20 Minuten was first published in 1999 by 20 Minuten Schweiz AG. The direct competitor Metropol was available in Switzerland between 2000 and 2002. 20 Minuten is published in tabloid format

Since 2005 the newspaper has been owned by Express-Zeitung AG, which is jointly owned by Tamedia (majority holding) and Berner Zeitung (17.5%).

In the German-speaking parts of Switzerland, specific editions are made for the regions of Basel, Bern, Lucerne, St. Gallen and Zurich.