Market salary
Compare against SCB salary statistics
Pick the occupation (4-digit SSYK code), sector and region. We fetch P10, median and P90 from Statistics Sweden's wage structure statistics at national level and show the average in the selected region as an extra marker.
About the data
The percentile band (P10, median, P90) comes from SCB's table LoneSpridSektYrk4AN, which covers sector, occupation (SSYK 2012) and gender at national level. The regional marker is the average salary from the table LonYrkeRegion4AN for the selected region – the regional table contains only the average, not percentiles. SCB publishes a new vintage in May–June the following year, so data lags by about a year.
If a cell is suppressed by SCB (too few observations) we widen the search to all sectors. We always show the exact level used so you can interpret the numbers correctly – sector mix can shift values noticeably for publicly dominated occupations like teachers and nurses.
Use market salaries correctly
When recruiting, entry pay for a junior role is usually near P25 and a senior near P75 in the same SSYK. Always paying the median wastes money on junior roles and loses candidates on senior ones. For salary reviews, compare existing employees' pay against the right occupation-, sector- and region-band – someone below P10 is a retention flag; someone above P90 is a cost flag. For budgeting, P50 ± spread gives a realistic personnel cost forecast when planning next year's hires.
SCB's wage structure statistics cover monthly pay converted to full time, excluding variable supplements such as overtime and bonus. That makes it comparable across occupations and regions, but you'll need to add bonus, on-call and other variable parts separately if they are material in your industry. Remember the salary is gross – combine with the calculator on the What does an employee cost? page for the full employer cost.
Frequently asked questions
- What is SSYK?
- The Swedish Standard Classification of Occupations. SCB uses 4-digit SSYK 2012 for wage statistics. The first digit indicates qualification level.
- Is the median the same as the market salary?
- No. The median (P50) is the middle salary in the occupation – half earn more, half less. Market salary is a band, not a point. P10–P90 captures roughly 80 % of all salaries and is a better reference for recruitment than a single average.
- Do people in the same occupation earn roughly the same across Sweden?
- No. For many white-collar occupations the median is 10–20 % higher in Stockholm county than in smaller counties. Use our regional marker to compare the regional average against the national level before making an offer.
- How do I use P10, P50 and P90 when recruiting?
- Junior or new in the role – aim near P25 (between P10 and median). Experienced with full productivity – near the median. Senior, leading or key competence – between median and P90. Above P90 usually requires unique competence or a tight market.
- How often is the SCB data updated?
- Once per year. A new vintage is normally published in May–June of the year after the reference year, so current statistics lag by about a year. We cache results and refresh when SCB releases new data.
- Private or public sector – when does it matter?
- Most for occupations that exist in both, e.g. economists, lawyers and IT specialists, where the private sector is often higher. For teachers, nurses and social workers the public sector dominates and defines the market salary.
- Does pay differ between men and women in the statistics?
- Yes. SCB normally reports per gender and as a total. We show 'all' by default to give a market picture that doesn't cement historical differences. For internal pay audits you should compare gender by gender within the same occupation and seniority.
- What's the difference between base pay and total pay in SCB?
- SCB reports monthly pay converted to full time, including fixed supplements but excluding overtime and variable supplements such as bonus. Total compensation in your offer is therefore often somewhat higher than the market salary.
- Why are some combinations missing?
- SCB suppresses cells with too few observations for confidentiality. We then widen the search to all sectors and show that in the result.
- Is the percentile band at regional or national level?
- National. SCB's percentile table has no regional dimension. We show the regional average salary as an extra marker when you've selected a region.