Background: A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both World Wars. Since then, Sweden has pursued a successful economic formula consisting of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum. The share of Sweden’s population born abroad increased from 11.3% in 2000 to 20% in 2021.

Geographic coordinates: 62 00 N, 15 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 450,295 km²
Land: 410,335 km²
Water: 39,960 km²
Comparative: almost three times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than California

Land boundaries
Total: 2,211 km
Border countries: (2) Finland 545 km; Norway 1,666 km

Coastline: 3,218 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm (adjustments made to return a portion of straits to high seas)
Exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines
Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate: temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north

Terrain: mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west

Elevation
Highest point: Kebnekaise South 2,100 m
Lowest point: reclaimed bay of Lake Hammarsjon, near Kristianstad -2.4 m
Mean elevation: 320 m

Natural resources: iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower

Land use
Agricultural land: 7.5% (2018 est.)
Forest: 68.7% (2018 est.)
Other: 23.8% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land: 519 km² (2013)

Total water withdrawal
Municipal: 955 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Industrial: 1.345 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
Agricultural: 75 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

Total renewable water resources: 174 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Natural hazards: ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic

Geography
Note: strategic location along Danish Straits linking Baltic and North Seas; Sweden has almost 100,000 lakes, the largest of which, Vanern, is the third largest in Europe

Population
Distribution: most Swedes live in the south where the climate is milder and there is better connectivity to mainland Europe; population clusters are found all along the Baltic coast in the east; the interior areas of the north remain sparsely populated: 10,483,647 (2022 est.)
Growth rate: 0.5% (2022 est.)
Below poverty line: 17.1% (2018 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Swede(s)
Adjective: Swedish

Ethnic groups: Swedish 80.3%, Syrian 1.9%, Iraqi 1.4%, Finnish 1.4%, other 15%

Languages: Swedish (official)
Major language samples:
Note: Finnish, Sami, Romani, Yiddish, and Meankieli are official minority languages

Religions: Church of Sweden (Lutheran) 57.6%, other (includes Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist) 8.9%, none or unspecified 33.5% (2019 est.)
Note: estimates reflect registered members of faith communities eligible for state funding (not all religions are state-funded and not all people who identify with a particular religion are registered members) and the Church of Sweden

Age structure
0-14 years: 17.71% (male 928,413/female 878,028)
15-24 years: 10.8% (male 569,082/female 532,492)
25-54 years: 39.01% (male 2,016,991/female 1,962,617)
55-64 years: 11.9% (male 610,521/female 603,795)
65 years and over: 20.59% (male 974,410/female 1,126,142) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 60.8
Youth dependency ratio: 28.5
Elderly dependency ratio: 32.3
Potential support ratio: 3.1 (2021 est.)

Median age
Total: 41.1 years
Male: 40.1 years
Female: 42.1 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.5% (2022 est.)

Birth rate: 10.83 births/1000 population (2022 est.)

Death rate: 9.46 deaths/1000 population (2022 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.6 migrant(s)/1000 population (2022 est.)

Population distribution: most Swedes live in the south where the climate is milder and there is better connectivity to mainland Europe; population clusters are found all along the Baltic coast in the east; the interior areas of the north remain sparsely populated

Urbanization
Urban population: 88.7% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 0.89% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 1.700 million STOCKHOLM (capital) (2023)

Environment
Current issues: marine pollution (Baltic Sea and North Sea); acid rain damage to soils and lakes; air pollution; inappropriate timber harvesting practices
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants
Particulate matter emissions: 5.89 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 43.25 megatons (2016 est.)
Methane emissions: 4.42 megatons (2020 est.)

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female
Total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2022 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 29.7 years (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio: 4 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 2.3 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 2.52 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 2.06 deaths/1000 live births (2022 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 82.7 years
Male: 80.94 years
Female: 84.58 years (2022 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.67 children born/woman (2022 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 70.3% (2017)
Note: percent of women aged 16-49

Current health expenditure: 10.9% of GDP (2019)

Physicians density: 7.09 physicians/1000 population (2019)

Hospital bed density: 2.1 beds/1000 population (2018)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: NA

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 20.6% (2016)

Alcohol consumption
Per capita total: 7.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita beer: 2.6 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita wine: 3.4 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita spirits: 1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Per capita other alcohols: 0.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Tobacco use
Total: 24% (2020 est.)
Male: 29.8% (2020 est.)
Female: 18.2% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: NA

Education expenditures: 7.2% of GDP (2020 est.)

Literacy
Total population: NA
Male: NA
Female: NA

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 20 years
Male: 18 years
Female: 21 years (2020)

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15-24 total: 24.8%
Rate ages 15-24 male: 25.3%
Rate ages 15-24 female: 24.1% (2021 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Sweden
Conventional short form: Sweden
Local long form: Konungariket Sverige
Local short form: Sverige
Etymology: name ultimately derives from the North Germanic Svear tribe, which inhabited central Sweden and is first mentioned in the first centuries A.D.

Government type: parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Stockholm
Geographic coordinates: 59 20 N, 18 03 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Etymology: stock and holm literally mean "log" and "islet" in Swedish, but there is no consensus as to what the words refer to

Administrative divisions: 21 counties (lan, singular and plural); Blekinge, Dalarna, Gavleborg, Gotland, Halland, Jamtland, Jonkoping, Kalmar, Kronoberg, Norrbotten, Orebro, Ostergotland, Skane, Sodermanland, Stockholm, Uppsala, Varmland, Vasterbotten, Vasternorrland, Vastmanland, Vastra Gotaland

Independence: 6 June 1523 (Gustav VASA elected king of Sweden, marking the abolishment of the Kalmar Union between Denmark, Norway, and Sweden)

National holiday: National Day, 6 June (1983); note - from 1916 to 1982 this date was celebrated as Swedish Flag Day

Constitution
History: Sweden has four fundamental laws which together make up the Constitution: The Instrument of Government (several previous; latest 1974); The Act of Succession (enacted 1810; changed in 1937 and 1980); The Freedom of the Press Act (many previous; latest in 1949); The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression (adopted 1991)
Amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires simple majority vote in two consecutive parliamentary terms with an intervening general election; passage also requires approval by simple majority vote in a referendum if Parliament approves a motion for a referendum by one third of its members; The Instrument of Government - amended several times, last in 2018; The Act of Succession - changed in 1937, 1980; The Freedom of the Press Act - amended several times, last in 2019; The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression - amended several times, last in 2018

Legal system: civil law system influenced by Roman-Germanic law and customary law

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descentonly: the father must be a citizen of Sweden; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen of Sweden and the father unknown
Dual citizenship recognized: no, unless the other citizenship was acquired involuntarily
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: King CARL XVI GUSTAF (since 15 September 1973); Heir Apparent Princess VICTORIA Ingrid Alice Desiree (daughter of the monarch, born 14 July 1977)
Head of government: Prime Minister Ulf KRISTERSSON (since 18 October 2022); Deputy Prime Minister Ebba BUSCH (since 18 October 2022)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister
Elections and appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually becomes the prime minister

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Parliament or Riksdag (349 seats; 310 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by open party-list proportional representation vote and 39 members in "at-large" seats directly elected by open party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)
Elections: last held on 11 September 2022
Election results: percent of vote by party - S/SAP 30.3%, M 19.1%, SD 20.5%, C 6.7%, V 6.7%, KD 5.3%, L 4.6%, MP 5.1%, other 1.7%; seats by party - S/SAP 107, M 68, SD 73, C 24, V 24, KD 19, L 16, MP 18; composition as of mid-2022 - men 188, women 161, percent of women 46%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Supreme Court of Sweden (consists of 16 justices, including the court chairman); Supreme Administrative Court (consists of 18 justices, including the court president)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court and Supreme Administrative Court justices nominated by the Judges Proposal Board, a 9-member nominating body consisting of high-level judges, prosecutors, and members of Parliament; justices appointed by the Government; following a probationary period, justices' appointments are permanent
Subordinate courts: first instance, appellate, general, and administrative courts; specialized courts that handle cases such as land and environment, immigration, labor, markets, and patents

Political parties and leaders: Center Party (Centerpartiet) or C [Annie LOOF resigned on 15 September 2022]
Christian Democrats (Kristdemokraterna) or KD [Ebba BUSCH]
Green Party (Miljopartiet de Grona) or MP [Marta STEVENI and Per BOLUND]
Left Party (Vansterpartiet) or V [Nooshi DADGOSTAR]
Moderate Party (Moderaterna) or M [Ulf KRISTERSSON]
Sweden Democrats (Sverigedemokraterna) or SD [Jimmie AKESSON]
Swedish Social Democratic Party (Socialdemokraterna) or S/SAP [Magdalena ANDERSSON]
The Liberals (Liberalerna) or L [Johan PEHRSON]

International organization participation: ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UN Security Council (temporary), UNSOM, UNTSO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Karin Ulrika OLOFSDOTTER (since 8 September 2017)
In the us chancery: 2,900 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 467-2,600
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 467-2,699
In the us email address and website:
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Erik D. RAMANATHAN (since 20 January 2022)
From the us embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Vag 31, SE-115 89 Stockholm
From the us mailing address: 5,750 Stockholm Place, Washington, DC 20,521-5,750
From the us telephone: [46] (08) 783-53-00
From the us FAX: [46] (08) 661-19-64
From the us email address and website:

Flag description: blue with a golden yellow cross extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag); the colors reflect those of the Swedish coat of arms - three gold crowns on a blue field

National symbols: three crowns, lion; national colors: blue, yellow

National anthem
Name: "Du Gamla, Du Fria" (Thou Ancient, Thou Free)
Lyrics and music: Richard DYBECK/traditional
Note: in use since 1844; also known as "Sang till Norden" (Song of the North), is based on a Swedish folk tune; it has never been officially adopted by the government; "Kungssangen" (The King's Song) serves as the royal anthem and is played in the presence of the royal family and during certain state ceremonies

National heritage
Total world heritage sites: 15 (13 cultural, 1 natural, 1 mixed)
Selected world heritage site locales:

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2017 dollars

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 44.1% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 26% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 24.9% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0.8% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 45.3% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -41.1% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.6% (2017 est.)
Industry: 33% (2017 est.)
Services: 65.4% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: wheat, milk, sugar beet, barley, potatoes, oats, rapeseed, pork, rye, triticale

Industries: iron and steel, precision equipment (bearings, radio and telephone parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed foods, motor vehicles

Industrial production growth rate: 4.1% (2017 est.)

Labor force: 5.029 million (2020 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 2%
By occupation industry: 12%
By occupation services: 86% (2014 est.)

Unemployment rate:

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15-24 total: 24.8%
Rate ages 15-24 male: 25.3%
Rate ages 15-24 female: 24.1% (2021 est.)

Population below poverty line: 17.1% (2018 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.4%
Highest 10: 24% (2012)

Budget
Revenues: $271.2 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: $264.4 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: $1.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Taxes and other revenues: 50.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Public debt:
Note: data cover general government debt and include debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

Revenue
From forest resources forest revenues: 0.21% of GDP (2018 est.)
From coal coal revenues: 0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:

Current account balance:

Exports:
Partners: Germany 10%, Norway 9%, United States 8%, Denmark 7%, Finland 6%, United Kingdom 5%, Netherlands 5%, China 5% (2019)
Commodities: cars and vehicle parts, packaged medicines, refined petroleum, broadcasting equipment, lumber (2019)

Imports:
Partners: Germany 18%, Netherlands 9%, Denmark 7%, Norway 7%, China 6%, Finland 5%, Belgium 5%, Poland 5% (2019)
Commodities: cars and vehicle parts, crude petroleum, refined petroleum, broadcasting equipment, computers (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

Debt external:

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access electrification total population: 100% (2020)
Installed generating capacity: 43.499 million kW (2020 est.)
Consumption: 124.609 billion kWh (2020 est.)
Exports: $36.824 billion kWh (2020 est.)
Imports: 11.827 billion kWh (2020 est.)
Transmission distribution losses: 10.434 billion kWh (2020 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels: 1% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources nuclear: 29.5% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources solar: 0.7% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources wind: 17.2% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 44.7% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
Generation sources biomass and waste: 6.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)

Coal
Production: 1.07 million metric tons (2020 est.)
Consumption: 3.328 million metric tons (2020 est.)
Exports: 24,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
Imports: 2.144 million metric tons (2020 est.)
Proven reserves: 1 million metric tons (2019 est.)

Petroleum
Total petroleum production: 10,600 bbl/day (2021 est.)
Refined petroleum consumption: 295,800 bbl/day (2019 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil and lease condensate imports: 403,200 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.)

Refined petroleum
Products production: 413,200 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products exports: 371,100 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products imports: 229,600 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Natural gas
Production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Consumption: 1,275,785,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
Exports: 34.886 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
Imports: 1,310,671,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions: 48.144 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From coal and metallurgical coke: 7.38 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From petroleum and other liquids: 38.406 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
From consumed natural gas: 2.359 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)

Energy consumption per capita: 210.882 million Btu/person (2019 est.)

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 1,478,610 (2020 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 15 (2020 est.)
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 12,895,900 (2019)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 128.49 (2019)

Broadcast media: publicly owned TV broadcaster operates 2 terrestrial networks plus regional stations; multiple privately owned TV broadcasters operating nationally, regionally, and locally; about 50 local TV stations; widespread access to pan-Nordic and international broadcasters through multi-channel cable and satellite TV; publicly owned radio broadcaster operates 3 national stations and a network of 25 regional channels; roughly 100 privately owned local radio stations with some consolidating into near national networks; an estimated 900 community and neighborhood radio stations broadcast intermittently

Internet
Country code: .se
Users total: 9,835,769 (2020 est.)
Users percent of population: 95% (2020 est.)

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 4,179,574 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 41 (2020 est.)

Military expenditures:

Military and security forces: Swedish Armed Forces (Forsvarsmakten): Army, Navy, Air Force, Home Guard (2022)

Military service age and obligation: 18-47 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; service obligation: 7.5 months (Army), 7-15 months (Navy), 8-12 months (Air Force); after completing initial service, soldiers have a reserve commitment until age 47; compulsory military service, abolished in 2010, was reinstated in January 2018; conscription is selective, includes both men and women (age 18), and requires 9-12 months of service (2022)
Note1: Sweden conscripts about 5,500 men and women each year
Note2: as of 2021, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel

Terrorist groups: Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS)
Note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix T.

National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 11 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 316

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: SE

Airports
Total: 231 (2021)
With paved runways total: 149
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 12
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 75
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 22
With paved runways under 914 m: 37 (2021)
With unpaved runways total: 82
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 5
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 77 (2021)

Heliports: 2 (2021)

Pipelines: 1626 km gas (2013)

Railways
Total: 14,127 km (2016)
Standard gauge: 14,062 km (2016) 1.435-m gauge (12,322 km electrified)
Narrowgauge: 65 km (2016) 0.891-m gauge (65 km electrified)

Roadways
Total: 573,134 km (2016) (includes 2,050 km of expressways)
Paved: 140,100 km (2016)
Unpaved: 433,034 km (2016)
Note: includes 98,500 km of state roads, 433,034 km of private roads, and 41,600 km of municipal roads

Waterways: 2,052 km (2010)

Merchant marine
Total: 370
By type: general cargo 49, oil tanker 22, other 299 (2021)

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Brofjorden, Goteborg, Helsingborg, Karlshamn, Lulea, Malmo, Stockholm, Trelleborg, Visby
Lng terminals import: Brunnsviksholme, Lysekil

Disputes international: none identified

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees country of origin: 114,995 (Syria), 28,744 (Afghanistan), 26,911 (Eritrea), 11,574 (Somalia), 11,153 (Iraq), 7,516 (Iran) (2020); 49,789 (Ukraine) (as of 20 December 2022)
Stateless persons: 50,098 (mid-year 2021); note - the majority of stateless people are from the Middle East and Somalia