Window or air con? Europe’s great divide
In Italy, there’s a built-in AC unit humming away in 50 per cent of homes. In Switzerland and Germany, it’s only five per cent. A representative survey conducted on behalf of Galaxus has revealed just how differently Europeans across five countries deal with indoor heat.
First thing in the morning during the summer months, people in Switzerland throw open their windows to create a draught for a few minutes. After that, they roll down their shutters. That’s the Swiss way of keeping homes cool. A representative survey carried out by YouGov on behalf of Galaxus asked 2,616 people in Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy and Austria how they deal with indoor heat. It seems they all have different strategies.
Switzerland and Germany haven’t warmed to air con
In Switzerland, 80 per cent of people said they cool their homes by opening the windows wide in the morning and keeping them closed once the heat hits – the highest percentage in all five countries to take this approach. Two thirds of respondents – another record high – also said they close their shutters, blinds or awnings. Built-in air conditioning units? Not a thing in Switzerland and Germany, unlike in Italy, the southernmost of the countries surveyed, where air conditioning is standard in the homes of half of respondents.
Fans, on the other hand, are popular in almost every country surveyed, with half of survey participants stating they use one. The only exception is Switzerland, where just one third claimed they switch on a fan to cool down.
Eco-guilt fuelling Switzerland’s air con aversion
So what makes the Swiss opposed to air con? Only 20 per cent of respondents said cost was an issue, so rejecting A/C doesn’t seem to be a matter of budget. In France and Germany, this seems to be much more of a problem, with 40 per cent saying the price of A/C units put them off.
What’s stopping Swiss consumers is eco-guilt. Over a third of respondents cited environmental concerns as the reason they’re not hot for air con. No other country was so averse to it. Bureaucracy or logistics, on the other hand, don’t seem to be a key factor, with only 20 per cent stating they weren’t permitted to install an AC unit or didn’t have space for one. For Italians, environmental concerns play the smallest role. In Germany, it’s neither the purchase price nor eco-guilt putting people off, but primarily the electricity bill.
Switzerland’s eco-awareness translates into concrete numbers, with only 20 per cent of respondents stating that they find air conditioning in living spaces environmentally acceptable. That’s the lowest figure among all five countries. Respondents in France and Austria showed the least eco-guilt.
The dilemma’s real: 40 per cent of people in Switzerland feel air conditioning is becoming increasingly necessary as heatwaves grow more frequent. In Italy, 80 per cent said the same. At the same time, nearly half of Swiss respondents claimed they find air conditioning unsustainable.
In the heat of the night
When the heat starts affecting the bedroom, Europeans try everything to keep cool. Two thirds of Swiss respondents leave their windows open at night, as do people in Germany. Half of the people in both countries switch to lighter bedding or close the shutters to their bedrooms during the day. In Italy, the A/C is switched on at night or before bedtime in 40 per cent of respondents’ bedrooms. That’s nearly twice as many as in France, which ranked second.
Then there’s the question everyone’s curious about: who sleeps naked?. In France and Austria, about one third of respondents said they sleep with no clothes on. In Switzerland, Germany and Italy, only a quarter get into bed in the nip.
And when do Europeans perceive the heat as unbearable? In four out of five countries, the threshold is a room temperature of 26 to 27 degrees. Only Italians seem to take roasting rooms in their stride, with one quarter of respondents saying they only start to suffer when indoor temperatures hit 28 to 29 degrees.
Whether Switzerland and Germany’s more traditional cooling strategies will hold up in light of hotter summers remains to be seen. However, judging by the sales figures for air conditioners on Galaxus, this doesn’t seem likely. Never before have customers purchased as many air conditioners in a single month as they did in June 2026.
What’s your take on air conditioning? Ecological madness or the only way to handle the heat?
As a Multimedia Producer, preparing multimedia content and knowing about cutting-edge technology is my business. My main focus at digitec is producing videos. I can’t wait to try out new products such as cameras, drones or smartphones as soon as they’re launched. This is where being at the source comes in rather handy. When I’m not working, I’m probably skiing, biking or hiking – the mountains are my place to be.
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