Swiss canton coats of arms: all 26 with names, printable
Every child knows a coat of arms; hardly anyone knows its wording. We went through all 26 cantonal constitutions and the titles of the enactments in the cantonal statute books: Aargau’s official arms have carried an inscription since 1803, the Valais law counts twelve stars, and St. Gallen prescribes the printing colour.
Arms with names: all 26 canton coats of arms at a glance
Every child knows the Uri bull. Which law it stands in, we could not find: neither in the Uri constitution nor in an enactment with “arms” in its title, and Zurich is no different. Fifteen cantons, by contrast, write their arms into law word for word. Where no law does, custom carries the arms: Obwalden only stated in 2020 that it designates its arms under customary law in force.
Tap a coat of arms: the wording of the law appears below, with enactment and article. The order follows the Federal Constitution, from Zurich to Jura. Capital, population and taxes of each canton are on The 26 Swiss cantons.
«Das Wappen besteht aus einem der Länge nach geteilten Schild, im rechten schwarzen Feld ein weisser Fluss, im linken blauen Feld drei weisse Sterne, oben und unten des Schildes Abschnitte, in deren ersterem die Worte «Verbündete Schweiz», in letzterem: «Kanton Aargau» schwarz auf Gold geschrieben stehen.»
Official wording in the language of the enactment; there is no official English version.
Beschluss über Standesfarbe, Wappen und Siegel des Kantons, SAR 110.300 § 2 · To the enactment
Printable coats of arms: study sheet and practice sheet
The sheet every classroom needs was missing from the top results of our search check: none with all 26 coats of arms and names. Here it is. Federal law does not, as a rule, let private persons print a cantonal coat of arms on a club T-shirt; festivals and cantonal rules are the exceptions. On a study sheet it may go: the law allows it as an illustration in reference works and similar works.
Canton arms quiz: can you name all 26?
Fribourg and Solothurn are divided the same way, top and bottom. Only the upper colour tells them apart: black over silver versus red over silver.
Using coats of arms: the Swiss Arms Check
Carnival band, gym club, festival bar: who may print the cantonal arms on their banner? One canton releases its coat of arms, Obwalden reserves it. Graubünden uses the leeway that federal law leaves the cantons for their own arms.
Choose canton and purpose: the arms check shows the provision of the Armorial Bearings Act, what the canton regulates itself and the authority the enactment names.
⚖️ Swiss Arms Check by ConvivaPlus: canton and purpose → provision and authority
For all 26 cantons: federal law, the cantonal rule and the competent authority named in the enactment.
A logo is not one of the cases federal law allows private persons. The arms belong to the public body and cannot be licensed or transferred.
Armorial Bearings Act Art. 8 para. 1:Only the public body they belong to may use the Swiss coat of arms and the arms of cantons, districts and communes, including their characteristic elements in connection with a shield and confusingly similar signs.
Armorial Bearings Act Art. 8 para. 3:These signs cannot be licensed or transferred.
Paraphrase. Swiss federal law has no official English version; the binding texts are German, French and Italian.
The arms check shows what the laws regulate. It is not legal advice for an individual case; that comes from the competent authority.
Sources: Armorial Bearings Act (SR 232.21) Art. 8 and 10, cantonal enactments as linked, as of 13.11.2026. Paraphrase. Swiss federal law has no official English version; the binding texts are German, French and Italian.
Canton blazons: what the law says
Aargau’s official coat of arms carries two inscriptions: «Verbündete Schweiz» at the top, «Kanton Aargau» at the bottom, black on gold. The government commission decided so in 1803, and the text stands unchanged in the law collection.
| Canton | How fixed | Wording (original language) | Enactment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Bern | described in words by law | «In Rot ein goldener Schrägbalken, belegt mit einem schreitenden rot bewehrten, bezungten und gezoteten schwarzen Bären.» | BSG 105.31 |
| Lucerne | described in words by law | «Das Wappen des Kantons ist hälftig gespalten in Blau und Weiss.» | SRL 1 / SR 131.213 |
| Uri | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Schwyz | only partly regulated | — | SRSZ 100.111 |
| Obwalden | described in words by law | «Das Kantonswappen wird wie folgt beschrieben: Geteilt von Rot und Silber, ein rechtsgewendeter Schlüssel in verwechselter Tinktur.» | GDB 230.511 |
| Nidwalden | fixed by a picture | — | NG 113.1 |
| Glarus | described in words by law | «Das Kantonswappen zeigt in Rot den nach rechts ausschreitenden schwarzgewandeten Glaubensboten Fridolin mit dem dem Beschauer zugewandten barhäuptigen Kopf im Nimbus, in der Rechten den Stab, in der Linken das Buch haltend. Nimbus, Buch, Stab sind golden (gelb), das Gesicht und die Hände sind silbern (weiss).» | GS I A/2/1 |
| Zug | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Fribourg | described in words by law | «Das Wappen ist: Von Schwarz und Weiss geteilt.» | SGF 10.1 / SR 131.219 |
| Solothurn | described in words by law | «Kanton Solothurn: geteilt von Rot und Silber.» | BGS 111.21 |
| Basel-Stadt | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Basel-Landschaft | described in words by law | «Das Kantonswappen besteht aus einem vom Standpunkt des Beschauers aus betrachtet sich nach rechts wendenden roten Bischofstab mit sieben Krabben am gebogenen Knauf. Der Stab liegt auf silbernem Grund und ist schwarz eingefasst.» | SGS 100.11 |
| Schaffhausen | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Appenzell Ausserrhoden | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| Appenzell Innerrhoden | not found (as of 13 Nov 2026) | — | — |
| St. Gallen | described in words by law | «Das Staatswappen zeigt in Grün ein kreuzweise von einem grünen Band umwundenes silbernes Stäbebündel (Fasces) mit fünf nach aussen sich verjüngenden Stäben und durchgehendem, heraldisch rechtsgewendetem Beil. Das Stäbebündel steht in der Regel in einem Schild.» | sGS 113.1 |
| Graubünden | reference, wording in the register | «Geteilt, oben gespalten: im 1. gespalten von Schwarz und Silber; im 2. geviert von Blau und Gold, belegt mit geviertem Kreuz in verwechselten Farben; im 3. in Silber aufrechter schwarzer Steinbock.» | BR 110.300 |
| Aargau | described in words by law | «Das Wappen besteht aus einem der Länge nach geteilten Schild, im rechten schwarzen Feld ein weisser Fluss, im linken blauen Feld drei weisse Sterne, oben und unten des Schildes Abschnitte, in deren ersterem die Worte «Verbündete Schweiz», in letzterem: «Kanton Aargau» schwarz auf Gold geschrieben stehen.» | SAR 110.300 |
| Thurgau | described in words by law | «Das Wappen ist schräg geteilt von Weiss und Grün mit je einem schreitenden gelben Löwen. Die Fahne enthält das Wappenbild; die Flagge ist grünweiss gespalten.» | RB 111 |
| Ticino | described in words by law | «Lo stemma del Cantone è il seguente: «Partito di rosso e di azzurro»» | RL 101.000 / RS 131.229 |
| Vaud | described in words by law | «Les armoiries du Canton de Vaud sont: coupé, au 1 d’argent chargé des mots «Liberté et Patrie», rangés sur trois lignes, aux lettres d’or bordées de sable, au 2 de sinople.» | BLV 101.01 / RS 131.231 |
| Valais | only partly regulated | — | SGS/RS 111.1 |
| Neuchâtel | described in words by law | «Les armoiries du canton sont: Tiercé en pal de sinople, d’argent et de gueules, une croisette du second au canton senestre du chef.» | RSN 101 / RS 131.233 |
| Geneva | described in words by law | «Les armoiries de la République et canton de Genève représentent la réunion de l’aigle noire à tête couronnée sur fond jaune et de la clé d’or sur fond rouge. Le cimier représente un soleil apparaissant sur le bord supérieur et portant le trigramme IHS en lettres grecques.» | rs/GE A 2 00 / RS 131.234 |
| Jura | described in words by law | «Les armoiries de la République et Canton du Jura sont les suivantes: «Parti d’argent à la crosse épiscopale de gueules et de gueules à trois fasces d’argent.»» | RSJU 101 / RS 131.235 |
Among the enactments found, only one besides Aargau puts words on the shield: Vaud, with «Liberté et Patrie», written into the constitution. Geneva even describes the crest, a sun bearing the Greek letters IHS, and the motto «Post tenebras lux». How Bern tells its two bears apart by the crown: Bern coat of arms.
Valais arms: twelve stars in the law
The Valais flag shows thirteen stars; the law of 1802 speaks of twelve. It is still in force; the thirteenth came with the constitution of 1815.
The law actually governs the seal of the Republic, not the arms. We found no separate blazon of the Valais arms in any enactment. The law collection adds the thirteenth star in brackets.
Under the decision of 1803, Aargau’s official arms carry «Verbündete Schweiz» at the top and «Kanton Aargau» at the bottom.
Arms by picture: Nidwalden draws instead of describing
Nidwalden does not describe its arms in words. In 1989 the cantonal parliament fixed their arrangement and colours, but not their graphic design, and attached a picture.
Der Regierungsrat des Kantons Basel-Landschaft, im Hinblick darauf, dass eine Beschreibung des amtlichen Kantonswappens fehlt, auf Antrag der Landeskanzlei, beschliesst:
Government of Basel-Landschaft, decision of 9 March 1948 (SGS 100.11, official German text)
Basel-Landschaft had not described its arms before 1948, as the preamble above says. Since 1948 the red crozier with seven crockets has been official. St. Gallen combines both: words in its ordinance and an official model as a picture. How many people live in these cantons: Population of Switzerland.
Canton colours: Pantone, stripes and cross proportions
Heraldry knows vert and argent, not printing inks. St. Gallen still writes one into law: for the green, Pantone 355 C applies.
Glarus fixes the stripes of its colours down to the fraction: red one third, black and white one sixth each. Since 1963 Schwyz has regulated only the cross: each arm is three times as long as it is wide. Where their towns rank: Largest cities in Switzerland.
Bern coat of arms: city and canton not identical
Bern has two bear coats of arms that differ only in the crown: a crown of sovereignty for the canton, a mural crown for the city. Until the end of 2025 the ordinance even listed a third bear.To the Bern coat of arms and the Bern arms check →Which cantonal coat of arms do you recognise at once?
One click – anonymous, no sign-up required.
❓ FAQ on the cantonal coats of arms
Short answers, with the law as evidence.
People also ask
Related questions from our magazine
In the crown: under the Bern ordinance the cantonal arms bear a crown of sovereignty, the city’s arms a mural crown. Until the end of 2025 the ordinance even listed a third bear.
26, listed in Art. 1 of the Federal Constitution, from Zurich to Jura. Each has its own coat of arms; the order of the constitution is also the order on the printable sheet.
Yes: under Art. 10 of the Armorial Bearings Act, flags may be used unless the use is misleading or contrary to public order, morality or applicable law. Stricter rules apply to the arms on a shield.
The ConvivaPlus verdict
After the arms: Bern’s bear, the 26 cantons and their cities
More about the cantons
Sourced sentence by sentence · checked against the sources · researched with the help of artificial intelligence · How we work ›
Published by Wojtek BernetFounder and publisher · Editorial ›All information without guarantee. Found an error? → support@conviva-plus.ch
Found an error or have feedback? Let us know or write to us directly.