Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sweden instead of Germany, you would:
Health
live 3.3 years longer
In Germany, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 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 15.2% less likely to be obese
In Germany, 20.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sweden, that number is 17.5% of people as of 2024.
see 12.0% less spent on your healthcare
Germany spends $8,826 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sweden spends $7,770 as of 2024.
Economy
be 2.3 times more likely to be unemployed
In Germany, 3.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sweden, that number is 8.7% as of 2025.
Life
be 35.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Germany, approximately 3.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Sweden, on the other hand, 2.0 children do as of 2024.
have 14.8% more children
In Germany, there are approximately 8.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sweden, there are 9.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 39.7% more on education
Germany spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Sweden spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 34.7% more coastline
Germany has a total of 2,389 km of coastline. In Sweden, that number is 3,218 km.
Safety
be 36.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Germany, road accidents kill 3.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sweden, they kill 2.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 26.4% more likely to be murdered
Germany has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Sweden, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 89.9% less strain on fresh water
Germany withdraws 35% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sweden withdraws 4% as of 2022.
use 2.0 times more electricity
Germany uses 6,109 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Sweden uses 12,226 kWh as of 2024.
find 10.9% less home broadband
Germany has 45.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Sweden has 40.6 as of 2024.
Environment
be 46.7% less likely to die from air pollution
In Germany, air pollution causes 15.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sweden, it causes 8.0 as of 2019.
emit 48.6% less CO2
Germany emits 6.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sweden emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Germany vs. Sweden
Sweden: At a glance
How big is Sweden compared to Germany? See an in-depth size comparison.