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Sweden and Denmark

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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Sweden

Denmark

The widest gap is Housing costs over 40% of income: Denmark 23.4% against Sweden 10.8%, 12.6 points apart.

Ageall ages
Sex

One question per row

The faint tick on each bar is the EU27 figure.

Figure
Sweden
Denmark

People

Median age1.0 years
41.2 years
42.2 years
Life expectancy at birth1.8 years
83.8 years
82.0 years
People76.7%
10.6m
6m
People per square kilometre5.49×
26.0 per km²
143 per km²
Women in the population0.6 points
49.7%
50.3%
Born abroad6.4 points
20.8%
14.4%
Born outside the EU5.8 points
15.5%
9.7%

Money and work

Disposable income per person26.7%
€28,574
€36,192
Average net income31.4%
€31,299
€41,131
Take-home pay, average-wage worker16.6%
€38,950
€45,430
Gross pay, average-wage worker41.6%
€50,560
€71,610
In work, age 20 to 642.0 points
81.8%
79.8%
Out of work2.4 points
8.8%
6.4%
Hours worked a week4.1 hours
38.7 hours
34.6 hours
At risk of poverty3.8 points
15.6%
11.8%
Housing costs over 40% of income12.6 points
10.8%
23.4%
GDP per person23.6%
€56,250
€69,550

Family and home

People at home5.3%
2.0
1.9
Households with children2.2 points
25.5%
23.3%
Children per woman2.8%
1.43
1.47
Own their home6.2 points
64.6%
58.4%

Health and daily life

Hospital beds11.0%
187 per 100,000 people
207 per 100,000 people
Doctors0.2%
467 per 100,000 people
468 per 100,000 people
Nurses10.6%
1,162 per 100,000 people
1,051 per 100,000 people

Education

With a degree4.7 points
50.8%
46.1%
Students per 1,000 people4.3%
46.8 per 1,000 people
48.8 per 1,000 people

Public spending

Public spending on them16.5%
€26,743
€31,155
Tax raised per person31.9%
€23,433
€30,913
Government debt7.2 points
35.1%
27.9%

Country and infrastructure

Land area10.42×
447,424 km²
42,925 km²
Railway density2.18×
26.8 per 1,000 km²
58.3 per 1,000 km²
Motorway density5.93×
5.5 per 1,000 km²
32.3 per 1,000 km²
Cars per 1,000 people5.5%
475 per 1,000 people
501 per 1,000 people
Households with internet1.7 points
95.7%
97.4%
Tourist nights per resident7.7%
6.2
6.68

Environment

Renewable energy17.2 points
65.4%
48.2%
Land under forest53.3 points
68.6%
15.3%

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.

Sweden

Denmark

Function
Sweden
Denmark
11.0%
12.0%
3.9%
3.9%
3.2%
2.1%
9.6%
6.5%
1.1%
0.8%
1.6%
0.7%
14.7%
17.6%
2.8%
3.2%
14.4%
11.7%
37.9%
41.5%

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

Frequently asked: Sweden and Denmark

  1. Which covers more ground: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 10.42×: Sweden 447,424, Denmark 42,925. Total area of the country, inland water included. Eurostat · Land area & People per square kilometre · 2026. See the figure

  2. Which is more crowded: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 5.49×: Denmark 143, Sweden 26.0. People per square kilometre of that total area. Eurostat · Land area & People per square kilometre · 2026. See the figure

  3. Which has more forest: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 53.3 points: Sweden 68.6%, Denmark 15.3%. Share of the land area under forest. Eurostat · Land under forest · 2025. See the figure

  4. Where is there more railway per 1,000 km²: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 2.18×: Denmark 58.3, Sweden 26.8. Railway line in use for every 1,000 square kilometres of the country. Eurostat · Railway network & Railway density · 2024. See the figure

  5. Where do housing costs eat more of the income: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 12.6 points: Denmark 23.4%, Sweden 10.8%. Share whose housing costs exceed 40% of their disposable income. Eurostat · Housing costs over 40% of income · 2025. See the figure

  6. Where do more people live: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 76.7%: Sweden 10.6m, Denmark 6m. People usually resident in the country on 1 January. Eurostat · People & Women in the population · 2025. See the figure

  7. Which spends more on health per resident: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 39.3%: Denmark €5,468, Sweden €3,925. Hospitals, doctors, medicines and medical equipment, and public health programmes. Eurostat · Public spending by function · 2024. See the figure

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

    The gap is 11.0%: Denmark 207, Sweden 187. Beds available in hospitals, per 100,000 residents. Eurostat · Hospital beds · 2025. See the figure

  9. Where do more adults hold a degree: Sweden or Denmark?

    The gap is 4.7 points: Sweden 50.8%, Denmark 46.1%. Share of adults whose highest completed education is a university or other tertiary degree. Eurostat · With a degree · 2025. See the figure

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

    The gap is 2.2 points: Sweden 25.5%, Denmark 23.3%. 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.