Less street prostitution, more online erotic jobs – why has everything changed?
Over the past decade, the
erotic job landscape in Zurich’s streets has visibly transformed — the changes are driven by pandemic shutdowns and a technological shift. The digital revolution is no longer just happening “on the surface”; it is profoundly reshaping the world of
adult jobs both domestically and internationally.
It’s important to emphasize that these changes mainly affect
street prostitution:
Legal erotic businesses, brothels, salons, private apartments, and studios in Switzerland continue to operate in large numbers, and the market is steadily expanding.
This not only provides a stable framework for service providers but also offers clients safer and more discreet options.
Moreover, the number of advertisers and applicants present in Switzerland is continuously growing, clearly showing that adult work and the sex industry are developing positively both digitally and offline.
By now, more and more
sex workers are operating online, and this is clearly changing old routines.
How have adult jobs changed in Switzerland?
- Across Switzerland, there are now nearly one-third fewer prostitutes working the streets than years ago.
- Formerly busy locations — such as Zurich’s “red-light districts” — no longer attract the same traffic as before.
- After the restrictions introduced during the pandemic, sex workers increasingly shifted towards online adult jobs, and client expectations also changed: demand for discretion and anonymity has grown.
What influenced sex work?
During the
COVID‑19 pandemic, some sexual services were banned, ushering in an era where online erotic job adverts, private apartments and webcam jobs came to the fore.
Thanks to technological development and digitalisation, prostitution has become much less conspicuous: the bulk of
erotic jobs has moved onto the internet and into private spaces.
The capacity of regulated “box” sites operating within city frameworks has also declined: at a
Zurich erotic job venue, instead of ~30 sex workers 12 years ago, around 13 work there today.
Invisible but active: how sex work is transforming in Switzerland
Melanie Munoz, head of the Lysistrada specialist centre in Zurich, has worked with street sex workers for 16 years. In her experience, women who no longer work on the street have not stopped erotic work; their activity has simply shifted to private areas.
Prostitution is increasingly moving to private locations.
– says Munoz.
Eliane Burkart, a social worker from Lucerne, sees the situation similarly. In her view, sex work now often takes place in private apartments or short-term Airbnb locations, while street presence and the number of brothels is steadily declining. Clients’ habits have also changed: more and more people are looking online for discreet, pre‑arranged options.
That means fewer street clients, and sex workers meet interested parties in person less often.
– explained Burkart.
Munoz emphasised:
“The number of sex workers hasn’t decreased; they’re just less visible. Because of this, even those who want to support them find it harder to reach them. These days they use online outreach and counselling much more frequently.”
Digitalisation in the sex industry: is street prostitution over?
The Lysistrada specialist centre is involved in the national Procore programme, which supports the rights and safety of sex workers in Switzerland. With the help of a chatbot, the system filters online ads, and the centre then sends a message to the sex workers concerned, offering assistance. The experience so far is encouraging: around 10% of those contacted respond, whether to say thank you or to ask a specific question.
Swiss cities have been trying to curb street prostitution for many years, and now digitalisation is significantly reshaping the situation.
Many signs suggest that street prostitution is receding into the background, but I wouldn’t say it has disappeared completely.
– said Munoz.
Burkart added:
“The red‑light districts where street sex workers operate offer a unique atmosphere to certain clients, so these places continue to play an important role.”
Source:
Blikk.
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in numbers (statistics 1 month - 3 months -1 year)
