Families with children in Sweden vary in their composition. The most common form is the nuclear family, in which all children are shared by both parents; these account for 71 per cent of all families with children. Sixteen per cent consist of a single mother and five per cent of a single father. A further eight per cent are reconstituted families, where at least one parent has children from a previous relationship. Half a per cent of families with children do not fall into any of these categories, for example households where children live with a grandparent. Compared with 2015, the proportions of the different family types remain largely unchanged.

Nuclear families are the most common family type in Sweden, but their prevalence varies between municipalities. The lowest share of nuclear families is found in Filipstad, at 55 per cent, while the highest share is observed in Habo, at 83 per cent.

Most families have one or two children - but the variation is considerable

It is slightly more common for families to have two children (43 per cent) than one child (42 per cent), a difference corresponding to around 14,000 families. Twelve per cent of families have three children, and in a further three per cent, four or more children live in the household. Although the majority of families have one or two children, some families are considerably larger. In total, 36 families have ten or more children under the age of 18 living in the same household.

Family Size Varies Across Different Types of Municipalities

Large urban municipalities such as Solna, Sundbyberg, Stockholm and Mölndal have consistently higher shares of small families. Solna and Sundbyberg have the highest proportions of one‑child families, and they also have the lowest shares of three‑child families as well as very low levels of families with four or more children. In rural and sparsely populated municipalities, the variation is greater, but these areas are characterised by higher proportions of larger families. Ydre and Sävsjö have the highest shares of three‑child families, while Pajala and Haparanda have the largest proportions of families with four or more children. This stands in clear contrast to the large urban municipalities, where large families are uncommon.

Differences in the number of children are also evident across family types. In nuclear families, having two children is most common, applying to around half of them. Among families with a single mother or single father, having one child is most common, with slightly more than half of these families consisting of a single child. In reconstituted families, one‑ and two‑child families are roughly equally common, each accounting for around 35 per cent. 

Parental separations

In 2025, approximately 55,000 children under the age of 18 experienced their parents’ separation. This corresponds to just over three per cent of all children who, at the beginning of 2025, were living with two parents. The share is lower than in 2015, when it was 3.7 per cent. There is no difference between boys and girls in the likelihood of having experienced a separation. 

New Statistics on Children and Families with Children

The statistics on families with children are sourced from the statistical database Barn‑ och familjestatistik. The updated data include information on family type and siblings, adopted children, separations, children with Swedish and foreign backgrounds, and living arrangements. In March, the statistics on children’s economic conditions were also updated, including indicators such as the economic standard of families with children, the share of children living in families receiving social assistance, and the proportion of disposable income accounted for by family benefits.