Living in Västerås
Västerås is a city in Sweden. For Västerås, annual PM2.5 was 6.2 µg/m³ in 2024. Car density was 454.4 vehicles per 1,000 residents in 2025. The unemployment rate was 14.1% at the end of 2024. Västerås had a population of 161,240 in December 2025.
Pricier rent than 86% of Swedish cities that publish it, higher unemployment than 88% of Swedish cities that publish it and more recorded crime than 93% of Swedish cities that publish it.
Which Sweden-wide rules apply when you move to Västerås?
National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.
Housing and cost
How much does it cost to rent in Västerås?
Average net cold rent is about 11.91 EUR/m² per month (2025), excluding heating and operating charges.
Published average over existing tenancies; a specific flat can sit either side of it. Asking-rent series, where present, are separate rows in the table.
- Average net rent (nettokalt): 11.91 EUR/m²/month · api.scb.se1
Supplemental estimate lane; these items are not official statistics.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fitness club membership, monthly | 26.82 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited | 26.98 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Private kindergarten, monthly | 121.9 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Meal at an inexpensive restaurant | 10.75 EUR | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Mobile plan, 10 GB | 25.42 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2024 | Numbeo — Cost of Living in Vasteras (Wayback capture 20241205072907)23Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Monthly transport pass | 57.62 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Basic utilities, 85 m² home | 105.7 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2022 | Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v222Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context |
| Average net rent (nettokalt) | 11.91 EUR/m²/monthcountry median €10.00 | 31 Dec 2025 | api.scb.se1Official |
Cost of living
Fixed monthly costs for one person in an 85 m² flat were about €1,228 in the latest published figures. From a median gross salary of €3,334, that leaves €2,107 before income tax and social contributions.
- Net rent, 85 m² · 82%€1,012
- Utilities, 85 m² · 9%€106
- Transport pass · 5%€58
- Internet and mobile · 4%€52
One person, 85 m² flat; the ring splits the €1,228 fixed basket before income tax and social contributions, latest published figures (checked 2026-08-27).
Worked out from these numbers
What does a 60 m² flat cost?
About 714 EUR a month in cold rent at the published average of about 11.91 EUR/m² per month, before heating and operating charges.
Heating, water and operating charges come on top, and a specific flat can sit either side of an average.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Västerås?
The unemployment rate is 14.1 % (2024). Source: SCB labour-market variables by municipality, 2022–202417
Unemployment rate (%)
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| People in employment | 79,254 people | 31 Dec 2024 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)16Official |
| Employment rate | 79.9 % | 31 Dec 2024 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)17Official |
| Median gross salary (regional) | 3,334 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2025 | api.scb.se2Official |
| Unemployment rate | 14.1 %country median 10.6% | 31 Dec 2024 | SCB labour-market variables by municipality, 2022–202417Independent |
Unemployment rate rose 97.5% between 2001 and 2024, from 7.1% to 14.1%.
Public employment service
No exact public employment office is currently linked to Västerås. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.
Arbetsförmedlingen — Public employment service
Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Västerås. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Safety
How safe is Västerås?
Police recorded 14,153 incidents per 100,000 (2025). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source.
- Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents: 14,153 offences per 100,000 · Brå — reported offences by municipality, 20253
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents | 14,153 offences per 100,000country median 9,986 | 31 Dec 2025 | Brå — reported offences by municipality, 20253Official |
Mobility and administration
Language courses and integration in Västerås
1 exact course-location record is linked to this city. Check the linked source for dates, availability and enrolment.
Vuxenutbildningscentrum Västerås
Ingenjör Bååths gata 17, Västerås
021-39 17 45 · vuc@vasteras.se
View official recordClimate and air quality
Monthly mean temperatures were −2.2°C in January and 18°C in July. Monthly precipitation was 40.6 mm in January and 76.5 mm in July.
Is the air quality good in Västerås?
The annual PM2.5 mean is about 6.2 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate.5
Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.
City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.
Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| NO₂ — annual mean | 10.03 µg/m³country median 4.0 | 2024 | Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate.5Official |
| NO₂ — latest reading | 5.22 µg/m³ | 15 Jul 2026 | Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate.5Official |
| PM10 — annual mean | 19.35 µg/m³country median 9.3 | 2024 | Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate.5Official |
| PM2.5 — annual mean | 6.2 µg/m³country median 5.1 | 2024 | Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate.5Official |
| Average daytime high by month | Jan 0.303 · Feb 0.808 · Mar 4.75 · Apr 11.05 · May 16.53 · Jun 20.33 · Jul 23.03 · Aug 21.65 · Sep 16.41 · Oct 9.84 · Nov 4.7 · Dec 1.59 °C | 31 Dec 2020 | SMHI Mean maximum temperature — Västerås, 1991-202012Official |
| Average night-time low by month | Jan -4.67 · Feb -5.04 · Mar -2.56 · Apr 1.11 · May 5.89 · Jun 10.46 · Jul 13.21 · Aug 12.37 · Sep 8.36 · Oct 3.85 · Nov 0.275 · Dec -3.09 °C | 31 Dec 2020 | SMHI Mean minimum temperature — Västerås, 1991-202013Official |
| Average temperature by month | Jan -2.19 · Feb -2.19 · Mar 0.875 · Apr 5.93 · May 11.25 · Jun 15.31 · Jul 18.03 · Aug 16.82 · Sep 12.12 · Oct 6.66 · Nov 2.48 · Dec -0.731 °C | 31 Dec 2020 | SMHI Normal monthly temperature — Västerås, 1991-202015Official |
| Average precipitation by month | Jan 40.57 · Feb 32.38 · Mar 28.72 · Apr 34.15 · May 43.86 · Jun 69.15 · Jul 76.51 · Aug 71.14 · Sep 47.45 · Oct 57.78 · Nov 54.29 · Dec 49.52 mm | 31 Dec 2020 | SMHI Normal monthly precipitation — Västerås, 1991-202014Official |
Annual PM2.5 rose 23.9% between 2017 and 2024, from 5.0 to 6.2.
Alternatives with a better balance
Nearby is not always better: the greyed row leaves less than Västerås at the same fixed-cost basket. Every alternative publishes the same metric families, each with its own source and date.
Cities of a similar size in Sweden
Closest published populations, for a like-for-like comparison.
Population and city profile
The city covered 962.4 km² in 2024. Population density was 167.5 people per km² in 2025.
How many people live in Västerås?
The published population was 161,240 people in 2025-12. Source: Population 31 December by region, age, sex and year10
Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Area | 962.4 km² | 31 Dec 2025 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)18Official |
| Cars per 1,000 residents | 454.4 cars/1000 residents | 31 Dec 2025 | Official vehicles-in-use table: Fordonsslag=10 is passenger cars, stock at the last month of 2025; divided by official SCB population at 31 December 2025.7Official |
| City area | 962.4 km² | 1 Jan 2024 | SCB table BefArealTathetKon: municipality land area/population by year.11Official |
| Foreign-resident share | 7.8 % | 31 Dec 2025 | Eurostat4Official |
| Foreign residents | 12,571 people | 31 Dec 2025 | Official number of foreign citizens at municipality grain, all ages and all sexes, reference 31 December 2025.6Official |
| Population density | 167.5 people/km² | 31 Dec 2025 | Official SCB population density per square kilometre at municipality grain. SCB states that it uses the population figure at 31 December with the following 1 January land-area figure.11Official |
| Population Female | 80,466 people | 31 Dec 2025 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)10Official |
| Population Male | 80,466 people | 31 Dec 2025 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)10Official |
| Population | 161,240 people | 31 Dec 2025 | Population 31 December by region, age, sex and year10Official |
Population rose 27.2% between 2001 and 2025, from 126,328 to 160,632.
Foreign residents rose 29.7% between 2013 and 2025, from 9,693 to 12,571.
International community in Västerås
Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.
Country of birth
Registered population by municipality and country of birth; total sex · 2024
| Published group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| All birth countries | 160,634 | 100.0% |
| Sweden | 120,345 | 74.9% |
| Syrian Arab Republic | 5,035 | 3.1% |
| Iraq | 4,921 | 3.1% |
| Finland | 3,159 | 2.0% |
| Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 2,285 | 1.4% |
| Somalia | 2,012 | 1.3% |
| Eritrea | 1,644 | 1.0% |
| Afghanistan | 1,308 | 0.8% |
| Türkiye | 1,189 | 0.7% |
Show 122 more groups
| Published group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| India | 1,085 | 0.7% |
| Poland | 868 | 0.5% |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 773 | 0.5% |
| Thailand | 769 | 0.5% |
| Yugoslavia | 607 | 0.4% |
| Germany | 577 | 0.4% |
| China | 540 | 0.3% |
| Ukraine | 522 | 0.3% |
| Ethiopia | 504 | 0.3% |
| Norway | 473 | 0.3% |
| Chile | 459 | 0.3% |
| Italy | 423 | 0.3% |
| Pakistan | 422 | 0.3% |
| Lebanon | 407 | 0.3% |
| Russian Federation | 392 | 0.2% |
| Colombia | 349 | 0.2% |
| United Kingdom | 343 | 0.2% |
| Romania | 310 | 0.2% |
| Viet Nam | 304 | 0.2% |
| United States of America | 270 | 0.2% |
| Korea, Republic of Korea | 266 | 0.2% |
| Sri Lanka | 252 | 0.2% |
| Philippines | 245 | 0.2% |
| Morocco | 240 | 0.1% |
| Brazil | 237 | 0.1% |
| Burundi | 233 | 0.1% |
| Spain | 211 | 0.1% |
| Serbia | 209 | 0.1% |
| Denmark | 202 | 0.1% |
| Saudi Arabia | 200 | 0.1% |
| Hungary | 190 | 0.1% |
| Greece | 175 | 0.1% |
| Croatia | 171 | 0.1% |
| Armenia | 166 | 0.1% |
| Lithuania | 165 | 0.1% |
| other countries | 152 | 0.1% |
| Peru | 152 | 0.1% |
| Sudan | 149 | 0.1% |
| Nigeria | 148 | 0.1% |
| El Salvador | 147 | 0.1% |
| Estonia | 137 | 0.1% |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | 134 | 0.1% |
| France | 130 | 0.1% |
| Egypt | 125 | 0.1% |
| Uganda | 117 | 0.1% |
| Czechoslovakia | 116 | 0.1% |
| Latvia | 107 | 0.1% |
| Kosovo | 104 | 0.1% |
| Bangladesh | 100 | 0.1% |
| United Arab Emirates | 99 | 0.1% |
| Bolivia | 99 | 0.1% |
| Argentina | 97 | 0.1% |
| Palestinian territory, occupied | 94 | 0.1% |
| Kenya | 93 | 0.1% |
| Bulgaria | 91 | 0.1% |
| Jordan | 90 | 0.1% |
| South Africa | 89 | 0.1% |
| Austria | 88 | 0.1% |
| Japan | 87 | 0.1% |
| Kingdom of the Netherlands | 81 | 0.1% |
| Kuwait | 78 | 0.0% |
| Soviet Union | 78 | 0.0% |
| Tunisia | 77 | 0.0% |
| Azerbaijan | 76 | 0.0% |
| Gambia | 74 | 0.0% |
| Cameroon | 71 | 0.0% |
| Venezuela | 70 | 0.0% |
| Iceland | 68 | 0.0% |
| Canada | 67 | 0.0% |
| Australia | 64 | 0.0% |
| Mongolia | 64 | 0.0% |
| Malaysia | 64 | 0.0% |
| Mexico | 60 | 0.0% |
| Portugal | 60 | 0.0% |
| Libyan Arab Jamahiriya | 59 | 0.0% |
| Ireland | 57 | 0.0% |
| Serbia and Montenegro | 50 | 0.0% |
| Ghana | 50 | 0.0% |
| Switzerland | 49 | 0.0% |
| Indonesia | 47 | 0.0% |
| Belarus | 45 | 0.0% |
| Albania | 44 | 0.0% |
| Uruguay | 44 | 0.0% |
| Yemen | 42 | 0.0% |
| Georgia | 41 | 0.0% |
| Israel | 40 | 0.0% |
| North Macedonia | 40 | 0.0% |
| Ecuador | 39 | 0.0% |
| Taiwan | 39 | 0.0% |
| Tanzania, United Republic of | 37 | 0.0% |
| Czech Republic | 36 | 0.0% |
| Kazakhstan | 36 | 0.0% |
| Myanmar | 36 | 0.0% |
| Algeria | 35 | 0.0% |
| Slovakia | 35 | 0.0% |
| Cuba | 33 | 0.0% |
| Uzbekistan | 33 | 0.0% |
| South Sudan | 31 | 0.0% |
| Kyrgyzstan | 28 | 0.0% |
| Rwanda | 24 | 0.0% |
| Angola | 22 | 0.0% |
| Djibouti | 21 | 0.0% |
| Moldova, Republic of | 21 | 0.0% |
| Zambia | 20 | 0.0% |
| Belgium | 19 | 0.0% |
| Nepal | 18 | 0.0% |
| Congo, the Republic of the | 17 | 0.0% |
| Cyprus | 17 | 0.0% |
| Montenegro | 17 | 0.0% |
| Hong Kong | 16 | 0.0% |
| Slovenia | 16 | 0.0% |
| Qatar | 14 | 0.0% |
| Zimbabwe | 14 | 0.0% |
| New Zealand | 12 | 0.0% |
| unknown country of birth | 12 | 0.0% |
| Guinea | 11 | 0.0% |
| Nicaragua | 11 | 0.0% |
| Singapore | 11 | 0.0% |
| Tadzjikistan | 11 | 0.0% |
| Dominican Republic | 10 | 0.0% |
| Guinea-Bissau | 10 | 0.0% |
| Turkmenistan | 10 | 0.0% |
Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source21
Citizenship
Registered population by municipality and citizenship; total sex · 2024
| Published group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| total | 160,634 | 100.0% |
| Swedish | 148,057 | 92.2% |
| Rest of the world incl. Stateless and unknown | 8,063 | 5.0% |
| European citizenship except Swedish | 4,514 | 2.8% |
Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source20
Is Västerås a good place to live?
There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.
Additional context
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households | 75,469 households | 31 Dec 2024 | Statistics Sweden (SCB)19Official |
Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Västerås when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.
Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.
Open the official coverage guideCommon questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
Is Västerås expensive?
Fixed monthly costs for one person in an 85 m² flat — net rent, utilities, a transport pass, internet and mobile — came to about €1,228 against a median gross salary of €3,334 (figures), leaving about €2,107 before income tax. Sources: the rent, recurring-cost and salary series published on this page, each with its own source and date.
How many people live in Västerås?
The published population was 161,240 people in 2025-12. Source: Population 31 December by region, age, sex and year.
How much does it cost to rent in Västerås?
Average net cold rent is about 11.91 EUR/m² per month (2025), excluding heating and operating charges. For a 70 m² flat that is about 833 EUR a month before utilities. Source: api.scb.se.
Is the air quality good in Västerås?
The annual PM2.5 mean is about 6.2 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate..
How safe is Västerås?
Police recorded 14,153 incidents per 100,000 (2025). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Brå — reported offences by municipality, 2025.
What is the unemployment rate in Västerås?
The unemployment rate is 14.1 % (2024). Source: SCB labour-market variables by municipality, 2022–2024.
What is the typical salary around Västerås?
The median gross salary is 3,334 EUR/month. Source: api.scb.se.
Is Västerås a good place to live?
Västerås may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.
How many people born in United Arab Emirates live in Västerås?
The official country of birth distribution records 99 people (0.1%) in the source-defined population for 2024. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.
Cite this page
Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.
APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, September 12). Västerås, Sweden: cost of living, rent and salaries [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/se/vasteras/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_vasteras-sweden-cost-of-living-rent-and-salaries_b23185604d91,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Västerås, Sweden: cost of living, rent and salaries},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-09-12},
version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/se/vasteras/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Västerås, Sweden: cost of living, rent and salaries](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/se/vasteras/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
- api.scb.se api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-27
- api.scb.se api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-27
- Brå — reported offences by municipality, 2025 Brå · bra.se · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-02
- Official exact-kommun station observations are derived to a kommun aggregate. datavardluft.smhi.se · checked 2026-07-15
- Official number of foreign citizens at municipality grain, all ages and all sexes, reference 31 December 2025. api.scb.se · checked 2025-12-31
- Official vehicles-in-use table: Fordonsslag=10 is passenger cars, stock at the last month of 2025; divided by official SCB population at 31 December 2025. api.scb.se · checked 2025-12-31
- OpenFlights — routes.dat OpenFlights · raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-07-14
- OurAirports — airports.csv OurAirports · davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-07-14
- Population 31 December by region, age, sex and year api.scb.se · checked 2026-09-01
Show 13 more sources
- SCB table BefArealTathetKon: municipality land area/population by year. api.scb.se · checked 2026-07-14
- SMHI Mean maximum temperature — Västerås, 1991-2020 SMHI Mean maximum temperature · smhi.se · checked 2026-07-27
- SMHI Mean minimum temperature — Västerås, 1991-2020 SMHI Mean minimum temperature · smhi.se · checked 2026-07-27
- SMHI Normal monthly precipitation — Västerås, 1991-2020 SMHI Normal monthly precipitation · smhi.se · checked 2026-07-27
- SMHI Normal monthly temperature — Västerås, 1991-2020 SMHI Normal monthly temperature · smhi.se · checked 2026-07-27
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-07
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-07
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-07
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-07
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-30
- Statistics Sweden (SCB) country_of_birth distribution api.scb.se · checked 2026-08-28
- Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2 Global Cost of Living · kaggle.com · checked 2026-07-27
- Numbeo — Cost of Living in Vasteras (Wayback capture 20241205072907) Numbeo · web.archive.org · checked 2026-08-01
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.