Share of plastic waste exports in Sweden
Sweden: Share of plastic waste exports was 3.8% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of plastic waste exports in Sweden, 1994–2024
Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of plastic waste exports in Sweden is 3.8%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.
That represents a change of up 51.8% on the previous year and up 433.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of plastic waste exports in Sweden peaked at 3.8% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2005.
That places Sweden 5th out of 162 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of plastic waste exports in Sweden, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 0.8% | — |
| 1995 | 0.8% | -7.8% |
| 1996 | 0.7% | -16.2% |
| 2001 | 0.6% | -5.5% |
| 2005 | 0.5% | -26.9% |
| 2007 | 0.6% | +26.1% |
| 2010 | 0.6% | +4.6% |
| 2011 | 0.8% | +31.3% |
| 2012 | 0.7% | -5.4% |
| 2013 | 0.9% | +21.9% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | -20.6% |
| 2015 | 0.6% | -11.2% |
| 2016 | 0.9% | +34.8% |
| 2017 | 0.8% | -3.5% |
| 2018 | 1.1% | +37.9% |
| 2019 | 1.6% | +36.3% |
| 2020 | 2.4% | +53.4% |
| 2021 | 2.6% | +10.6% |
| 2022 | 2.7% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 2.5% | -5.3% |
| 2024 | 3.8% | +51.8% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 3.8% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.1%, 26.9× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 3.8% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.2%, 15.9× the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 3 |
| 2000s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 3 |
| 2010s | 0.9% | 0.6% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.8% | 2.4% | 3.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
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)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -0.0922 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of plastic waste exports in Sweden?
- Share of plastic waste exports in Sweden was 3.8% in 2024, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of plastic waste exports recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 3.8% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of plastic waste exports recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2005.
- How does Sweden rank for share of plastic waste exports?
- Sweden ranks 5th out of 162 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of plastic waste exports rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is up 433.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sweden data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of plastic waste exports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of global plastic waste exports that a country accounts for.