Moving to Sweden? Watch This First! The Reality After 14 Years

Thinking of moving to Sweden? Watch this video to learn about the reality of living in Sweden after 14 years. My honest views on what it’s really like from the weather to the culture, we cover everything you need to know before making the big move!

This isn’t just another guide—it’s a candid look at the challenges, surprises, and rewards of making Sweden your home. Whether you’re considering moving to Sweden for work, study, or a new adventure, this video is packed with personal insights to help you navigate the journey.

⌚️Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction: Moving to Sweden – My Honest Take After 14 Years
00:22 - Let’s Talk About the Weather
02:09 - Lagom – The Swedish Way of Life
04:23 - Collective but Individualistic Mindset – Make it Make Sense
07:01 - Learning Swedish – Or Not?
08:11 - Dating in Sweden – A Whole New World
09:27 - Work-Life Balance – It’s a Priority
11:57 - Housing – Prepare for a Challenge

My mission is to inform non-Europeans who are planning to move or the recent newcomers to European countries, to establish career from choosing the right study program to how to succeed in their career life.

Disclaimer: The strategies on this channel are evidence- and reason-based is for informational purposes only. I am not a licensed migration or investment advisor.

#movingtosweden, #movetoeurope, #workinsweden, #studyinsweden

[tanyamaxwell-stewart]

I lived in Sweden for 7 years, I was lucky and picked up the language quickly. worked, raised my daughter and was very happy. Had a divorce to a Dane not gotten in the way i think i would have stayed there. wonderful country and wonderful people, once you make a Swedish friend you have a friend for life. Sweden taught me so much, things that shape my life to this day.

[ekno]

I've lived in Sweden for 6 yrs, it's been the happiest time of my life. I am super grateful to this country for taking me in. Your video is one of the best.

[danielsalt]

I have seen many videos like this, out of curiosity, and i have to for once comment just to say this is one of the best most spot on I have seen.
Very entertaining to see foreigners interpret us like this. /Regards a 47 year old from Gothenburg

[jakoblagerkranser]

Good breakdown all in all, but foreigners often mistake "lagom", "Jantelagen" and the Swedish view on success. Swedes are absolutely impressed by success and successful entrepreneurs, artists and athletes are held in a very high regard. It's the bragging part that's looked down upon.

[ulfmarten]

As a +66 year old swede I must say this was very much spot on. A warm and realistic wiew of of here. Having worked in a research with many inyernational collegaues for many years you just nailed it!

[jerrihadding]

I am a 75 year old woman from San Diego, California who has been living in Sweden with my Swedish husband for 26 years. I cannot begin to express or explain my gratitude that I have been blessed to live here! In actual fact, I would likely not be alive if I had remained in the US because I was diagnosed with malignant cancer just months after officially moving here. In the US I could not afford health insurance and therefore did not have it. In Sweden, although I had only lived here for months, I was treated to a private room, an excellent surgeon and an eight day stay at the hospital costing the equivalent of $95.00! Our Swedish taxes are used for US. I LOVE paying them!

[Furree_]

As a Swede I would say that lerning to understand Swedish is much better than lern to speak Swedish. If you can understand what Swedes say in the coffee break, and just reply in English, no one would care. But if we are forced to talk English just so everyone would understand, the conversation will become forced and not so relaxed.

[davidjones]

Been in Gothenburg for the last 30 years. Now i am retired i cant get out quick enough.
Three main reasons. 1. The dreadful climate, long dark depressing winters stuck inside. 2. High costs making going out for a simple meal and a few drinks impossible or something you cant do often. 3. Swedish people are not sociable they want their own space and do not want to inter-react with others and after 30 years of it im done. Cyprus and an outdoor retirement in the sun surrounded by friendly people with a smile on their faces enjoying the simple things in life at an nice eating place with a cold beer . Yes please.

[cineffect]

Tried Sweden for 10 years, then found my paradise in south of France, greetings from a Canadian.

[mn]

lived in Sweden for 41 years. love it.

[partojahangiri]

Great stuff! I’d say language learning is definitely a big concern for newcomers, but in my experience, separating career growth and Swedish language proficiency really helped me grow quickly in my first few years. By working in global companies that valued my professional skills first, I was able to focus on improving my Swedish in my spare time, just for a better quality of social life 😊

[AlexFoxx]

After living in 6 different countries, I thought moving to Sweden for love would be a beautiful, wild adventure. That was 4 years ago, and I still find integrating into this culture incredibly challenging. I come from a warm, open, and success-orientated background. The language hurdle, the cold, dark winters, and the inability to find a job (because fluency is a must) sucked the life out of me. I struggled with SFI and other language courses - it's like the cadence of the language put me to sleep. On the bright side, the education system is great. Looking forward to the day when we can move back down under.

[KamiKaZantA]

I recommend you don't move to Stockholm, Göteborg, or Malmö unless you have a lot of money. Also, you won't be earning American salaries in qualified tech jobs for instance, the salaries are much lower. What you get in return is 35-40 hour work weeks (of course overtime might happen), aforementioned 5 weeks paid vacation and 480 days paternal/maternal leave, and you pay a maximum of €150/year for doctors visits and €250/year for medication. You don't have to worry about huge additional medical bills if you need to get surgery or break your bones.

[thomashanner]

I moved to Sweden from the US at the end of 1988 so I have lived here for a number of years; if I compare the life and standard of living I would have had in the US if I had had the same job there as I had in Sweden when I was of working age, I would be lying if I said I regretted my move from the US to Sweden.

That was the answer to the title of the video.

As a taxpayer in Sweden, I have the right to the care that Swedish citizens have.

I had incredibly poor oral hygiene when I moved to Sweden in 1988, the hygiene was bad from birth, and due to the fact that I did not have the right insurance in the US, I therefore could not afford to fix the problems.

All these problems are now fixed.

I have also been hospitalized in Sweden on three occasions, In the USA expensive insurance is required and yet I would probably have massive debts if I had even been given access to care at all.

In Sweden, I have no debt to anyone for these three occasions because these insurances are paid for by everyone who pays income tax; this applies to health care as well as dental care, yes, even care for the elderly.

Just take the fact that I have 8 implants in my mouth, I talked to a friend in Tennessee, it turned out that what I had to pay for the last 4 implants here in Sweden is what she had to pay for 1 implant in Tennessee.

Do I regret moving to Sweden from the US in 1988?

No!

I have a clearly better economy in Sweden than I would have had in the US, here I can afford to have fun, that would have been out of the question in the US.

Since I moved here, my standard of living in Sweden has been several times better than the corresponding American standard of living; also the standard of living in Sweden as a pensioner is better than the standard of living I had in the US when I was working, why would I miss the US?

I agree with the speaker in the video, most people here don't live to work, most people work to live.

The biggest difference is when you make eye contact with people you don't know, in Sweden you generally don't talk to someone you don't know, not even a "hello".

In the US you say Hi, how are you? to which the response more often than not is a good thank you, how are you?

In the Arab world, you say "I see you", to which the answer is "I see you".

In the US, the first contact is extremely superficial, but in Sweden it usually doesn't exist at all.

Once you become friends with an American or a Swede, it usually becomes a good friendship, but in both cases it can take a little time, although a little longer in Sweden.

[RE-xvfp]

As a turk born and raised here in Sweden Stockholm I just loove complaining about how unsocial and cold people are. How alone one feels taking the bus, walking on the street etc. Well as soon as I visit like Istanbul I am like nope. I don't want to chat to complete strangers on the bus, just leave me alone I want to sit in silence and enjoy my personal space lol.

One things that is the total opposite is, we have an unwritten social norm of saying hi to people we pass by when walking in a forest recreation area etc. Apparently this is super unsettling and weird for people coming from said social countries, they are like "Why do strangers suddenly say hi when we take a walk in a forest area?".

Lol I think its nice acknowledging other forest walkers out there enjoying the nature!
Worth noting is big cities people will be reserved yes. But Sweden has thousands of small villages and remote countryside places. people there of course are closely knitted and involved in each others lives

[AlphabetUser]

This makes me want to travel to Sweden to give mini crises to the locals with small talk

[tangfors]

Very good video sums up us Swedes perfectly.
It is completely insane that we have such a lack of housing and it is something that our politicians talk about far too little. But also people in general, that should be a much bigger question. In 40 years, the prices for buying a home have increased a good 11 times (more in, for example, Stockholm), but our salaries have only increased a good 4.5 times in the same time.

It's really rubbish politics that led to it being that way. About 20 years ago now, a lot of rental properties began to be transformed into condominiums. This was good for those who bought then because they could buy very cheaply. But it was also a very short-term policy. Because the money the municipal companies received was not enough to build new in the amount that was needed, moreover, priority was given to tax reductions which meant that hardly anything was built at all. Another thing is that they chose to remove a subsidy that existed for building affordable rental apartments, instead the money was put on ROT, which in principle only goes to renovating privately owned villas.

Why few politicians dare to take the question seriously, is because if you were to suddenly build a lot now, the prices of condominiums and houses would plummet.

The same government in principle that created the situation from the beginning are the ones who rule the country now, unfortunately.

[Cloudberry]

I believe the more south in Sweden you live, the more you complain about the weather during the winter.

[MageThief]

As a Swede, I have to agree, yeah that's us, in general terms, don't mess with the fika! 😆
Great video.

[henrikolofsson]

Great video, I appreciate it. Swedish culture can be a bit difficult to get into, my girlfriend is a foreigner - and I understand how tough it can be when you arrive. I hope that everyone coming here will enjoy it and become a part of Sweden and Swedish culture :)