$280,000 in Seattle ≈ SEK 2,631,403 in Stockholm
Moving to Stockholm from Seattle with a family
Equivalence is solved so household net cash matches across both cities, with taxes, housing, childcare, healthcare, food, and travel all included.
The bottom line
- →$280,000 in Seattle leaves about the same net cash as SEK 2,631,403 in Stockholm for this scenario, after real taxes and living costs.
- →Taxes take 19.8% of gross in Seattle versus 39.8% in Stockholm.
- →The biggest non-cash swing: 10 more vacation days per year in Stockholm (statutory).
Where each paycheck goes
Every unit of gross, split four ways. Same net cash, very different shape.
The full receipt, line by line
| Category | Seattle | Stockholm | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross salary | $280,000 | SEK 2,631,403 ($271,839) | equivalent |
| Income + payroll tax | −$55,425 (19.8%) | −SEK 1,046,949 (39.8%) | a touch higher |
| Housing (rent) | −$54,864 | −SEK 355,200 | ~33% less |
| Healthcare (household) | −$10,640 | −SEK 5,650 | universal |
| Childcare | −$30,000 | −SEK 30,936 | ~89% less |
| Food & groceries | −$20,160 | −SEK 174,000 | ~11% less |
| Transit | −$1,188 | −SEK 12,840 | ~12% more |
| Discretionary | −$5,900 | −SEK 44,000 | ~23% less |
| Travel home | −$11,200 | −SEK 72,000 | ~34% less |
| Government child benefit | +$4,400 | +SEK 30,000 | offsets childcare |
| Net cash kept | $95,024 | SEK 919,828 | equal in real terms |
Computed at the city-median tech-worker salary, Seattle (a family with two kids). Each figure is in the city's local currency, from the same engine as the calculator; sources are cited per row there.
What changes beyond the money
- Statutory vacation days~15 → ~25 +10
- Total paid days off~26 → ~38
- Paid parental leave7 wks → 53 wks +46
- Healthcare systemEmployer / private → Universal
These numbers use one scenario's assumptions. Plug in your own salary, family size, and lifestyle.
Open the interactive calculator to run your own →No signup. Your salary stays in your browser — we never see it.
Moving from Seattle to Stockholm for a family
For a family of four, this comparison produces a different answer than a single-person look at the same cities. Childcare costs, parental leave policy, and the second earner's tax treatment all push the number. With a partner at 60% of the primary salary and two kids in daycare, a $280,000 household in Seattle needs SEK 2,631,403 in Stockholm to keep the same net cash.
Childcare is the biggest single swing factor in this comparison. Seattle households pay $30,000 per year; Stockholm caps it at SEK 30,936 via subsidy. That difference flows directly to net cash. A standard salary comparison won't show it at all.
Parental leave: Stockholm provides 53 weeks paid vs 7 in Seattle. A new child in the first year of the move is exactly the scenario where that gap shows up as real money (and real stress avoided).
With kids in the house, healthcare is the line that quietly compounds. Stockholm runs a universal system, so a rough year doesn't turn into a billing event. The Seattle side carries $10,640 a year in premiums and out-of-pocket costs, exposure that simply doesn't follow you across.
K-12 schools land near the same level on the OECD's PISA 2022 assessment: USA 489 (math 465, reading 504, science 499), Sweden 488 (math 482, reading 487, science 494). Within statistical noise, so the differentiator is local school choice, not country average.
Stockholm also adds 10 more vacation days per year (25 vs 15). With kids, that is school breaks actually covered without burning PTO.
The second-earner question is worth running separately. In high-childcare-cost cities, full-time daycare can eat most of a partner's after-tax income. In Stockholm, subsidized childcare changes that math entirely: both salaries actually make it to the household. Use the "Partner works in" toggle in the calculator to see what that shift does to your specific numbers.
Who comes out ahead
Both leave you close to 34% of gross once rent and taxes are paid.
You also get universal healthcare and cheaper childcare on top of the money math in Stockholm. Run the family scenario to see it.
Stockholm gives you 12 more paid days off a year and 46 more weeks of paid leave, none of which shows on an offer letter.
Common questions
How much do you need to earn in Stockholm to match a $280,000 salary in Seattle?
About SEK 2,631,403. cityparity solves for the Stockholm gross salary whose net cash (after taxes, housing, childcare, healthcare, and the rest) equals what you keep in Seattle. It's an equivalence, not a raw conversion.
How much is childcare in Stockholm compared with Seattle?
Childcare is one of the biggest swings for a family moving from Seattle to Stockholm. cityparity nets each city's daycare cost against any government child allowance, so the figure reflects what you'd actually pay out of pocket.
Is healthcare free in Stockholm?
Stockholm has universal healthcare, so there are no US-style premiums or large deductibles. cityparity counts that as real money you don't spend, which is part of why the equivalent salary is lower than the raw number suggests.
How much vacation and parental leave do you get in Stockholm?
Stockholm has about 38 paid days off a year (vacation plus public holidays) and 68 weeks of parental leave. cityparity surfaces these as deltas rather than dollars, because time off is part of the real comparison.
Run your own numbers in the interactive calculator →