What is emissions of air pollutants in Sweden?

Emissions of air pollutants in Sweden was 298,546 tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.

What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Sweden?

The highest recorded value was 405,560 tonnes in 1976.

What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Sweden?

The lowest recorded value was 1,621 tonnes in 1750.

How does Sweden rank for emissions of air pollutants?

Sweden ranks 56th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.

Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in Sweden?

Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this Sweden data come from?

The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Emissions of air pollutants in Sweden

Name: Emissions of air pollutants in Sweden
Creator: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Sweden: Emissions of air pollutants was 298,546 tonnes in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)

298,546 tonnes

Change on year

up 2.5%

World rank

56th

of 220 countries

All-time high

405,560 tonnes

in 1976

All-time low

1,621 tonnes

in 1750

Years of data

273

1750–2022

Emissions of air pollutants in Sweden, 1750–2022

Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

In 2022, emissions of air pollutants in Sweden stood at 298,546 tonnes.

That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and up 0.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, emissions of air pollutants in Sweden peaked at 405,560 tonnes in 1976 and was at its lowest, 1,621 tonnes, in 1750.

That places Sweden 56th out of 220 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1750s	1,671 tonnes	1,621 tonnes	1,721 tonnes	10
1760s	1,752 tonnes	1,732 tonnes	1,772 tonnes	10
1770s	1,801 tonnes	1,777 tonnes	1,826 tonnes	10
1780s	1,868 tonnes	1,831 tonnes	1,904 tonnes	10
1790s	1,955 tonnes	1,912 tonnes	1,998 tonnes	10
1800s	1,992 tonnes	1,977 tonnes	2,007 tonnes	10
1810s	2,045 tonnes	1,973 tonnes	2,115 tonnes	10
1820s	2,236 tonnes	2,131 tonnes	2,340 tonnes	10
1830s	2,511 tonnes	2,364 tonnes	2,696 tonnes	10
1840s	2,848 tonnes	2,727 tonnes	2,968 tonnes	10
1850s	3,375 tonnes	2,853 tonnes	3,978 tonnes	10
1860s	4,586 tonnes	4,122 tonnes	5,309 tonnes	10
1870s	6,479 tonnes	5,515 tonnes	7,138 tonnes	10
1880s	8,702 tonnes	7,320 tonnes	10,164 tonnes	10
1890s	11,437 tonnes	9,826 tonnes	14,123 tonnes	10
1900s	16,472 tonnes	13,996 tonnes	19,957 tonnes	10
1910s	19,122 tonnes	13,647 tonnes	22,501 tonnes	10
1920s	26,516 tonnes	15,498 tonnes	38,631 tonnes	10
1930s	54,919 tonnes	41,791 tonnes	73,386 tonnes	10
1940s	53,363 tonnes	23,780 tonnes	100,653 tonnes	10
1950s	119,882 tonnes	87,097 tonnes	144,768 tonnes	10
1960s	265,599 tonnes	193,236 tonnes	344,275 tonnes	10
1970s	379,194 tonnes	358,930 tonnes	405,560 tonnes	10
1980s	354,445 tonnes	311,367 tonnes	403,202 tonnes	10
1990s	378,037 tonnes	362,063 tonnes	399,705 tonnes	10
2000s	372,871 tonnes	331,838 tonnes	394,638 tonnes	10
2010s	295,545 tonnes	268,495 tonnes	342,257 tonnes	10
2020s	295,193 tonnes	291,362 tonnes	298,546 tonnes	3

Countries ranked near Sweden

53 Panama 320,577 tonnes compare
54 Peru 319,740 tonnes compare
55 Sri Lanka 314,146 tonnes compare
57 Sudan 297,518 tonnes compare
58 Morocco 251,040 tonnes compare
59 Libya 250,087 tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More environment data for Sweden

Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 52.57 Mt CO2e (2024)
Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 4.97 t CO2e/capita (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 3.79 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 0.3307 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 0.2101 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.2019 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 8.12 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0.1974 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.0287 Mt CO2e (2024)
Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 3.35 Mt CO2e (2024)

All data for Sweden →

Frequently asked questions

What is emissions of air pollutants in Sweden?: Emissions of air pollutants in Sweden was 298,546 tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Sweden?: The highest recorded value was 405,560 tonnes in 1976.
What is the lowest emissions of air pollutants recorded in Sweden?: The lowest recorded value was 1,621 tonnes in 1750.
How does Sweden rank for emissions of air pollutants?: Sweden ranks 56th out of 220 countries with data for 2022.
Is emissions of air pollutants rising or falling in Sweden?: Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Sweden data come from?: The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Emissions of air pollutants. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 273 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Emissions of air pollutants
Unit: tonnes
Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 220 places, 60,060 data points, 1750–2022
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) are gases that are mainly formed during the burning of fossil fuels. Exposure to NOₓ gases can have negative impacts on respiratory health. NOₓ gases can also lead to the formation of ozone – another air pollutant.