Industrial water withdrawal in Sweden
Sweden: Industrial water withdrawal was 1.27 billion cubic meters in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.27 billion cubic meters
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
45th
of 180 countries
All-time high
2.96 billion cubic meters
in 1970
All-time low
1.27 billion cubic meters
in 2020
Years of data
54
1970–2023
Industrial water withdrawal in Sweden, 1970–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
In 2023, industrial water withdrawal in Sweden stood at 1.27 billion cubic meters. That is the lowest value across all 54 years on record.
That represents a change of down 11.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, industrial water withdrawal in Sweden peaked at 2.96 billion cubic meters in 1970 and was at its lowest, 1.27 billion cubic meters, in 2020.
That places Sweden 45th out of 180 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.
Industrial water withdrawal in Sweden, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1971 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 2.96 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 2.80 billion cubic meters | -5.5% |
| 1982 | 2.63 billion cubic meters | -5.9% |
| 1983 | 2.47 billion cubic meters | -6.2% |
| 1984 | 2.30 billion cubic meters | -6.6% |
| 1985 | 2.14 billion cubic meters | -7.1% |
| 1986 | 2.05 billion cubic meters | -4.2% |
| 1987 | 1.96 billion cubic meters | -4.4% |
| 1988 | 1.87 billion cubic meters | -4.6% |
| 1989 | 1.78 billion cubic meters | -4.8% |
| 1990 | 1.78 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1.78 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1.78 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1.73 billion cubic meters | -3.1% |
| 1994 | 1.67 billion cubic meters | -3.2% |
| 1995 | 1.62 billion cubic meters | -3.3% |
| 1996 | 1.56 billion cubic meters | -3.4% |
| 1997 | 1.51 billion cubic meters | -3.5% |
| 1998 | 1.51 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 1.50 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 1.50 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 1.50 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1.50 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 1.51 billion cubic meters | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 1.52 billion cubic meters | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 1.52 billion cubic meters | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 1.52 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 1.52 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 1.54 billion cubic meters | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 1.56 billion cubic meters | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 1.57 billion cubic meters | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 1.53 billion cubic meters | -2.9% |
| 2012 | 1.48 billion cubic meters | -3.0% |
| 2013 | 1.44 billion cubic meters | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 1.39 billion cubic meters | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 1.34 billion cubic meters | -3.3% |
| 2016 | 1.33 billion cubic meters | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 1.31 billion cubic meters | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 1.30 billion cubic meters | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 1.28 billion cubic meters | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 1.27 billion cubic meters | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 1.27 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1.27 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 1.27 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 1.27 billion cubic meters is above the median for high income countries, which is 668.45 million cubic meters, 1.9× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 1.27 billion cubic meters is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 806.76 million cubic meters, 1.6× the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.96 billion cubic meters | 2.96 billion cubic meters | 2.96 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.30 billion cubic meters | 1.78 billion cubic meters | 2.96 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.65 billion cubic meters | 1.50 billion cubic meters | 1.78 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.52 billion cubic meters | 1.50 billion cubic meters | 1.56 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.40 billion cubic meters | 1.28 billion cubic meters | 1.57 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.27 billion cubic meters | 1.27 billion cubic meters | 1.27 billion cubic meters | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
- 43 Finland 1.30 billion cubic meters compare
- 44 Turkey 1.30 billion cubic meters compare
- 46 Uzbekistan 1.20 billion cubic meters compare
- 47 New Zealand 1.18 billion cubic meters compare
- 48 North Korea 1.15 billion cubic meters compare
More environment data for Sweden
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 1.1 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.12 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.852 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.72 °C (2025)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.8968 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 0.1522 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is industrial water withdrawal in Sweden?
- Industrial water withdrawal in Sweden was 1.27 billion cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest industrial water withdrawal recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 2.96 billion cubic meters in 1970.
- What is the lowest industrial water withdrawal recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.27 billion cubic meters in 2020.
- How does Sweden rank for industrial water withdrawal?
- Sweden ranks 45th out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is industrial water withdrawal rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sweden data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Industrial water withdrawal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year by self-supplied industries.