Sweden
- Capital:
- Stockholm
- Continent:
- Europe
- Region(s):
- Northern Europe
- Largest Cities:
- Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo
- Abbreviation:
- SWE
* As of 11/21/2025
1 birth
Every 5.4 minutes
1 death
Every 5.4 minutes
1 immigrant
Every 11.2 minutes
1 person
Every 11.1 minutes
69K
100K
250K
500K
750K
1M
Sweden, known officially as the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian country found in Northern Europe. By area, it is the third-largest country in the European Union, at 450,295 square kilometers. Its capital city is Stockholm, which is also the country’s largest city. Sweden has been ranked as the fourth most competitive country in the world, and has a rapidly growing economy with equal distribution of income. The country boasts a rich culture and heritage, which has attracted many tourists over the years.
According to Statistics Sweden, the population was exceeded by 9 million for the first time on August 12, 2004.
The demographic profile of Sweden has altered drastically due to immigration patterns since the 1970s. The larger amount of the population is situated in the urban areas; approximately 86% to be precise. The estimated rate of urbanization during 2010-2015 is 0.6% at an annual rate of change. The capital of Sweden is Stockholm and this city is inhabited by a population of over 911,000, with 1.4 million in urban areas, and 2.2 million in the metropolitan areas.
Estimates of the age structure of the Swedish population shows that most of the people are middle-aged: 0-14 years (17%), 15-64 years (63%), 65 years and above (20%). Sex ratio according to the 2011 estimate is: at birth (1.06 Male/Female), under 15 (1.06 Male/Female), 15-64 (1.02 Male/Female), 65 years and above (0.81 Male/Female) and total population (0.98 Male/Female).
Data gathered in 2014 shows that education expenditures amounted to 13.2% of GDP, while health expenditures were 9.6% of GDP in 2012. The literacy rate in 2016 is very high at 99% for the total population, males and females. Maternal mortality rate was calculated at a low number of 4 deaths for 100000 live births in 2015, when compared to the increasing maternal mortality rates in other countries.
Swedish (79.6%)
Syrian (1.9%)
Iraqi (1.4%)
Finnish (1.3%)
Other (15.8%)
The main religion in Sweden is Church of Sweden (Lutheran).
Church of Sweden (Lutheran)
None or Unspecified
Other (includes Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist)
Though there are no official statistics on ethnicity, according to Statistics Sweden around 1,921,000 (20.1%) inhabitants of Sweden were of a foreign background in 2012. This background included: the indigenous population of Swedes with Finnish and Sami minorities, and foreign-born or first-generation immigrants like Turks, Greeks, Finns, Yugoslavs, Danes and Norwegians. The dominating religion in Sweden is Lutheran at 87%, with others like Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Baptist, Muslim, Buddhist and Jewish at 13% when grouped together. The official language is Swedish, while other languages spoken include small Sami and Finnish speaking minorities.
According to WHO data, life expectancy at birth for the Swedish population is calculated as 81.8 years, with 79.9 years for males and 83.6 years for females. The number of live births has increased by 0.93% since 2012, as opposed to deaths which have decreased by 1.1%.
Sweden was ranked at 14th place according to its life expectancy estimates by WHO (World Health Organization) in 2013. Other countries sharing this position with Sweden, according to WHO, are: Italy, Singapore, Iceland, Andorra, Australia, Spain, Qatar, Israel, Monaco, France, Canada and Luxembourg.
The quality of life in Sweden is quite high, with an overall life satisfaction ranking of 9.1 out of 10. Also, according to the World Happiness Report in 2018, Sweden ranks at number 9 out of all countries, with a score of 7.314. Additional factors to consider in the quality of life is the ease of access to clean drinking water and improved sanitation facilities. The respective numbers here are both over 99% which is a significantly higher percentage than many countries. In terms of healthcare, there are approximately 4 professional physicians available per 1,000 residents, and 2.4 beds available per 1,000 individuals. 11.9% of the GDP is spent on the financing of the healthcare in the country.
In the year 1570, the estimated Swedish population stood at 900,000. Over the centuries, the statistics have only showed progress: 1,485,000 in 1700; 4,099,000 in 1865; 8,562,000 in 1990 and the current 9,801,616 in 2016. When the Swedish census was conducted in 2005, it showed an increase of 475,322 when compared with the 1990 census, which means an average increase of 31,680 annually.
Due to the fact that Sweden’s fertility rate fell from 2.21 to 1.29 between 1950 and 2000, and life expectancy at birth rose by 8 years for males and 10 years for females, the population structure underwent a huge transformation. It changed from the classic pyramid shape to the pillar shape, which represents a more evenly distributed percentage of the population in each age bracket.
Population increases during 2004-2012 have mainly been attributed to immigration from Muslim countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. This translates as an influx of Muslim immigrants as opposed to any other ethnicity.