Share of births that are twins in Switzerland

Switzerland: Share of births that are twins was 1.6% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
1.6%
Change on year
down 6.7%
World rank
7th
of 23 countries
All-time high
1.9%
in 2016
All-time low
0.8%
in 1972
Years of data
84
1906–2020

Share of births that are twins in Switzerland, 1906–2020

00.511.52190619632020

Source: Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of births that are twins in Switzerland is 1.6%, measured in 2020.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.7% on the previous year and down 15.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of births that are twins in Switzerland peaked at 1.9% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 0.8%, in 1972.

That places Switzerland 7th out of 23 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 84 years of available data.

Share of births that are twins in Switzerland, year by year

Annual values for Share of births that are twins in Switzerland, 1906 to 2020.
Year % Change
1906 1.3% —
1907 1.2% -5.8%
1908 1.3% +1.9%
1909 1.3% -0.2%
1910 1.3% +3.6%
1911 1.2% -4.2%
1912 1.2% -1.7%
1913 1.3% +2.7%
1914 1.2% -2.0%
1915 1.2% -1.3%
1916 1.2% +1.5%
1917 1.3% +5.7%
1918 1.2% -5.4%
1919 1.4% +10.0%
1920 1.3% -0.8%
1921 1.3% -0.1%
1922 1.4% +0.2%
1923 1.3% -4.7%
1924 1.3% -1.1%
1925 1.3% -1.2%
1926 1.3% +0.0%
1927 1.3% +3.3%
1928 1.3% -1.1%
1929 1.2% -3.3%
1930 1.2% -5.7%
1931 1.3% +8.6%
1932 1.3% -0.2%
1933 1.2% -3.9%
1934 1.3% +3.2%
1935 1.2% -3.6%
1936 1.3% +4.9%
1960 1.1% -14.2%
1969 1.0% -12.2%
1970 0.9% -5.6%
1971 0.9% +5.0%
1972 0.8% -11.4%
1973 0.9% +7.2%
1974 0.9% -0.9%
1975 1.0% +7.7%
1976 1.0% -1.0%
1977 1.0% +0.3%
1978 1.0% +4.4%
1979 0.9% -5.8%
1980 1.0% +8.4%
1981 1.0% -2.9%
1982 1.0% -3.9%
1983 1.0% +2.4%
1984 1.0% -1.1%
1985 1.0% +7.1%
1986 1.1% +2.3%
1987 1.1% +0.6%
1988 1.1% +1.5%
1989 1.2% +11.0%
1990 1.1% -4.7%
1991 1.1% -0.1%
1992 1.2% +2.3%
1993 1.1% -1.2%
1994 1.2% +5.1%
1995 1.2% -1.1%
1996 1.3% +8.1%
1997 1.2% -3.5%
1998 1.3% +6.3%
1999 1.5% +9.9%
2000 1.4% -4.7%
2001 1.5% +5.2%
2002 1.5% +5.1%
2003 1.5% -0.7%
2004 1.6% +6.2%
2005 1.6% +0.6%
2006 1.6% -1.2%
2007 1.6% +2.0%
2008 1.7% +3.6%
2009 1.8% +7.8%
2010 1.8% +0.3%
2011 1.7% -5.9%
2012 1.9% +11.3%
2013 1.8% -6.0%
2014 1.8% -0.4%
2015 1.9% +2.7%
2016 1.9% +4.0%
2017 1.8% -5.7%
2018 1.8% +0.3%
2019 1.7% -8.1%
2020 1.6% -6.7%

Switzerland compared with similar countries

  • Switzerland's 1.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.4%, 1.1× the median. (15 countries reporting)
  • Switzerland's 1.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.4%, 1.1× the median. (23 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 1.3% 1.2% 1.3% 4
1910s 1.3% 1.2% 1.4% 10
1920s 1.3% 1.2% 1.4% 10
1930s 1.2% 1.2% 1.3% 7
1960s 1.0% 1.0% 1.1% 2
1970s 0.9% 0.8% 1.0% 10
1980s 1.0% 1.0% 1.2% 10
1990s 1.2% 1.1% 1.5% 10
2000s 1.6% 1.4% 1.8% 10
2010s 1.8% 1.7% 1.9% 10
2020s 1.6% 1.6% 1.6% 1

Countries ranked near Switzerland

  1. 4 Lithuania 1.7% compare
  2. 5 Spain 1.6% compare
  3. 6 United States 1.6% compare
  4. 8 France 1.6% compare
  5. 9 Canada 1.6% compare
  6. 10 Netherlands 1.5% compare

See the full ranking of 23 places →

More reference data data for Switzerland

All data for Switzerland →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of births that are twins in Switzerland?
Share of births that are twins in Switzerland was 1.6% in 2020, according to Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of births that are twins recorded in Switzerland?
The highest recorded value was 1.9% in 2016.
What is the lowest share of births that are twins recorded in Switzerland?
The lowest recorded value was 0.8% in 1972.
How does Switzerland rank for share of births that are twins?
Switzerland ranks 7th out of 23 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of births that are twins rising or falling in Switzerland?
Over the last ten years it is down 15.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Switzerland data come from?
The figures come from Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of births that are twins. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of births that are twins in Switzerland. Statizoid, drawing on Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 30 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rate-of-twin-deliveries/switzerland/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of births that are twins
Unit
%
Source
Human Multiple Births Database (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
23 places, 2,436 data points, 1815–2022
Last refreshed

Number of twin deliveries per 100 deliveries.