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| Type | Free daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner(s) | Express-Zeitung AG (jointly owned byTX Group (majority holding) andBerner Zeitung (17.5%)) |
| Founded | 1999; 26 years ago (1999) |
| Language | German |
| Circulation | 494,368 (2010) |
| Sister newspapers |
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| OCLC number | 611676625 |
| Website |
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20 Minuten (German pronunciation:[ˈtsvantsɪçmiˈnuːtn̩]; "20 Minutes") is a free daily newspaper inSwitzerland. Its sister publications,20 minutes and20 minuti, serve the French- and Italian-speaking regions, respectively. The papers are due to be terminated at the end of 2025 and partially replaced by online-only offerings.
Cofounded bySacha Wigdorovits, who also became a significant shareholder,[1]20 Minuten was first published on 13 December 1999[2] by 20 Minuten Schweiz AG. The direct competitormetropol was available in Switzerland between 2000 and 2002. The paper version of20 Minuten is published intabloid format.
Since 2005 the newspaper has been owned byExpress-Zeitung AG, which is jointly owned byTX Group (majority holding) andBerner Zeitung (17.5%).
In theGerman-speaking parts of Switzerland, specific editions are made for the regions ofBasel,Bern,Lucerne,St. Gallen andZürich.
20 Minuten is distributed tocommuters at over 150 train stations across the country. Since September 2004 the German-language edition has been the most widely read daily newspaper in Switzerland, surpassingBlick. The audited distribution in 2004 was 329,242 (WEMF AG) and it had a readership of an estimated 782,000. In 2010 its circulation was 494,368 copies, making it the most-read daily paper in the country.[3]
For the year ending 31 March 2024, the total audited (provisional) circulation of all issues of the 20 Minuten Group was 445,141, including all German regional editions (298,429 total) as well as the French (123,147) and Italian (23,565) issues.[4]
The TX Group announced in June 2025 that the printed version would be discontinued at the end of the year, due to sinking revenues in that format.[2] The rapidly changing media landscape was also cited.[5] The announcement by 20 Minuten, signed by both CEO Bernhard Brechbühl and (from 1 September 2025) editor-in-chief Désirée Pomper, hinted that some use of the existing newspaper distribution boxes might be found, perhaps for some as yet unknown "innovation" on paper.[5]
The cessation of the printed versions brings with it a reorganization and loss of jobs. Some 80 full-time positions are expected to be terminated. Four regional bureaus are to be closed, with a national editing office based in Lausanne, Bern und Zürich to replace them.[2] The French-language20 minutes is to move to an online-only presence, with Philippe Favre as thedirecteur Romandie. The Italian-language paper,20 minuti, is to end at the end of 2025, migrating to an online portal.[5]
Media related to20 Minuten at Wikimedia Commons
