PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO in Sweden
Sweden: PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO was 3.6% in 2017. ▼ Falling
PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO in Sweden, 1990–2017
Source: Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). Measured in % of total.
Analysis
The most recent figure for pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who in Sweden is 3.6%, measured in 2017.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.1% on the previous year and down 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who in Sweden peaked at 7.2% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 3.5%, in 2013.
Sweden ranks 185th of 194 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO in Sweden, year by year
| Year | % of total | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 7.2% | — |
| 1995 | 5.4% | -25.8% |
| 2000 | 5.0% | -7.2% |
| 2005 | 4.0% | -19.9% |
| 2010 | 4.3% | +8.3% |
| 2011 | 5.9% | +36.0% |
| 2012 | 3.6% | -38.9% |
| 2013 | 3.5% | -3.3% |
| 2014 | 3.7% | +5.8% |
| 2015 | 3.6% | -3.3% |
| 2016 | 3.6% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 3.6% | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.3% | 5.4% | 7.2% | 2 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 4.0% | 5.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | 4.0% | 3.5% | 5.9% | 8 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More urban development data for Sweden
- Population in the largest city 18.4% (2025)
- Population density 25.87 people per sq. km of land area (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure 5.26 micrograms per cubic meter (2023)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per capita 0.164 units per person (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 1.74 million (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, annual 1.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per unit 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per square 4.17 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Population in largest city 1.74 million (2025)
- Crude steelmaking capacity 5.95 Tonnes (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who in Sweden?
- Pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who in Sweden was 3.6% in 2017, according to Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).
- What is the highest pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 7.2% in 1990.
- What is the lowest pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.5% in 2013.
- How does Sweden rank for pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who?
- Sweden ranks 185th out of 194 countries with data for 2017.
- Is pm2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sweden data come from?
- The figures come from Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), published as part of PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO guideline value (% of total). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the WHO guideline value is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 10 micrograms per cubic meter, the guideline value recommended by the World Health Organization as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.