Independent guide · Sweden
You just moved to Sweden. Somewhere between finding an apartment and working out where to buy groceries, someone mentioned an elavtal. An electricity plan.
The basics
In many countries electricity comes from one company. One bill, one provider, done. Sweden works differently. Once you see the difference, the rest of this page makes more sense.
We walk through how the system works, what it costs, how to choose a plan, and how to avoid people who take advantage of newcomers. No jargon left unexplained. No pressure to sign up for anything. Let us start with the basics.
This company owns the wires and cables that bring power into your home. You cannot choose it. Where you live decides it, in the same way you cannot choose which road leads to your door. You pay a fee for keeping the network running, whether you use a lot of electricity or very little.
This is the company that sells you the electricity itself, and this one you do choose. It is what people mean when they say elavtal, an electricity plan. You can change it as often as your contract allows, and nobody needs to visit your home.
A simple way to think about it. The grid company is the road. The supplier is the taxi company driving on it. You do not pick the road. You do pick the taxi. So do not be surprised when two different bills arrive each month. That is not a mistake. That is how the system is built.
Sweden is split into four electricity price zones, called elområden. They run from north to south and are numbered SE1 to SE4. Prices are not the same across the country. The north makes more power than it uses. The south uses more than it makes, and moving power long distances has limits, which pushes southern prices up. You cannot choose your zone. You can usually find it by searching your postal code, or on your bill from the grid company.
SE1
The far north, near Kiruna
More power is made here than is used. Prices are usually the lowest.
SE2
Northern Sweden, Sundsvall area
Also a producer zone. Prices stay close to SE1.
SE3
Middle of the country, Stockholm and Göteborg
Many people, much use. Prices are often higher than in the north.
SE4
The south, where Malmö is
Least local power. This zone usually pays the most.
The default contract
Move into a Swedish apartment and the power does not wait for your signature. It keeps running. But if you never picked a supplier, the local grid company placed you on an anvisat avtal, an assigned contract.
No forms. No decision on your side. When you move into a home with an active connection and no supplier of your own, one gets assigned automatically so your lights stay on while you settle in. Think of it as a placeholder, not a plan built for your home or your budget.
The company that got you did not have to compete for you. You did not shop around, so there is little pressure on them to offer a good rate. These default contracts are usually priced above the company's normal plans, sometimes far above. Thousands of households are on one right now without knowing it.
This is not a trap, and nobody did anything wrong. It is a normal part of the Swedish market. It just rarely makes sense to stay on it. Compare a few providers, pick one that fits your home, and switch. It usually takes a few days.
First things first
Sometimes you do not need to do anything at all. Look at your rental contract. If it says electricity is included, el ingår, you are covered, at least up to the amount included. Some contracts cap the usage and charge extra above it. If electricity is not mentioned, assume you need your own plan. Renting a room or subletting? Ask whether the electricity account is in your name or theirs.
Most providers offer to handle the switch for you. You give a simple authorisation called a fullmakt, a power of attorney, and they contact your old provider, cancel the old contract and start the new one. One sign up, and they do the rest. This is standard practice here and fine to accept from a provider you contacted yourself.
With these ready, signing up takes 10 to 15 minutes.
No need to panic. If the power is already running where you live, you are not going to lose it while you decide. You are most likely on an anvisat avtal in the meantime. So there is no fixed deadline, but there is a cost to waiting. Every month on the default contract is a month at a higher price than you would probably get yourself.
Compare
Set the two things that decide your price, then sort the list. A flat in Stockholm and a house in Luleå never get the same answer. Prices shift often, so read this as a starting point, not a final answer.
Your home
Price zone
Contract type
FortumVariable price · 12 months without fee125 kr/month
Lowest cost right now, Apartment in SE3
| Notice | Language | See your price | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FortumLowestVariable price · 12 months without fee | 3,9 öre | 69 kr | 2 months | Some English | 125 kr | See your price |
| Skellefteå KraftVariable price · 12 months without fee | 6 öre | 49 kr | None | Swedish | 134 kr | See your price |
| Mölndal EnergiVariable price · 12 months without fee | 2 öre | 49 kr | 1 month | Swedish | 155 kr | See your price |
| BixiaVariable price | 4 öre | 39 kr | 14 days | Swedish | 170 kr | See your price |
| Göteborg EnergiVariable price | 5,5 öre | 45 kr | 1 month | Swedish | 178 kr | See your price |
| TelinetVariable price | 4,5 öre | 39 kr | 1 month | Some English | 179 kr | See your price |
| JämtkraftVariable price | 5,8 öre | 45 kr | 1 month | Swedish | 182 kr | See your price |
| VattenfallVariable price · 12 months without fee | 8,4 öre | 45 kr | 1 month | English | 188 kr | See your price |
| Enkla ElbolagetVariable price | 5,2 öre | 50 kr | 1 month | Swedish | 189 kr | See your price |
The cost shown is the electricity part only: market price, seller markup, certificate cost and VAT. The grid fee (nätavgift) and energy tax are not in it, because they come from the grid company at your address and you cannot choose them. Campaign prices apply during the campaign, then the ordinary fee starts. Prices are indicative and taken from the sellers' own pages, updated 14 August 2026, 13:44. We sell nothing and no seller pays us.
Choosing
Once you start comparing, you meet two main types. The difference decides how predictable your monthly bill will be, and that matters more than almost anything else on this page.
Your rate per kilowatt-hour is locked for a set period, often one or three years. Whatever the wider market does, your price stays. That gives you certainty. You know what to expect each month, which is worth a lot while you are still learning a new country and a new budget.
The price follows the market and is usually updated every month. Some months it beats a fixed plan. Some months it does not. Over a full year, variable plans have often worked out cheaper on average. Not always, and not every year.
So which one is right for you? It depends on how much risk you are comfortable with. If steady bills matter more than squeezing out the lowest average, choose fixed. If you can handle the ups and downs for a chance to pay less overall, variable may suit you better.
A short example. A fixed plan locks you at 1.20 kr per kWh for a year. A variable plan might average 1.00 kr across the same year, but swing between 0.70 kr in a mild month and 1.60 kr in a cold, high-demand one. Same electricity. Very different experience of paying for it.
Real numbers
Numbers help more than percentages. Here are two rough examples. Not exact prices, those move constantly, but a sense of scale so you are not walking in blind.
A small apartment, about 40 m²
170–375 kr
One or two people usually use around 2 000 to 3 000 kWh a year. At a combined rate of roughly 1.00 to 1.50 kr per kWh, that is the monthly average. Winter runs higher.
A larger apartment or small house, 80 to 100 m²
350–750 kr
Usage lands somewhere around 4 000 to 6 000 kWh a year. Same rough rate, bigger home, higher bill. Again, winter bills are noticeably above summer ones.
What moves these numbers
Your elområde, your provider, fixed or variable, and how you heat your home. If a quote you are looking at sits far outside these ranges, look again. Either it is a very good deal, or something needs explaining.
Step by step
Contact a supplier through their website, app or phone line. You give your address, your start date and some form of ID. A personnummer makes it smoother but is not always needed. If one company turns you away, try another. Requirements really do differ. The sign up itself takes about 10 to 15 minutes.
You do not call your current provider first. Sign up with the new one, give them a fullmakt, and they cancel the old contract and set the date. Check one thing before you start: whether your current contract has a tie-in period (bindningstid). Leaving early can cost a fee, and your provider must tell you clearly if you ask.
Moving abroad, or to a new address? Most providers let you cancel in the app or on the website and ask for about 30 days notice, though this varies. If you are moving within Sweden, some providers simply move your existing plan to the new home, so you skip signing up again.
Safety
Newcomers are sometimes targeted by people pretending to represent electricity companies. It happens by phone, at the door, and by text message. Knowing the warning signs takes away most of the risk.
Real providers do not push you to decide on the spot. If someone knocks and says the offer ends today, you can say no and close the door. Then look the company up yourself, using their official number or website, not a number the visitor wrote down for you.
Being disconnected in Sweden is a slow, formal process with written notice. It never arrives as a same day phone threat. A caller who says the lights go off unless you sign now is lying to make you hurry.
A fullmakt is a power of attorney that lets a provider handle your switch. It is normal, but only when you started the sign up yourself. Somebody calling you and asking for one over the phone is a warning sign, not a convenience.
No real electricity company asks for gift cards, crypto, or a transfer to a personal bank account. None of them need your BankID login details on the phone. If something feels off, it usually is. A real offer will still be there tomorrow.
Already signed something? A contract agreed at your door or on the phone can normally be cancelled within 14 days. The Swedish word is ångerrätt, the right to change your mind. Send the company a written message saying you use your ångerrätt, and keep a copy. Your municipality has a free consumer advisor, a konsumentvägledare, who can help you write it.
Questions
Moving on to Finland?
Some of our readers head there next. Our sister site does for Finland what we do for Sweden. Sähköhintavertailu.fi compares electricity prices from Finnish providers, so you can see the real cost before you sign.
Compare electricity prices in Finland on sähköhintavertailu.fi
