Number of full-year persons receiving social assistance and benefits 2025
Fewer receiving economic support in 2025
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2026-03-19 8.00
After an increase in 2024, the number of full-year persons receiving economic support in the form of social assistance and benefits decreased in 2025. The greatest decrease in full-year persons was accounted for by sickness benefits, while unemployment benefits accounted for the largest increase.
In 2025, the number supported by sickness benefits, sickness and activity compensation and labour market programmes decreased, while there was an increase in unemployment benefits, economic aid and introduction benefit.
The total number of full-year persons receiving economic support fell by 0.6 percent in 2025, to 728 802.
– This corresponds to 11.9 percent of the working age population in Sweden, says Johan Lindberg at Statistics Sweden.
Number of full-year persons among people aged 20-64 receiving social assistance or benefits, 1990-2025
The number of full-year persons receiving social assistance and benefits has shown a long-term downward trend. Between 2019 and 2020, however, the number increased due to the pandemic, as more people received unemployment-related benefits and participated in labour market programmes. The higher level remained in 2021, before falling back in 2022 and 2023, to the lowest levels recorded since measurements began in the early 1990s.
In 2024, the number increased once again, primarily due to a sharp rise in the number of people supported by unemployment benefits. Despite the continued increase in unemployment benefits in 2025, the overall rise in the total number of full‑year persons was reversed, as fewer were supported through sickness benefit, sickness and activity compensation and labour‑market programmes.
– The number of full‑year persons supported through unemployment benefits has increased for three consecutive years, with a total rise of 56 percent since 2022. Sickness and activity compensation, on the other hand, has been declining for a long time, but remains the largest form of support and accounted for 29.6 percent of the total number of full‑year persons in 2025, says Johan Lindberg.
Full-year persons by compensation and change between 2024 and 2025, aged 20-65
| Type of compensation | Number of full-year persons | Share of total full-year persons | Share of working-age population | Change in percent 2025/2024 |
| Sickness benefits | 163 674 | 22.5 | 2.7 | -5.3 |
| Sickness and activity compensation | 215 757 | 29.6 | 3.5 | -0.9 |
| Unemployment benefits | 105 364 | 14.5 | 1.7 | 12.1 |
| Labour market programmes | 159 810 | 21.9 | 2.6 | -3.9 |
| Economic aid | 74 008 | 10.2 | 1.2 | 0.6 |
| Introduction benefit | 10 191 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 18.1 |
| Total | 728 802 | 100.0 | 11.9 | -0.6 |
Definitions and explanations
Statistics Sweden annually reports statistics on the number of full-year persons of working age who are supported through social assistance and benefits. These benefits include sickness benefit, sickness and activity compensation, unemployment benefits, labour market programmes, economic aid and introduction benefit.
To ensure comparability between different types of benefits, the number of full‑year persons is calculated to show how many people could be supported for an entire year with full compensation. For example, two people who have each been unemployed full‑time for half a year together correspond to one full‑year person.