Botkyrka, just south of Stockholm, has the highest share of any Swedish municipality. Sixty three per cent of its residents have a foreign background. Södertälje, Sigtuna, Järfälla, Haparanda and Burlöv are the others where more than half the population falls into that category. All figures here are from Statistics Sweden and run to 31 December 2025.
The catch is that "foreign background" and "foreign born" are two different measures, and almost every article you will read mixes them up. Sweden has 2.2 million foreign born residents, a little over 20 per cent of the population. It has 2,936,800 people of foreign background, which is 28 per cent. Same country, same year, eight percentage points apart, because the second figure also counts people born in Sweden to two foreign born parents.
If you are moving to Sweden and trying to work out where you will not feel like the only new arrival, the broader measure is arguably the more useful one, because it describes the community you would actually be joining rather than a legal category.
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| Municipality | County | Foreign background |
|---|---|---|
| Botkyrka | Stockholm | 63% |
| Södertälje | Stockholm | over 50% |
| Sigtuna | Stockholm | over 50% |
| Järfälla | Stockholm | over 50% |
| Haparanda | Norrbotten | over 50% |
| Burlöv | Skåne | over 50% |
| Stockholm city | Stockholm | 46.1% |
| National average | — | 28% |
| Öckerö (lowest) | Västra Götaland | 8% |
SCB publishes an exact figure for Botkyrka and identifies the others as above 50 per cent without ranking them individually. Fifty of Sweden's 290 municipalities sit above the national average.
Four of the six are in Stockholm county, which tells you something worth knowing: the highest concentrations are not in the city centres but in the municipalities around them. Botkyrka and Södertälje are commuter towns, not inner suburbs, and they were built out during the housing programme of the 1960s and 1970s in a way the old city never was.
On the foreign born measure the same municipalities lead but the numbers are far lower, with Botkyrka and Södertälje in the low forties, Haparanda around 41 per cent and Malmö in the mid thirties. If a figure looks unexpectedly high or low against another source, check which of the two measures it is using before assuming either is wrong.
Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö hold the largest foreign born populations in absolute terms, and it is not close. Stockholm municipality is 46.1 per cent foreign background and Stockholm county 47.3 per cent, against a national figure of 28. If you want the widest range of communities, languages and services, this is where they are.
Haparanda sits on the Finnish border opposite Tornio and functions as half of a twin town. The overwhelming majority of its foreign born residents were born in Finland, so its high ranking reflects a border running through a community rather than long distance migration. The same effect appears in Värmland, where Norway is the most common country of birth.
Skellefteå, Luleå and Boden drew large numbers of international workers through the battery, data centre and green steel projects of recent years. That growth has been genuinely turbulent, with at least one major employer entering bankruptcy and being bought out. Check the current position with a specific employer rather than relying on coverage from a year or two ago.
Tell us your UK collection address, your Swedish delivery address with the town, floor, lift dimensions and any access notes, and a rough inventory. Your enquiry goes to one vetted mover from our network who already covers the route. They contact you, survey the move and confirm the quote.
Get your free Sweden removals quoteSweden's population grew by 17,800 in 2025. The entire increase came from people with a foreign background, who rose by 26,000, while the Swedish background population fell by 8,100. On its own that continues a pattern running through the whole of this century, in which the foreign born share has roughly doubled since 2000.
What makes 2026 different is that SCB projects an actual population decrease of around 20,000, driven by emigration. The projection is tied to the EU mass flight directive ending on 4 March 2026 under the rules in force when the forecast was made. Whether it plays out that way depends on decisions that had not been taken when the figures were published, so treat it as a forecast rather than a fact.
Longer term, SCB expects the foreign born share to keep rising, reaching about 25 per cent by 2070 against roughly 21 per cent in 2024.
Swedish customs, including the Tullverket relief conditions and the twelve month restriction that follows, is set out in full on the Sweden removals hub.
Statistics tell you where communities are. They do not tell you what a delivery costs or how long the paperwork takes, and the practical questions differ a lot by destination. A Stockholm flat with a retrofitted lift, a Gotland address reached by ferry and a Kiruna address in a town that is physically relocating are three different jobs.
Every city page below covers local access, the route from the UK and what movers need to know before they can quote.
It depends which measure you use. By foreign background, Botkyrka is highest at 63 per cent as at 31 December 2025. Södertälje, Sigtuna, Järfälla, Haparanda and Burlöv also have more than half their residents in that category. By the narrower foreign born measure the ranking is similar but the percentages are much lower, with Botkyrka and Södertälje in the low forties.
About 20 per cent. SCB recorded 2.2 million foreign born residents in 2025, a little over a fifth of the population. The broader foreign background measure is higher, at 2,936,800 people or 28 per cent. The two are often quoted interchangeably and they should not be.
In absolute numbers, yes. Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö hold the largest foreign born populations, and Stockholm municipality alone is 46.1 per cent foreign background. The highest percentages, though, are in smaller municipalities around Stockholm and on the Finnish border rather than in the city centres.
Because it sits on the Finnish border opposite Tornio and functions as half of a twin town. The overwhelming majority of its foreign born residents were born in Finland, which is a border running through a community rather than long distance migration. Värmland shows the same effect with Norway.
It grew in 2025, but the direction may be changing. The population rose by 17,800 and the entire increase came from people with a foreign background, while the Swedish background population fell by 8,100. SCB projects a decrease of roughly 20,000 in 2026, driven by emigration and linked to the EU mass flight directive ending on 4 March 2026.
Syria is the most common country of birth among foreign born residents in most Swedish counties. Finland leads in the northernmost counties and in Stockholm, Uppsala and Södermanland, reflecting both the border and decades of earlier labour migration. In Värmland, Norway is the most common.
Each page covers local access, delivery conditions and the route from the UK.
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Page last reviewed and updated 29 July 2026. Customs and registration requirements change; check tullverket.se and skatteverket.se for the current position.
Population figures from Statistics Sweden, register data to 31 December 2025, with 2026 and 2070 figures being SCB projections rather than outcomes. Check scb.se for the current position.