The population density in Sweden increased over the past 10 years, reaching 25.9 inhabitants per square kilometer in 2023. During that year, the population of Sweden reached 10.55 million.

Stockholm county had the highest population density

Sweden consists of 21 counties, administrative regions that primarily control public healthcare, public transport, and culture within the county. Among these, the most populated county is the capital region, Stockholm county, with a population density of 375 inhabitants per square kilometer in 2022. Stockholm county is followed by Skåne, with 129 inhabitants per square kilometer. The least populated county is Norrbotten, with only 2.6 inhabitants per square kilometer.

Land area of the Scandinavian countries

Though the population density in Sweden is increasing, the country still has a lot of surface area compared to its population. Of the Scandinavian countries, Sweden is the largest with a land area of over 447,000 square kilometers, but Norway is larger if the islands of Svalbard and Jan Mayen are taken into account.

Sweden SE: Population Density: People per Square Km data was reported at 24.718 Person/sq km in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 24.362 Person/sq km for 2016. Sweden SE: Population Density: People per Square Km data is updated yearly, averaging 20.697 Person/sq km from Dec 1961 (Median) to 2017, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 24.718 Person/sq km in 2017 and a record low of 18.326 Person/sq km in 1961. Sweden SE: Population Density: People per Square Km data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Sweden – Table SE.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Population density is midyear population divided by land area in square kilometers. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship--except for refugees not permanently settled in the country of asylum, who are generally considered part of the population of their country of origin. Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes.; ; Food and Agriculture Organization and World Bank population estimates.; Weighted average;

Among the regions in Sweden, the the capital region Stockholm county had the highest population density in 2022, with 374.6 inhabitants per square kilometers. In 2021, more than 2.4 million people lived in Stockholm. In terms of highest population density, Stockholm county was followed by Skåne, with 129 inhabitants per square kilometer. The least populated county was Norrbotten, with only 2.6 inhabitants per square kilometer.

Increasing population density

The population in Sweden is increasing steadily and reached 10.52 million inhabitants in 2022. Because of the growing population, the population density in Sweden increased as well over the past 10 years. In 2012, there were 23.4 inhabitants per square kilometer and in 2022 the number had increased to 25.8. Despite this, Sweden is a relatively sparsely populated country.

Highest rent per square meter in Stockholm

As the most densely populated county, the rents for rented dwellings in Stockholm were higher than in Sweden’s other counties. In 2020, the average rent per square meter in Stockholm county amounted to almost 1,300 Swedish kronor, while the rent in Norrbotten, the least populated county, reached an average of 999 Swedish kronor per square meter.

Sweden: Population density, people per square km: The latest value from 2021 is 26 people per square km, an increase from 25 people per square km in 2020. In comparison, the world average is 456 people per square km, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Sweden from 1961 to 2021 is 21 people per square km. The minimum value, 18 people per square km, was reached in 1961 while the maximum of 26 people per square km was recorded in 2021.

Population density (people per sq. km of land area) in Sweden was reported at 25.75 sq. Km in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Sweden - Population density (people per sq. km) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

VERSION 1.5. The world's most accurate population datasets. Seven maps/datasets for the distribution of various populations in Sweden: (1) Overall population density (2) Women (3) Men (4) Children (ages 0-5) (5) Youth (ages 15-24) (6) Elderly (ages 60+) (7) Women of reproductive age (ages 15-49).

The total population in Sweden was estimated at 10.6 million people in 2025, according to the latest census figures and projections from Trading Economics. This dataset provides - Sweden Population - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Of the total population in Sweden of 10.55 million people, around half resided in the counties Stockholm, Västra Götaland or Skåne. This is also the three counties where the three largest cities in Sweden, Stockholm, Göteborg, and Malmö, are located. In the capital region Stockholm county, there lived nearly 2.5 million inhabitants in 2023. Västra Götaland county had close to 1.8 million inhabitants, while Skåne county, the southernmost region, had roughly 1.4 million inhabitants. The island Gotland had the lowest number of inhabitants with only 60,000.

The highest population density

Stockholm, Skåne and Västra Götaland were also the three counties in Sweden with the highest population density. In 2022, 374.6 inhabitants per square kilometer lived in Stockholm county, while the corresponding figures for Skåne and Västra Götaland were 129 and 73.9, respectively.

The highest rents

Unsurprisingly. Stockholm county is the county in Sweden with the highest rents for rented dwellings, with average prices for one square meter amounting to over 1,400 Swedish kronor in 2022. The lowest average renting prices were in the northwestern region Jämtland, one square meter costing 1,000 Swedish kronor.

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the data for the New Sweden, Maine population pyramid, which represents the New Sweden town population distribution across age and gender, using estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates. It lists the male and female population for each age group, along with the total population for those age groups. Higher numbers at the bottom of the table suggest population growth, whereas higher numbers at the top indicate declining birth rates. Furthermore, the dataset can be utilized to understand the youth dependency ratio, old-age dependency ratio, total dependency ratio, and potential support ratio.

Key observations

• Youth dependency ratio, which is the number of children aged 0-14 per 100 persons aged 15-64, for New Sweden, Maine, is 32.9.
• Old-age dependency ratio, which is the number of persons aged 65 or over per 100 persons aged 15-64, for New Sweden, Maine, is 47.9.
• Total dependency ratio for New Sweden, Maine is 80.8.
• Potential support ratio, which is the number of youth (working age population) per elderly, for New Sweden, Maine is 2.1.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group for the New Sweden town population analysis. Total expected values are 18 and are define above in the age groups section.
• Population (Male): The male population in the New Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Population (Female): The female population in the New Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Total Population: The total population of the New Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for New Sweden town Population by Age. You can refer the same here

WorldPop produces different types of gridded population count datasets, depending on the methods used and end application. An overview of the data can be found in Tatem et al, and a description of the modelling methods used found in Stevens et al. The 'Global per country 2000-2020' datasets represent the outputs from a project focused on construction of consistent 100m resolution population count datasets for all countries of the World for each year 2000-2020. These efforts necessarily involved some shortcuts for consistency. The 'individual countries' datasets represent older efforts to map populations for each country separately, using a set of tailored geospatial inputs and differing methods and time periods. The 'whole continent' datasets are mosaics of the individual countries datasets

WorldPop (www.worldpop.org - School of Geography and Environmental Science, University of Southampton; Department of Geography and Geosciences, University of Louisville; Departement de Geographie, Universite de Namur) and Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University (2018). Global High Resolution Population Denominators Project - Funded by The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1134076). https://dx.doi.org/10.5258/SOTON/WP00645

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the data for the Sweden, New York population pyramid, which represents the Sweden town population distribution across age and gender, using estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates. It lists the male and female population for each age group, along with the total population for those age groups. Higher numbers at the bottom of the table suggest population growth, whereas higher numbers at the top indicate declining birth rates. Furthermore, the dataset can be utilized to understand the youth dependency ratio, old-age dependency ratio, total dependency ratio, and potential support ratio.

Key observations

• Youth dependency ratio, which is the number of children aged 0-14 per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden, New York, is 15.9.
• Old-age dependency ratio, which is the number of persons aged 65 or over per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden, New York, is 19.6.
• Total dependency ratio for Sweden, New York is 35.5.
• Potential support ratio, which is the number of youth (working age population) per elderly, for Sweden, New York is 5.1.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group for the Sweden town population analysis. Total expected values are 18 and are define above in the age groups section.
• Population (Male): The male population in the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Population (Female): The female population in the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Total Population: The total population of the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Sweden town Population by Age. You can refer the same here

Population ages 15-64 (% of total population) in Sweden was reported at 62.27 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Sweden - Population ages 15-64 (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Historical chart and dataset showing total population for Sweden by year from 1950 to 2025.

A high-quality map of genetic variation in the Swedish population based on a representative cross-section of 1000 individuals.Data availability:The data has been deposited in FEGA Sweden, a national node of the Federated European Genome-phenome Archive (FEGA).More information about the data and instructions for data access can be found on the EGA study page:https://ega-archive.org/studies/EGAS50000000906

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the data for the Sweden, Maine population pyramid, which represents the Sweden town population distribution across age and gender, using estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year estimates. It lists the male and female population for each age group, along with the total population for those age groups. Higher numbers at the bottom of the table suggest population growth, whereas higher numbers at the top indicate declining birth rates. Furthermore, the dataset can be utilized to understand the youth dependency ratio, old-age dependency ratio, total dependency ratio, and potential support ratio.

Key observations

• Youth dependency ratio, which is the number of children aged 0-14 per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden, Maine, is 39.5.
• Old-age dependency ratio, which is the number of persons aged 65 or over per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden, Maine, is 33.0.
• Total dependency ratio for Sweden, Maine is 72.4.
• Potential support ratio, which is the number of youth (working age population) per elderly, for Sweden, Maine is 3.0.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2017-2021 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group for the Sweden town population analysis. Total expected values are 18 and are define above in the age groups section.
• Population (Male): The male population in the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Population (Female): The female population in the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Total Population: The total population of the Sweden town for the selected age group is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Sweden town Population by Age. You can refer the same here

Sweden: Rural population, percent of total population: The latest value from 2023 is 11.26 percent, a decline from 11.51 percent in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 38.64 percent, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Sweden from 1960 to 2023 is 16.92 percent. The minimum value, 11.26 percent, was reached in 2023 while the maximum of 27.51 percent was recorded in 1960.

The number of foreign citizens as a share of the total population in Sweden increased steadily from 2010 to 2023. While 1.8 million foreign inhabitants lived in the country in 2010, the number had increased to 2.87 million in 2023. Over the same period, the number of Swedish inhabitants increased from 7.62 million to 7.69 million. Syrians made up the largest group of foreign-born citizens in the Nordic country that year.

Sweden SE: Population Density: Inhabitants per sq km data was reported at 25.750 Person in 2022. This records an increase from the previous number of 25.570 Person for 2021. Sweden SE: Population Density: Inhabitants per sq km data is updated yearly, averaging 22.290 Person from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2022, with 33 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 25.750 Person in 2022 and a record low of 21.010 Person in 1990. Sweden SE: Population Density: Inhabitants per sq km data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Sweden – Table SE.OECD.GGI: Social: Demography: OECD Member: Annual.

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the data for the Sweden Township, Pennsylvania population pyramid, which represents the Sweden township population distribution across age and gender, using estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates. It lists the male and female population for each age group, along with the total population for those age groups. Higher numbers at the bottom of the table suggest population growth, whereas higher numbers at the top indicate declining birth rates. Furthermore, the dataset can be utilized to understand the youth dependency ratio, old-age dependency ratio, total dependency ratio, and potential support ratio.

Key observations

• Youth dependency ratio, which is the number of children aged 0-14 per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden Township, Pennsylvania, is 33.8.
• Old-age dependency ratio, which is the number of persons aged 65 or over per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Sweden Township, Pennsylvania, is 48.0.
• Total dependency ratio for Sweden Township, Pennsylvania is 81.9.
• Potential support ratio, which is the number of youth (working age population) per elderly, for Sweden Township, Pennsylvania is 2.1.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group for the Sweden township population analysis. Total expected values are 18 and are define above in the age groups section.
• Population (Male): The male population in the Sweden township for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Population (Female): The female population in the Sweden township for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Total Population: The total population of the Sweden township for the selected age group is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Sweden township Population by Age. You can refer the same here

Sweden - Population was 10587710.00 persons for December of 2025, according to the EUROSTAT. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for Sweden - Population - last updated from the EUROSTAT on July of 2025. Historically, Sweden - Population reached a record high of 10587710.00 persons in December of 2025 and a record low of 9415570.00 persons in December of 2011.