Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sweden instead of Finland, you would:
Health
live 1.7 years longer
In Finland, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Sweden, that number is 84 years (83 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024.
be 27.6% less likely to be obese
In Finland, 24.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sweden, that number is 17.5% of people as of 2024.
see 20.8% more spent on your healthcare
Finland spends $6,433 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sweden spends $7,770 as of 2024.
have 22.1% more doctors per person
Finland has 36.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Sweden has 44.1 as of 2021.
Economy
make 12.4% more money
Finland has a GDP per capita of $56,149 as of 2025, while in Sweden, the GDP per capita is $63,133 as of 2025.
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.
Life
be 50.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Finland, approximately 8.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sweden, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
have 19.2% more children
In Finland, there are approximately 7.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sweden, there are 9.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 14.7% more on education
Finland spends 6.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Sweden spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
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.
Safety
be 50.0% less likely to die in a road accident
In Finland, road accidents kill 4.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sweden, they kill 2.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 17.3% more likely to be murdered
Finland has a homicide rate of 1.0 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Sweden, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 14.9% less likely to feel safe walking alone at night
In Finland, 86% of people feel safe walking alone at night as of 2021. In Sweden, that number is 73% as of 2022.
Infrastructure
find 11.3% more home broadband
Finland has 36.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Sweden has 40.6 as of 2024.
live with 49.6% less strain on fresh water
Finland withdraws 7% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sweden withdraws 4% as of 2022.
use 17.5% less electricity
Finland uses 14,819 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Sweden uses 12,226 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
emit 35.6% less CO2
Finland emits 5.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sweden emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 14.3% more likely to die from air pollution
In Finland, air pollution causes 7.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sweden, it causes 8.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Finland vs. Sweden
Sweden: At a glance
How big is Sweden compared to Finland? See an in-depth size comparison.