Routes with wide roads, gentle bends and fuel on the way. Ride these first, then the next-step routes.
The Oberalp has the lowest maximum gradient of all 16 passes in our list (6%). Average gradients are 5.6% (Andermatt side) and 4.4% (Sedrun side). The road is built for 18 t trucks. It is short, with cafés at the summit lake, and you can ride it out and back from Andermatt.
The gentlest long pass in our list: average gradients of only 3.7% (north) and 4% (south), maximum 9% (source). It is open all year, quieter than the Gotthard axis, and climbs through pastures past the Sontga Maria reservoir.
This joins the two easiest passes in our list (max 6% and 9%, both with averages of 5.6% or less) into a north-to-south Alpine crossing. Disentis in the middle is a natural fuel and coffee stop.
A wide national road built for trucks and open all year, with long, even gradients (maximum 9%). It has the Ganter bridge and the Gondo gorge. There are long galleries, so ride with lights on and your visor clear. The Brig tourist office describes its Simplon loop as suitable for motorcyclists of any level.
A valley approach with no pass: it follows Lake Brienz to Meiringen and Innertkirchen, the start of the Grimsel and Susten. It is a good first day to get used to Swiss traffic, lights-on rules and speed limits before any climbing. Interlaken Tourism's classic pass loop uses this same approach.
The Maloja has a maximum of 9% and is open all year. The Engadin side is almost flat along the lakes (0.1% average), and the Bregaglia side averages 4.6% (IAP). The hairpins below Maloja come in a series, so take them slowly and turn round at Bondo or Castasegna. Busy with Italy traffic at weekends.
The easiest pass in this list: a maximum of 6% (Wikipedia list) and averages of only 2.8% and 3.9% (quaeldich), at just 731 m altitude. It is a short, open historic crossing via Langenbruck, good as a first pass of the season.
The canton of Vaud gives the Mollendruz a maximum of 8%. The averages are 5.4% and 3.8%, and the road is kept open all year. Ride over to Lac de Joux at Le Pont, follow the lake to Le Sentier and come back the same way.
Not for a first day. All three passes have a maximum of 9–11% (none above 11%) on mostly wide or medium roads, but the loop is long (about 4.5 h of riding per the source) and very busy on summer weekends. Furka is exposed, and the Susten has unlit tunnels. Ride it on a weekday morning after the easy routes.
This adds the Gotthard (max 9%, wide modern road) to the two easy passes. Take the main pass road, not the cobbled Tremola, which is narrow, full of hairpins and slippery when wet. The return via Biasca and Airolo has plenty of fuel.
Two wide main roads that are open all year (winter equipment required in winter), with glacier views on the Bernina. The Julier has short pitches of up to 12% and the Bernina up to 10%. The descent to Poschiavo is long and steeper, so watch your brakes.
Not for beginners. The Pragel is mostly single lane with pitches up to 18%, and the Sattelegg reaches 14%. The Glarus side of the Pragel is closed to cars and motorcycles on Saturdays and Sundays, so this loop only works Monday to Friday. Lucerne Tourism also warns of heavy weekend traffic on the Ibergeregg and on the Richisau–Klöntal–Glarus stretch.
Not a first ride. The Glaubenbielen Panoramastrasse reaches 12% and is narrow enough that buses run in alternating hourly windows. The Glaubenberg has many cattle grids, and cows may be on the road on the Obwalden side. The reward is two quiet moorland passes and Lake Sarnen in one loop.
A next-step tour rather than a first one. The Brünig is a wide main road but has a 13% pitch and heavy traffic. The Glaubenbielen is narrow with up to 12%, and the Schallenberg is full of motorcycles on fine weekends. The return along Lake Thun and Lake Brienz is easy riding.
A long day (225 km) across the language border. The Jaunpass reaches 14% with long switchbacks on the Simmental side and a steep descent to Jaun. The Mosses (max 10%) and Pillon (max 11%) are cantonal main roads that the canton of Vaud keeps open all year, so this is one of the few pass loops that is possible early or late in the season.
The Pillon and Mosses are open, well-built main roads (max 11% and 10%). The finale over the Col de la Croix is different: it is a communal road with up to 12% and about 1,300 m of climbing from Ollon. It is only open from May to November. Ride it clockwise as described, or leave out the Croix for an easier day.
Two steep prealpine passes. The Gurnigel has a 1.5 km straight at up to 13% above Gurnigelbad and is very busy with cars and motorcycles on sunny weekends, with limited visibility on the descent. The Jaunpass reaches 14%. Ride on a weekday.
One of the big days of the Alps, not a beginner ride. The Umbrail has about 33 tight hairpins and up to 12%, and the Stelvio (Italy) follows. The Flüela reaches 14.6%. You return via Livigno through the single-lane Munt la Schera toll tunnel (about CHF 15–35, alternating traffic). Carry ID for two border crossings.
A good second step: one pass on a wide main road that is open all year, with a maximum of 11%. The climb from Chur is long (about 7% over 14 km), so ride the loop as published, climbing from Tiefencastel and descending to Chur. Returns along the Rhine valley without another pass.
A long day with small roads. The Schwägalp reaches 12% and is very busy with motorcycles at the Säntis cable car. The Ricken (main road 8) carries trucks. The Kerenzerberg balcony road above the Walensee is the calm finale. The loop crosses Liechtenstein, so carry ID.
Two short hill passes (max 10% each) close to Zurich, good for practising steeper climbs and tight bends without high-alpine weather. Both are short but steep: about 6.5–7% average over 3 km.
Rated demanding only because one source gives the Col des Rangiers a 12% maximum. Two cycling measurements give it just 8–9.4%, so the loop rides more like a moderate one. There are no winter closures, which makes it a season opener (March to October per the source). Expect small roads, forest, a short tunnel at the Passwang summit and a 500 m drop to the Doubs at Goumois.
Two Jura passes with maximums of 10–11%. The Vue des Alpes is a former main road that is now quiet because of the A20 tunnel. The Chasseral road from Nods is narrow and steep (about 7.7% over 8 km), with open pastures and views of the Alps. It closes in winter.
The Weissenstein is one of the steepest roads in Switzerland, with up to 22% and over 10% average on both sides. Only ride it once you are confident with hill starts and very slow hairpins on a steep slope. Motor traffic is banned on Sundays and public holidays from 09:00 to 16:00, and the road is not cleared of snow.
The Marchairuz reaches 14% (canton of Vaud) through forest. The return over the Mollendruz is easy (max 8%). Both roads are kept open all year. The lake shore between Le Brassus and Le Pont is flat.
Two moderate passes: the Forclaz (max 8%, but a sustained 7.9% over 13 km from Martigny) and the Swiss side of the Great St Bernard (max 11%, only 7 km from Bourg-St-Pierre). Turn round at the hospice, or carry ID and continue into Italy. The Great St Bernard pass road closes earliest of all, in mid October.
Rated moderate only because no reliable maximum gradient exists. In practice it is a serious road: about 1,700 m of climbing, single lane for the last ~10 km, and an ~800 m rock tunnel near the top that riders describe as dimly lit. Traffic is light because it is a dead end, and there is no way through to Gsteig.
No high pass, just the low Monte Ceneri (554 m) in wide bends. That road is busy, so most of the work is in traffic and lakeside towns rather than gradients. Good for early or late in the season, when the Alpine passes are still closed.
Not for beginners. The road climbs 1,189 m from Vira at 9.5% average, with a maximum of 12%, and is often single lane. The surface gets worse after the Italian border. The view over Lago Maggiore is the reward, and traffic is light.
Vignette, speed limits, postbus priority and emergency numbers. Plain English, each rule linked to its official source.
Read the full checklist