Kidney disease affects more than 850 million people worldwide and is associated with high morbidity and mortality as kidney function declines. In the stage of chronic end-stage renal disease, extracorporeal replacement therapies such as haemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD) improve survival and can provide a bridge to kidney transplantation when available. PD has the advantage of providing few haemodynamic disturbances while preserving residual renal function and maintaining a suitable quality of life. However, despite its many advantages, PD is struggling to become the modality of choice in Switzerland. In this article, the current position of PD, its indications, its limitations and possible solutions to increase access to this modality here and elsewhere are reviewed.