Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sweden instead of Finland, you would:

Health

live 0.9 years longer

In Finland, the average life expectancy is 82 years (79 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In Sweden, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 11.7% more money

Finland has a GDP per capita of $57,500 as of 2023, while in Sweden, the GDP per capita is $64,200 as of 2023.

be 32.0% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Finland, 12.2% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Sweden, however, that number is 16.1% as of 2022.

pay a 10.7% higher top tax rate

Finland has a top tax rate of 51.6% as of 2016. In Sweden, the top tax rate is 57.1% as of 2016.

Life

be 37.5% less likely to die during childbirth

In Finland, approximately 8.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Sweden, 5.0 women do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 22.0% more on education

Finland spends 5.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Sweden spends 7.2% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 18.8% more on healthcare

Finland spends 9.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Sweden, that number is 11.4% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 2.6 times more coastline

Finland has a total of 1,250 km of coastline. In Sweden, that number is 3,218 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Finnish Tax Administration, The World Factbook, Skatteverket.

Sweden: At a glance

Sweden is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 410,335 sq km. A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for almost two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both world wars. Sweden's long-successful economic formula of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements was challenged in the 1990s by high unemployment and in 2000-02 and 2009 by the global economic downturns, but fiscal discipline over the past several years has allowed the country to weather economic vagaries. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum.
Read more

How big is Sweden compared to Finland? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Sweden.or Finland It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.