeu, evaluated the data of around one million vehicles registered in Europe between 2021 and 2023.
Around 40 per cent of the distance is driven in the mode with a discharging battery, at an average of 2,8 litres per 100 kilometres. In the mode with a sustained battery, where the combustion engine does the work, the figure is 7,4 litres. The cars drive purely electrically for about a quarter of the distance, 27 to 31 per cent depending on the measure.
Why charging more often is not enough
The mode with a discharging battery does not mean the engine is silent. The rule only requires that a minimum amount of drive energy comes from the battery over the test cycle, and it does not say how much of the distance must be driven purely electrically. In practice the combustion engine therefore often runs even with a charged battery. The study calculates that the fleet’s consumption does not fall below 2,8 litres or 65 grams of CO₂ per kilometre on average, however often the cars are charged. Charging more often saves fuel, but only down to that limit.
How the test rule is changing
The type-approval value of a plug-in hybrid weights electric and combustion driving with a utility factor that depends on electric range. One scaling factor in the formula sets how much electric driving is assumed. The EU has raised it and plans a further rise for 2027. The table shows how the gap to everyday consumption shrinks as a result.
| Rule | Scaling factor | Average gap to everyday consumption |
|---|---|---|
| EU rule until 2024 | 800 km | over 300 % |
| EU rule 2025 and 2026 | 2’200 km | around 100 % |
| EU rule from 2027 | 4’260 km | around 40 % |
| Adjusted to everyday use (the study’s calculation) | around 7’200 km | around 20 % |
Even with the value that applies from 2027, the study’s calculation leaves a gap of around 40 per cent. Only a factor of around 7’200 kilometres would bring it to about 20 per cent, the gap that exists for pure combustion cars today.
What it amounts to at Swiss petrol prices
We use the same assumptions as in the article EV without a wallbox: 12’000 kilometres a year and Bleifrei 95 at CHF 2.00 per litre. The electricity for the kilometres driven electrically is not included.
- 5,9 litres, the European average: 708 litres a year, CHF 1’419.
- 7,4 litres, when the combustion engine does all the work: 888 litres, CHF 1’780.
- 2,8 litres, the average in the mode with a discharging battery: 336 litres, CHF 673.
A petrol car with 6,8 litres costs CHF 1’635 in fuel in the same scenario. Between 7,4 and 2,8 litres there are about CHF 1’100 of fuel a year. Anyone approaching 2,8 litres pays for electricity instead, and that varies widely with where you charge.
The question to settle before you buy
- Do you charge almost every day? At home or at work. If you have no socket of your own, the Charging tab shows what public charge points near you offer.
- How long are your daily trips? The more of them fit into the model’s electric range, the longer the car runs in the mode with a discharging battery. The electric range is in the model’s data sheet.
- Is a pure electric car enough for you? The calculator My EV puts the annual costs side by side, and the article Is an electric car worth it shows where the sum turns. How BEV, full hybrid and plug-in differ technically is in the article BEV, full hybrid, plug-in.
What the study does not say
- Switzerland. The evaluation covers Europe. It gives no Swiss figure, and we do not calculate one.
- The vehicles. They were registered from 2021 to 2023. The authors call for the rule to be adjusted continuously to new measurement data.
- Your car. All figures are averages over a million vehicles. Whoever charges daily lands below them, whoever never charges lands above.
Sources: Plötz, Gnann, Kasten, Steinbach, Jöhrens: Regulatory adjustments needed for plug-in hybrid vehicles in Europe, policy brief by Fraunhofer ISI with Öko-Institut and ifeu, February 2026, based on the on-board data (OBFCM) of the European Environment Agency for around one million vehicles of the years 2021 to 2023.
Transparency: the consumption and gap values come from the policy brief. The calculation in francs is ours: 12’000 kilometres a year, Bleifrei 95 at CHF 2.00 per litre as in the article on the EV without a wallbox of your own, without electricity. The study evaluates Europe and gives no figure for Switzerland.
