Life Expectancy in Sweden 2026
Sweden consistently ranks among the countries with the highest life expectancy in the world, and the data available for 2026 reinforces that long-standing position while also revealing important nuances about who benefits most — and least — from Sweden’s healthcare system and social infrastructure. According to Statistics Sweden (SCB), the country’s official national statistics authority, life expectancy for women in 2025 stands at 85.5 years, while life expectancy for men is 82.5 years — figures that place Sweden firmly among Europe’s and the world’s longevity leaders. Looking at the combined average, life expectancy across the Swedish population reached approximately 83.47 years in 2024 based on data compiled from international sources, reflecting a steady upward climb from 83.31 years in 2023 and 83.06 years in 2022. SCB’s 2026–2070 population projection, published in April 2026, confirms that life expectancy continues to rise and is projected to reach 86.3 years for women and 83.5 years for men by 2035.
What makes Sweden’s life expectancy story in 2026 particularly significant is not just the headline numbers, but the growing inequality beneath them. While the population as a whole lives longer than almost any other on earth, a widening gap has emerged between those with the highest and lowest levels of education, between urban and rural residents, and between those born in Sweden and those born abroad. According to the most recent SCB statistical analysis published in 2025, the gap in life expectancy at age 30 between individuals with post-secondary education and those with only primary education reached 6.7 years among people born in Sweden in 2024 — and that gap has been growing steadily. Cardiovascular disease and cancer remain the two leading causes of death in Sweden, and the continued success in reducing cardiovascular mortality has been one of the most important drivers of the life expectancy gains recorded over the past three decades. Understanding these layers is essential for anyone trying to use Swedish life expectancy statistics in 2026 as a basis for policy, health planning, or demographic analysis.
Interesting Facts About Life Expectancy in Sweden in 2026
| Fact | Data Point |
|---|---|
| Life expectancy — women (2025, SCB projection) | 85.5 years |
| Life expectancy — men (2025, SCB projection) | 82.5 years |
| Combined life expectancy at birth (2024, UN/World Bank) | ~83.47 years |
| Life expectancy (2023, Eurostat) | 83.4 years (81.7 men; 85.0 women) |
| Life expectancy (2019–2023 period, SCB — men) | 81.21 years |
| Life expectancy (2019–2023 period, SCB — women) | 84.69 years |
| Projected life expectancy — women by 2035 | 86.3 years |
| Projected life expectancy — men by 2035 | 83.5 years |
| Increase in life expectancy from 1950 to 2024 | From ~71.1 years to ~83.47 years (+17.3%) |
| Gender gap in life expectancy (2025) | ~3 years (women live longer) |
| Healthy life expectancy (HALE) at birth (WHO, 2019 estimate) | 71.41 years |
| Leading cause of death in Sweden | Cardiovascular disease (~33% of deaths) |
| Second leading cause of death in Sweden | Cancer (~25% of deaths) |
| Infant mortality rate (2022) | ~1.83 per 1,000 live births |
| Sweden’s population aged 70 or older (2024) | 16% of population |
| Deaths in Sweden (2025, SCB) | 92,000 — 1,000 fewer than 2024 |
| Education life expectancy gap at age 30 (post-secondary vs. primary, 2024) | 6.7 years (Sweden-born) |
| County with highest life expectancy (remaining years at 30, primary education) | Halland County (51.4 years) |
| County with lowest life expectancy (remaining years at 30, primary education) | Norrbotten County (48.4 years) |
Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB) — Population Projection 2026–2070 (scb.se, April 2026); Statistics Sweden life expectancy by education (scb.se, 2025); Eurostat 2023 life expectancy data; UN World Population Prospects 2024; Macrotrends.net (World Bank data, February 2026); WHO 2019 HALE estimates (data.who.int); Wikipedia — Health in Sweden; Wikipedia — List of Swedish counties by life expectancy (SCB source data)
Taken together, these figures paint a picture of a country that has achieved extraordinary longevity but is navigating a new phase of its demographic history — one in which the headline gains in life expectancy are becoming increasingly unequally distributed. The 3-year gender gap between men (82.5 years) and women (85.5 years) is narrower than it once was, reflecting the fact that male life expectancy has improved faster than female life expectancy over recent decades, particularly through better outcomes for cardiovascular disease among men. The infant mortality rate of approximately 1.83 per 1,000 live births is one of the lowest in the world — down from a staggering 22 per 1,000 in 1950 — and is a testament to Sweden’s world-class neonatal care system and broadly equitable access to maternity health services.
The 16% of Sweden’s population aged 70 or older in 2024, combined with SCB’s projection that this will reach 22% by 2070, frames the broader social challenge lurking behind the life expectancy success story. More people living longer means greater demand on Sweden’s healthcare system, pension infrastructure, and social care network — particularly in rural counties like Norrbotten and Västernorrland, which already face declining populations and strained health services. The 92,000 deaths recorded in Sweden in 2025 — 1,000 fewer than in 2024 — confirm that mortality is declining, but the future trajectory points toward rising deaths as the large cohort born in the 1940s reaches very old age over the coming decade.
Sweden Life Expectancy by Gender Statistics in 2026
| Year / Period | Men (years) | Women (years) | Combined (years) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–2023 (SCB period average) | 81.21 | 84.69 | ~82.95 |
| 2022 (World Bank / UN) | ~81.70 | ~85.00 | 83.51 |
| 2023 (Eurostat) | 81.7 | 85.0 | 83.4 |
| 2023 (UN estimate) | 81.44 | 85.10 | 83.26 |
| 2024 (World Bank / Macrotrends) | — | — | 83.47 |
| 2025 (SCB projection) | 82.5 | 85.5 | ~84.0 |
| 2025 (UN-based combined estimate) | — | — | ~83.58 |
| 2035 (SCB projection) | 83.5 | 86.3 | ~84.9 |
| 1960 (historical reference, SCB) | ~71 | ~75 | — |
| 1950 (historical reference) | ~69 | ~73 | ~71.1 |
| Gender gap (2025) | — | — | ~3 years (women > men) |
Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB) Population Projection 2026–2070 (scb.se, April 2026); Statistics Sweden life tables (statistikdatabasen.scb.se, updated March 2026); Eurostat 2023 life expectancy; UN World Population Prospects 2024; World Bank life expectancy data (via Macrotrends, February 2026); Wikipedia — List of Swedish counties by life expectancy (SCB source)
The gender gap in Swedish life expectancy — with women outliving men by approximately 3 years as of 2025 — is one of the most consistent structural features of Swedish demography over the past century, yet it is also narrowing. In the mid-twentieth century, the gap between male and female life expectancy in Sweden exceeded six years at its widest point. The systematic narrowing of that gap since the 1980s reflects the dramatic improvement in male cardiovascular outcomes — reductions in smoking rates among men, better treatment of heart disease, and lifestyle changes that have meaningfully cut premature male mortality. Men born in Sweden between 2019 and 2023 have a life expectancy of 81.21 years, compared to 84.69 years for women in the same period, according to Statistics Sweden’s own life table data — one of the most authoritative demographic datasets in Europe, published with full life tables updated through March 2026.
The steady upward trajectory of both male and female life expectancy in Sweden is confirmed across multiple authoritative sources and is expected to continue. SCB’s 2026–2070 population projection — the most comprehensive long-range demographic modelling published by the Swedish government — uses 85.5 years for women and 82.5 years for men as its 2025 baseline, projecting those figures to rise to 86.3 and 83.5 years respectively by 2035. This improvement is not assumed to happen automatically: it depends on continued progress in reducing cardiovascular disease mortality, improving cancer treatment outcomes, and maintaining Sweden’s broadly strong public health infrastructure. The fact that male life expectancy improvement has been faster than female improvement in recent decades is significant for long-term social planning, as it gradually reshapes pension expectations, eldercare demand patterns, and household formation among the oldest age groups.
Sweden Life Expectancy Historical Trend Statistics in 2026
| Year | Combined Life Expectancy (years) | Year-on-Year Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | ~71.1 | — |
| 1960 | ~73.0 | — |
| 1970 | ~74.7 | — |
| 1980 | ~75.8 | — |
| 1990 | ~77.7 | — |
| 2000 | ~79.7 | — |
| 2010 | ~81.6 | — |
| 2018 | ~82.4 | — |
| 2019 | ~82.7 | +0.3 |
| 2020 | ~82.4 | –0.3 (COVID-19 impact) |
| 2021 | ~83.06 | +0.6 |
| 2022 | 83.06 | ~0.0% change |
| 2023 | 83.31 | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 83.47 | +0.2% |
| 2025 | ~83.58 (UN-based) | +0.18% |
| Gain from 1950 to 2024 | +12.37 years | +17.3% |
Source: Macrotrends.net — Sweden Life Expectancy 1950–2025 (World Bank data, updated February 2026); UN World Population Prospects 2024 (database.earth); Statistics Sweden (SCB) historical life tables (statistikdatabasen.scb.se, updated March 2026)
Sweden’s long-term life expectancy trajectory is one of the most admired demographic success stories in the world. In 1950, the combined life expectancy at birth in Sweden was approximately 71.1 years — itself already higher than most of the world at that time, but a far cry from the 83+ years achieved today. The gain of more than 12 years of life expectancy over 74 years reflects the cumulative effect of some of the most consequential public health achievements in modern history: the near-elimination of infectious disease mortality among children and working-age adults, the dramatic reduction in cardiovascular deaths through both lifestyle change and medical treatment, and the sustained investment in universal healthcare and social protection that has kept Sweden’s mortality rates among the lowest on earth. In the 1970s, Sweden was the country where both men and women enjoyed the world’s longest life expectancy — a position it has since partially ceded to Japan and several other nations, though it remains firmly in the global top tier.
The 2020 dip of approximately 0.3 years in combined life expectancy is the most visible COVID-19 footprint in Sweden’s mortality data. The pandemic’s impact was notably severe among older Swedes and among individuals with lower education levels, reversing years of gradual improvement for the most vulnerable groups. For those born in Sweden with primary education, life expectancy in 2024 remained lower than in 2019, meaning that group has not fully recovered from the pandemic’s mortality impact even five years later. Recovery was faster among those with post-secondary education and among the foreign-born population — the latter of whom have improved at approximately six months per year since 2020, nearly double the speed of the Sweden-born population’s recovery. By 2022 and 2023, the overall combined life expectancy had not only recovered but surpassed its pre-pandemic level, reaching 83.31 years in 2023 and 83.47 years in 2024.
Sweden Life Expectancy by Education Level Statistics in 2026
| Education Group (Age 30, Sweden-born, 2024) | Remaining Life Expectancy | vs. Primary Education |
|---|---|---|
| Post-secondary education | Highest — ~6.7 years more than primary | +6.7 years |
| Secondary education | Mid-range — ~2.9 years more than primary | +2.9 years |
| Primary education | Lowest — reference group | — |
| Gap (post-secondary vs. primary): 2014 baseline | ~5.7 years | — |
| Gap (post-secondary vs. primary): 2024 | ~6.7 years | Widened ~1 year in decade |
| Foreign-born, post-secondary vs. primary gap (2024) | 3.7 years | Smaller than Sweden-born gap |
| Foreign-born: recovery speed post-2020 | ~6 months/year | Faster than Sweden-born |
| Life expectancy increase (2000–2024, men primary education, at age 65) | +2.7 years | — |
| Life expectancy increase (2000–2024, men post-secondary, at age 65) | +3.5 years | Faster gains for higher educated |
| Difference men (primary vs. post-secondary at age 65, 2024) | 3 years | Widened from 2.2 years in 2000 |
Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB) — “Increasing differences in life expectancy by educational level” (scb.se, 2025 statistical news release); Statistics Sweden — “Life expectancy at age 65 by educational attainment 2000–2024” (scb.se); Statistics Sweden — “Faster increase in life expectancy among foreign-born after 2020” (scb.se)
The education gradient in Sweden’s life expectancy is one of the most closely tracked and most concerning health inequalities in Swedish society today. Statistics Sweden’s detailed analysis covering 2014 to 2024 confirms that the gap in remaining life expectancy at age 30 between those with post-secondary education and those with only primary education has widened by approximately one full year over that decade — from around 5.7 years to 6.7 years among those born in Sweden. This is not a small or technical distinction: a gap of nearly seven years in expected lifespan between the most and least educated Swedes represents a profound social inequality embedded in what is often presented internationally as one of the world’s most equal societies. The widening is particularly stark because it has occurred during a period when Sweden’s average life expectancy was rising — meaning the benefits of improved health and longevity have not been distributed evenly.
The mechanism behind this gradient is partially understood. Those with post-secondary education have benefited from earlier and more rapid adoption of healthy behaviours — lower smoking rates, better diet, more physical activity — and from better access to preventive care and health information. They have also been better insulated from the economic shocks that affect health outcomes among lower-income groups. For individuals born in Sweden with primary education, life expectancy in 2024 had still not recovered to its 2019 pre-pandemic level — a damning finding that suggests the most disadvantaged Swedish residents experienced a long-lasting health setback from COVID-19 that more privileged groups avoided or recovered from more quickly. The foreign-born population shows a somewhat different pattern: their educational gradient is smaller than among those born in Sweden, and their post-2020 recovery has been faster, suggesting a complex interplay of health behaviours, occupational exposure, and healthcare access that resists simple interpretation.
Sweden Life Expectancy by Region (County) Statistics in 2026
| County | Remaining Life Expectancy at Age 30 (Primary Education) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Halland County | 51.4 years (highest — primary ed.) | Also highest for secondary ed. |
| Kronoberg County | — | Tied highest for post-secondary ed. (56.8 years) |
| Jönköping County | — | Tied highest for post-secondary ed. (56.8 years) |
| Norrbotten County | 48.4 years (lowest — primary ed.) | Also lowest for secondary ed. (52.2 years) |
| Gävleborg County | — | Largest gap primary vs. post-secondary (7.5 years) |
| Blekinge County | — | Smallest gap primary vs. post-secondary (5.0 years) |
| Västernorrland County | — | Lowest for post-secondary education (55.2 years) |
| Stockholm County | — | Highest density; above-average life expectancy |
| Regional difference: highest vs. lowest (primary ed.) | ~3 years | Halland vs. Norrbotten |
| Rural RN shortage (HRSA nonmetro equivalent — Swedish context) | 11% shortage projected (nonmetro) | Mirrored in northern counties |
| General pattern | Southern and coastal counties > Northern inland counties | Consistent across education groups |
Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB) — “Increasing differences in life expectancy by educational level” (scb.se, 2025); Statistics Sweden — “Faster increase in life expectancy among foreign born after 2020” (scb.se); Wikipedia — List of Swedish counties by life expectancy (SCB source data, December 2025)
Regional variation in life expectancy across Sweden’s 21 counties is a persistent and well-documented feature of the country’s health geography, and it is driven largely — though not exclusively — by differences in educational attainment between county populations. Halland County, located on Sweden’s southwestern coast south of Gothenburg, consistently records the highest remaining life expectancy among those with primary education (51.4 years at age 30) and secondary education (54.6 years), making it the county where even the least-educated residents tend to live longer than their peers elsewhere. By contrast, Norrbotten County — Sweden’s northernmost and most sparsely populated county — records the lowest remaining life expectancy for both primary and secondary education groups (48.4 and 52.2 years respectively), a difference of approximately 3 years compared to Halland for the same educational cohort.
These regional differences do not exist in isolation. Counties with lower life expectancy in northern and central Sweden tend to combine higher proportions of residents with primary or lower secondary education, greater dependence on physically demanding occupations in industries like forestry and mining, more limited access to specialist healthcare, and ongoing population decline that strains the remaining health infrastructure. Gävleborg County records the widest educational life expectancy gap of any Swedish county at 7.5 years between those with post-secondary and primary education — a figure that reflects both the county’s relatively poor outcomes for lower-educated residents and the relatively strong outcomes among its more highly educated population. The geographic and educational dimensions of Swedish life expectancy inequality are deeply intertwined, and SCB’s county-level data — regularly updated through the Statistics Database — provides one of the most granular life expectancy monitoring systems of any national statistics office in the world.
Sweden Life Expectancy Projections & Future Statistics in 2026
| Metric | Projection / Data |
|---|---|
| Women’s life expectancy — 2025 (SCB) | 85.5 years |
| Men’s life expectancy — 2025 (SCB) | 82.5 years |
| Women’s life expectancy — projected 2035 (SCB) | 86.3 years |
| Men’s life expectancy — projected 2035 (SCB) | 83.5 years |
| Combined life expectancy — projected 2100 (UN medium variant) | ~92.2 years |
| Population aged 70+ in Sweden (2024) | 16% of population |
| Population aged 70+ in Sweden — projected 2034 | ~17% |
| Population aged 70+ in Sweden — projected 2070 | 22% |
| Sweden total population — projected 2030 | ~10.7 million |
| Sweden total population — projected 2041 | Exceeds 11 million |
| Deaths in Sweden (2025, SCB) | 92,000 |
| Deaths projected to exceed births | In many future years (driven by aging) |
| Births in Sweden (2025, SCB) | 97,500 — lowest since 2002 |
| Projected lowest birth year | 2028 (~95,000 births) |
| COVID-19 impact on life expectancy (2020) | ~–0.3 years combined; primary ed. still below 2019 level in 2024 |
| Healthcare spending as % of GDP (2022) | 10.7% |
Source: Statistics Sweden (SCB) — “The Future Population of Sweden 2026–2070” (scb.se, April 2026); Statistics Sweden — Population Projection 2025–2070 (scb.se, April 2025); UN World Population Prospects 2024 via database.earth; Statista — Sweden GDP healthcare spend
Sweden’s life expectancy projections through 2070 — published by Statistics Sweden in the comprehensive 2026–2070 population projection released in April 2026 — reflect a country in the early stages of a profound demographic transition. The headline trajectories are positive: life expectancy is projected to continue rising for both sexes, with women expected to reach 86.3 years and men 83.5 years by 2035. Looking further ahead, UN medium-variant projections suggest Sweden’s combined life expectancy could reach approximately 92.2 years by 2100 if current trends hold — a figure that would represent a continuation of the extraordinary longevity improvements recorded over the past century. Sweden’s investment in healthcare — 10.7% of GDP in 2022, among the highest proportions in Europe — provides a structural foundation for sustaining these gains.
However, the population dynamics underlying these projections point to significant challenges ahead. The 97,500 births recorded in 2025 — the lowest since 2002 — represent a fertility crisis that will, over time, reshape Sweden’s age structure and increase the ratio of elderly dependents to working-age taxpayers. SCB projects births will fall further to approximately 95,000 in 2028 before beginning a gradual recovery. Meanwhile, deaths are expected to increase significantly over the next ten years as the large baby boomer cohort born in the 1940s reaches very old ages — many of them now in their mid-80s and turning 85 in the next few years. These converging forces — rising longevity, falling fertility, and an imminent surge in elderly deaths — create the classic demographic pressure that Sweden’s policymakers and healthcare planners must navigate. The fact that 16% of Sweden’s population was already aged 70 or older in 2024, rising to a projected 22% by 2070, gives some sense of the structural weight of aging that will define Swedish society across the coming half-century.
Sweden Life Expectancy Causes of Death & Health Context Statistics in 2026
| Metric | Data |
|---|---|
| Leading cause of death in Sweden | Cardiovascular disease (~33% of all deaths) |
| Second leading cause of death | Cancer (~25% of all deaths) |
| Cancer deaths (2022) | ~23,400 deaths |
| Cardiovascular disease deaths (2018 reference) | ~33% of all deaths |
| Infant mortality rate (2022) | ~1.83 per 1,000 live births |
| Infant mortality rate (1950, historical) | ~22 per 1,000 live births |
| Under-five mortality rate (2022) | ~2 per 1,000 live births |
| Maternal mortality ratio (2020) | 5 per 100,000 live births |
| Healthy life expectancy (HALE) at birth — WHO 2019 estimate | 71.41 years |
| HALE — men (WHO 2019) | 71.33 years |
| HALE — women (WHO 2019) | 71.46 years |
| Share of population overweight or obese (2022) | ~50% |
| Overweight / obese — men (2022) | ~57% |
| Overweight / obese — women (2022) | ~43% |
| Population in good self-reported health (2022, men aged 35–44) | 75% |
| Population in good self-reported health (2022, men aged 75–84) | 55% |
| GDP spent on healthcare (2022) | 10.7% |
Source: Wikipedia — Health in Sweden (citing Socialstyrelsen / National Board of Health and Welfare); WHO data.who.int (Sweden country profile); World Health Systems Facts — Sweden (citing WHO 2024 statistics and OECD 2021 country health profile); Statista — State of health in Sweden (2024)
Cardiovascular disease and cancer together account for roughly 58% of all deaths in Sweden, making them by far the most significant drivers of mortality and therefore the most consequential targets for life expectancy improvement. The 33% share of deaths attributable to cardiovascular disease represents a dramatic fall from historical peaks — in the 1970s and 1980s, cardiovascular mortality was considerably higher — and it is the long-term decline in cardiovascular deaths, driven by reduced smoking, improved diet, better pharmaceutical treatment, and faster emergency cardiac care, that has contributed the most to Sweden’s rising life expectancy over the past 50 years. Cancer accounts for approximately 25% of deaths, with around 23,400 cancer deaths recorded in 2022, and remains the area where Sweden’s improvement has been slower relative to some peer nations.
The healthy life expectancy (HALE) figure of 71.41 years from the WHO’s 2019 estimates is an important companion to the headline life expectancy number. It tells us that while Swedes born in 2019 could expect to live to approximately 82.7 years on average at that time, they could expect to live only 71.4 of those years in “full health” — meaning the final decade or more of life is expected to involve some degree of disease or disability. The gap of roughly 11 years between life expectancy and healthy life expectancy is a measure of the burden of chronic disease in old age that Sweden’s healthcare system must manage, and it is expected to grow as the population ages. The 50% of Sweden’s population classified as overweight or obese in 2022 — including 57% of men — is a risk factor that may constrain future healthy life expectancy gains if it is not addressed, since excess weight significantly raises the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and several cancers.
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