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Finland and Sweden

The same question asked of every column. Numbers that break down by age or sex follow the controls; the rest stay country-wide and say so.

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Finland

Sweden

The widest gap is Housing costs over 40% of income: Sweden 10.8% against Finland 4.7%, 6.1 points apart.

Ageall ages
Sex

One question per row

The faint tick on each bar is the EU27 figure.

Figure
Finland
Sweden

People

Median age2.3 years
43.5 years
41.2 years
Life expectancy at birth1.6 years
82.2 years
83.8 years
People87.9%
5.6m
10.6m
People per square kilometre39.8%
18.6 per km²
26.0 per km²
Women in the population0.8 points
50.5%
49.7%
Born abroad10.8 points
10.0%
20.8%
Born outside the EU7.9 points
7.6%
15.5%

Money and work

Disposable income per person4.1%
€29,740
€28,574
Average net income6.8%
€33,430
€31,299
Take-home pay, average-wage worker3.3%
€37,690
€38,950
Gross pay, average-wage worker7.8%
€54,528
€50,560
In work, age 20 to 645.5 points
76.3%
81.8%
Out of work0.9 points
9.7%
8.8%
Hours worked a week2.3 hours
36.4 hours
38.7 hours
At risk of poverty2.2 points
13.4%
15.6%
Housing costs over 40% of income6.1 points
4.7%
10.8%
GDP per person12.8%
€49,850
€56,250

Family and home

People at home5.3%
1.9
2.0
Households with children4.4 points
21.1%
25.5%
Children per woman14.4%
1.25
1.43
Own their home2.3 points
66.9%
64.6%

Health and daily life

Hospital beds32.6%
248 per 100,000 people
187 per 100,000 people
Doctors26.8%
368 per 100,000 people
467 per 100,000 people
Nurses20.4%
1,399 per 100,000 people
1,162 per 100,000 people

Education

With a degree8.1 points
42.7%
50.8%
Students per 1,000 people29.3%
60.5 per 1,000 people
46.8 per 1,000 people

Public spending

Public spending on them6.3%
€28,440
€26,743
Tax raised per person12.5%
€20,834
€23,433
Government debt53.4 points
88.5%
35.1%

Country and infrastructure

Land area32.2%
338,363 km²
447,424 km²
Railway density37.2%
19.5 per 1,000 km²
26.8 per 1,000 km²
Motorway density74.1%
3.1 per 1,000 km²
5.5 per 1,000 km²
Cars per 1,000 people41.3%
671 per 1,000 people
475 per 1,000 people
Households with internet1.9 points
97.6%
95.7%
Tourist nights per resident50.1%
4.13
6.2

Environment

Renewable energy12.4 points
53.0%
65.4%
Land under forest5.8 points
74.4%
68.6%

Where €100 of public spending goes

Every euro each general government spends, sorted into the ten functions all 27 countries report against. Open a row for the ranking of 27 and what sits inside it.

Finland

Sweden

Function
Finland
Sweden
12.4%
11.0%
2.7%
3.9%
2.3%
3.2%
8.4%
9.6%
0.4%
1.1%
0.9%
1.6%
13.4%
14.7%
2.9%
2.8%
10.8%
14.4%
45.8%
37.9%

Reference year 2024. Total public spending €100.00 in every column, so the ten shares always add up to one hundred.

Frequently asked: Finland and Sweden

  1. Which spends a larger share on protecting the environment: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 0.7 points: Sweden 1.1%, Finland 0.4%. Waste and waste water, pollution control, biodiversity and landscape protection. Eurostat · Public spending by function · 2024. See the figure

  2. Which government owes more: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 53.4 points: Finland 88.5%, Sweden 35.1%. Consolidated gross debt of the general government, against GDP. Eurostat · Government debt · 2025. See the figure

  3. Where do housing costs eat more of the income: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 6.1 points: Sweden 10.8%, Finland 4.7%. Share whose housing costs exceed 40% of their disposable income. Eurostat · Housing costs over 40% of income · 2025. See the figure

  4. Where were more residents born abroad: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 10.8 points: Sweden 20.8%, Finland 10.0%. Share of residents born in another country. Eurostat records country of birth, not ethnicity. Eurostat · Born abroad & Born outside the EU · 2025. See the figure

  5. Where do more people live: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 87.9%: Sweden 10.6m, Finland 5.6m. People usually resident in the country on 1 January. Eurostat · People & Women in the population · 2025. See the figure

  6. Where is there more railway per 1,000 km²: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 37.2%: Sweden 26.8, Finland 19.5. Railway line in use for every 1,000 square kilometres of the country. Eurostat · Railway network & Railway density · 2024. See the figure

  7. Where are there more hospital beds per 100,000 people: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 32.6%: Finland 248, Sweden 187. Beds available in hospitals, per 100,000 residents. Eurostat · Hospital beds · 2024. See the figure

  8. Where are there more university students per 1,000 people: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 29.3%: Finland 60.5, Sweden 46.8. People in higher education, per 1,000 residents. Eurostat · University students & Students per 1,000 people · 2024. See the figure

  9. Where does more energy come from renewables: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 12.4 points: Sweden 65.4%, Finland 53.0%. Share of final energy use that comes from renewable sources. Eurostat · Renewable energy · 2025. See the figure

  10. Where do more households have children: Finland or Sweden?

    The gap is 4.4 points: Sweden 25.5%, Finland 21.1%. Share of private households with at least one dependent child. Eurostat · Households with children · 2025. See the figure

Medians where possible, per-capita averages for spending. This person is a composite of published statistics, not the most common person in the country.