Annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden

Sweden: Annual working hours vs. productivity was 1,432 hours per worker in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
1,432 hours per worker
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
125th
of 129 countries
All-time high
1,800 hours per worker
in 1950
All-time low
1,362 hours per worker
in 1981
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden, 1950–2023

05001.0k1.5k2.0k195019862023

Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hours per worker.

Analysis

In 2023, annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden stood at 1,432 hours per worker.

The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 2.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden peaked at 1,800 hours per worker in 1950 and was at its lowest, 1,362 hours per worker, in 1981.

Sweden ranks 125th of 129 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 1,764 hours per worker 1,700 hours per worker 1,800 hours per worker 10
1960s 1,640 hours per worker 1,545 hours per worker 1,697 hours per worker 10
1970s 1,448 hours per worker 1,370 hours per worker 1,545 hours per worker 10
1980s 1,387 hours per worker 1,362 hours per worker 1,414 hours per worker 10
1990s 1,461 hours per worker 1,398 hours per worker 1,506 hours per worker 10
2000s 1,459 hours per worker 1,433 hours per worker 1,489 hours per worker 10
2010s 1,470 hours per worker 1,451 hours per worker 1,487 hours per worker 10
2020s 1,433 hours per worker 1,423 hours per worker 1,441 hours per worker 4

Countries ranked near Sweden

  1. 122 Iceland 1,452 hours per worker compare
  2. 123 Netherlands 1,439 hours per worker compare
  3. 124 Austria 1,438 hours per worker compare
  4. 126 Norway 1,412 hours per worker compare
  5. 127 Yemen 1,382 hours per worker compare
  6. 128 Denmark 1,380 hours per worker compare

See the full ranking of 129 places →

More economy & growth data for Sweden

All data for Sweden →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden?
Annual working hours vs. productivity in Sweden was 1,432 hours per worker in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual working hours vs. productivity recorded in Sweden?
The highest recorded value was 1,800 hours per worker in 1950.
What is the lowest annual working hours vs. productivity recorded in Sweden?
The lowest recorded value was 1,362 hours per worker in 1981.
How does Sweden rank for annual working hours vs. productivity?
Sweden ranks 125th out of 129 countries with data for 2023.
Is annual working hours vs. productivity rising or falling in Sweden?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sweden data come from?
The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual working hours vs. productivity. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Annual working hours vs. productivity
Unit
hours per worker
Source
Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
129 places, 4,891 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

This is the average sum of hours worked by employees and self-employed people during each year in a country.