Freedom in Sweden
Where Sweden sits on every statistic this site carries, each against the countries the same source covers. Sweden has a figure for 56 of 60 indicators.
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | 0.946 | 2025 | 11 of 163 |
| Freedom of association | 0.931 | 2025 | 1 of 163 |
| Civil liberties | 0.960 | 2025 | 2 of 163 |
| Freedom from political violence | 0.989 | 2025 | 2 of 163 |
| Equal protection of rights | 0.924 | 2025 | 12 of 163 |
| Academic freedom | 0.934 | 2025 | 6 of 163 |
| Media censorship effort | 2.747 | 2025 | 11 of 163 |
| Harassment of journalists | 2.140 | 2025 | 14 of 163 |
| Media self-censorship | 2.190 | 2025 | 8 of 163 |
| Universal right to vote | 1.000 | 2025 | 116 of 167 |
| Legal rights for women | 100.0 | 2023 | 14 of 164 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | 1.000 | 2023 | 123 of 164 |
| Access to justice for women | 1.000 | 2025 | 37 of 163 |
| Access to justice for men | 1.000 | 2025 | 46 of 163 |
| Civil liberties score | 59.0 | 2025 | 5 of 167 |
| Political rights score | 40.0 | 2025 | 7 of 167 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | 104.3% | 2025 | 32 of 125 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | 27.2% | 2024 | 77 of 83 |
| Foreign investment inflows | 2.9% | 2025 | 24 of 87 |
| Regulatory quality | 81.2 | 2024 | 9 of 169 |
| GDP per capita | $63.4K | 2025 | 14 of 157 |
| GDP growth | 1.5% | 2025 | — |
| Inflation | 0.7% | 2025 | — |
| Unemployment | 8.7% | 2025 | 126 of 163 |
| Income inequality | 29.300 | 2023 | — |
| Extreme poverty | 0.8% | 2023 | 27 of 55 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | 95.5% | 2024 | 20 of 154 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | 40.6 | 2024 | 16 of 134 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 140.7 | 2024 | 23 of 134 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | 0.889 | 2025 | 4 of 163 |
| Liberal democracy | 0.853 | 2025 | 2 of 163 |
| Rule of law | 0.989 | 2025 | 6 of 163 |
| Judicial checks on government | 0.966 | 2025 | 7 of 163 |
| Legislative checks on government | 0.989 | 2025 | 1 of 157 |
| Political corruption | 0.009 | 2025 | 2 of 163 |
| Civil society participation | 0.939 | 2025 | 10 of 163 |
| Women’s political empowerment | 0.923 | 2025 | 18 of 163 |
| Voice and accountability | 87.1 | 2024 | 4 of 170 |
| Control of corruption | 87.7 | 2024 | 5 of 170 |
| Government effectiveness | 85.8 | 2024 | 9 of 169 |
| Political stability | 76.2 | 2024 | 33 of 170 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | 0.959 | 2023 | 6 of 165 |
| Life expectancy | 84.1 | 2024 | 3 of 170 |
| Secondary school enrolment | 132.0% | 2024 | 2 of 85 |
| Health spending | 11.2% | 2023 | — |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | 13.0% | 2023 | 31 of 164 |
| Maternal mortality | 4.0 | 2023 | 22 of 167 |
| Women in parliament | 45.0% | 2025 | 13 of 156 |
| Women in the workforce | 61.5% | 2025 | — |
| Fertility rate | 1.43 | 2024 | — |
| Urban population | 89.1% | 2025 | — |
| Refugees who left | 0.9 | 2024 | 28 of 168 |
| Population | 10.6M | 2025 | — |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | 3.57 | 2024 | 95 of 165 |
| Renewable energy use | 57.9% | 2021 | 40 of 169 |
| Access to electricity | 100.0% | 2024 | 72 of 169 |
What is missing
4 of the 60 statistics here have no figure for Sweden in the year they were last ranked. Coverage differs by source: an indicator missing here is one its producer does not publish for Sweden, not a zero. Who publishes what