Healthy life expectancy in Sweden

Sweden: Healthy life expectancy was 71.12 Years in 2021. ▬ Flat

Latest (2021)
71.12 Years
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
8th
of 185 countries
All-time high
71.41 Years
in 2019
All-time low
69.26 Years
in 2000
Years of data
22
2000–2021

Healthy life expectancy in Sweden, 2000–2021

0204060802000201020212000: 69.3 Years2001: 69.3 Years2002: 69.4 Years2003: 69.6 Years2004: 69.9 Years2005: 70 Years2006: 70.1 Years2007: 70.2 Years2008: 70.3 Years2009: 70.5 Years2010: 70.6 Years2011: 70.7 Years2012: 70.7 Years2013: 70.7 Years2014: 70.9 Years2015: 70.8 Years2016: 70.9 Years2017: 71 Years2018: 71.1 Years2019: 71.4 Years2020: 70.7 Years2021: 71.1 Years

Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in Years.

Analysis

Sweden recorded 71.12 Years for healthy life expectancy in 2021.

That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 0.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, healthy life expectancy in Sweden peaked at 71.41 Years in 2019 and was at its lowest, 69.26 Years, in 2000.

Sweden ranks 8th of 185 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

Healthy life expectancy in Sweden, year by year

Annual values for Healthy life expectancy in Sweden, 2000 to 2021.
Year Years Change
2000 69.26 Years
2001 69.34 Years +0.1%
2002 69.44 Years +0.1%
2003 69.63 Years +0.3%
2004 69.89 Years +0.4%
2005 69.96 Years +0.1%
2006 70.1 Years +0.2%
2007 70.21 Years +0.2%
2008 70.31 Years +0.2%
2009 70.46 Years +0.2%
2010 70.58 Years +0.2%
2011 70.72 Years +0.2%
2012 70.66 Years -0.1%
2013 70.74 Years +0.1%
2014 70.91 Years +0.2%
2015 70.76 Years -0.2%
2016 70.94 Years +0.2%
2017 70.98 Years +0.1%
2018 71.06 Years +0.1%
2019 71.41 Years +0.5%
2020 70.73 Years -1.0%
2021 71.12 Years +0.5%

Sweden compared with similar countries

  • Sweden's 71.12 Years is above the median for high income countries, which is 68.17 Years, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Sweden's 71.12 Years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 66.09 Years, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 69.86 Years 69.26 Years 70.46 Years 10
2010s 70.88 Years 70.58 Years 71.41 Years 10
2020s 70.93 Years 70.73 Years 71.12 Years 2

Countries ranked near Sweden

  1. 5 Luxembourg 71.23 Years compare
  2. 6 Norway 71.16 Years compare
  3. 7 Switzerland 71.15 Years compare
  4. 9 Spain 71.11 Years compare
  5. 10 Israel 70.76 Years compare
  6. 11 Cyprus 70.74 Years compare

See the full ranking of 185 places →

More health data for Sweden

All data for Sweden →

Frequently asked questions

What is healthy life expectancy in Sweden?
Healthy life expectancy in Sweden was 71.12 Years in 2021, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest healthy life expectancy recorded in Sweden?
The highest recorded value was 71.41 Years in 2019.
What is the lowest healthy life expectancy recorded in Sweden?
The lowest recorded value was 69.26 Years in 2000.
How does Sweden rank for healthy life expectancy?
Sweden ranks 8th out of 185 countries with data for 2021.
Is healthy life expectancy rising or falling in Sweden?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Sweden data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Healthy life expectancy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Healthy life expectancy in Sweden. Statizoid, drawing on World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/healthy-life-expectancy-at-birth/sweden/

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About this data

Indicator
Healthy life expectancy
Unit
Years
Source
World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
185 places, 4,070 data points, 2000–2021
Last refreshed

The estimated average number of years lived free from disability or disease burden. This is based on period life expectancy, after adjusting for the number of years lived in less than "full health" due to disease and/or injury.