Poverty in Sweden - The Borgen Project (2024)

FAQs

What is the poverty level in Sweden? ›

Sweden achieved its egalitarian income distribution and eliminated pov- erty largely because of its system of earnings and income determination.

In this report we see that child poverty in Sweden has decreased marginally to 9.2%. This means that almost 200,000 children lived in financial vulnerability in 2019 according to Save the Children Sweden´s measures for child poverty in Sweden.

Varies from 7.5% for Sweden to 47.0% for Italy.

On August 17, 2012, it was reported in Dagens Nyheter that Laxå is Sweden's poorest municipality and the only one in the country with a net debt.

If you look closely you will see that 26.3% of the US population is in poverty using market incomes. In Sweden it is 26.7%: therefore we can indeed say that the US has less poverty than Sweden.

In the early 20th century, Sweden's exchange with other countries began to increase. Trade with other countries grew, and people were able to travel between countries without a passport. In 150 years Sweden has developed from a poor agriculture-based country into a rich industrial one.

In Sweden, the average household net-adjusted disposable income per capita is USD 33 730 a year, more than the OECD average of USD 30 490 a year. In terms of employment, about 75% of people aged 15 to 64 in Sweden have a paid job, above the OECD employment average of 66%.

Updated October 2023

Sweden's economy is considered “mostly free” according to the 2024 Index. The Swedish economy performs well in the key economic freedom pillars of rule of law and regulatory efficiency, facilitated by open-market policies that sustain dynamic trade and investment flows.

Among the OECD countries, Costa Rica had the highest share of children living in poverty, reaching 28.5 percent in 2022. Türkiye followed with a share of 22 percent of children living in poverty, while 20.5 percent of children in Spain, Chile, and the United States did the same.

What is Sweden's homeless population? ›

Housing prices having increased homelessness significantly, and although there are more houses being built, they are not affordable (Borgen Project, 2020). The estimated number of homeless people in Sweden in 2020 was 33,000 (Stadsmissionen, 2021).

Sweden unemployment rate for 2022 was 7.39%, a 1.33% decline from 2021. Sweden unemployment rate for 2021 was 8.72%, a 0.43% increase from 2020. Sweden unemployment rate for 2020 was 8.29%, a 1.46% increase from 2019. Sweden unemployment rate for 2019 was 6.83%, a 0.47% increase from 2018.

Sweden still belongs to the group of the most equal OECD countries, despite a rapid surge of income inequality since the early 1990s. The growth in inequality between 1985 and the early 2010s was, though, the largest among all OECD countries, increasing by one third.

As of recent data, the average monthly salary before taxes in Sweden is approximately 45,000 SEK (Swedish kronor), which equates to around 4,500 USD depending on current exchange rates. However, after taxes, the average monthly salary that most workers take home is roughly between 27,000 SEK and 29,000 SEK.

What Is the Average Salary in Sweden? The average annual salary in Sweden is around SEK 481, 200. Average wages in Sweden decreased to 193 SEK/Hour (2832.482 USD/Month) in July 2023. The maximum rate of the average wage for employees was 184 SEK/Hour, and the minimum was 134 SEK/Hour.

There is no minimum wage in Sweden, neither for citizens nor for expatriates living in Sweden. The government of Sweden prefers to not be involved with matters related to labor, and unions are the primary body to set minimum compensation figures.