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Student life in Stockholm

Welcome to Stockholm, the beautiful capital of Sweden and the home of KTH. The city was founded in the 13th century and is situated on the east coast of Sweden. With 2.1 million inhabitants, it is the heart of Swedish trade and business life and is known for its rich cultural history and closeness to nature. KTH has five campuses in and around Stockholm, each with its unique character and close connection to transports, accommodation, services and entertainment.

KTH's virtual campus tour

Celine from Sweden gives you an introduction into the student life at KTH. In the virtual tour she and some other students will guide you around the campuses and show you their favourite spots.

Our five campuses

Five campuses in and around Stockholm

KTH has five campuses, each one with its own character, located close to the industries relevant for the education and research conducted.

KTH Campus

The main KTH campus, located in central Stockholm, is like a small town in the middle of a big city. Its historical buildings date back to the early 20th century, and it is situated next to the Royal National City Park, offering excellent opportunities for sports and recreation.

KTH Flemingsberg

The campus in Flemingsberg sits in one of Northern Europe’s key areas for medical technology. In Flemingsberg, KTH is joined by the two other universities, Karolinska Institutet and Södertörn University College, creating a student community with over 10,000 students.

KTH Kista

The Kista campus is located in the heart of the largest ICT cluster in Europe and home to over 1,000 ICT companies such as Microsoft, IBM and Ericsson. Close collaborations between KTH and neighbouring companies create unique opportunities for students to interact with industry.

KTH Solna

The campus in Solna sits in an important national hub for research within various life science disciplines. The main focus of the campus is the Science for Life Laboratory, a joint effort between four of the highest ranked universities in Scandinavia.

KTH Södertälje

The campus in Södertälje is continuously evolving through close co-operation with Södertälje-based businesses led by major companies such as Scania and AstraZeneca. 

Five things you must experience while in Stockholm

Take advantage of allemannsrätten

Students jumping in the water

Stockholm sits on 14 islands connected by 57 bridges, giving you sea views at almost every street corner. The city is full of parks and forests areas to explore, and allemannsrätten is your free ticket to enjoy all of it. Allemannsrätten, the right of public access, allows everyone to roam freely in the countryside, pick mushrooms and berries in the forest, and swim or go kayaking in any of the rivers and lakes.

Grab a bite of Sweden

Students eating ice cream

Sweden is known for its meatballs, but there are plenty of other flavours to experience. Stockholm offers restaurants for all budgets, often with discounts for students. Some of the must-tries are traditional dishes such as pickled herring, crayfish and smörgåstårta. In this multicultural city, you will also find food from all corners of the world. Dinner parties with fellow students or enjoying a Swedish Fika together are great ways to make new friends.

Explore this modern and tech-friendly city

Student exploring Old Town

Living in Stockholm, a vast selection of cultural and historical experiences will be available right on your doorstep. Founded in the 13th century, the city is full of historical sights waiting to be explored. Royal landmarks and beautiful buildings aside, Stockholm is also filled with museums covering everything from ABBA and architecture to modern art and technology. Many museums in Stockholm are free, making culture and history accessible to all.

The Swedish capital is also a world-leading city when it comes to music and technical innovations – being the home to acts like Avicii and Robyn, as well as Spotify and Soundcloud. You will be able to listen to music in any genre and form, from big arena concerts and city festivals to intimate club performances.

Go shopping on a budget, or work extra

Students shopping flowers

Living in Stockholm will allow you to experience Swedish fashion first hand with brands such as H&M, Acne Studios and Tiger of Sweden having stores in many of the city’s malls and shopping areas. But life as a student in Stockholm can be quite expensive, so it is essential to learn how to spend wisely. The most significant expense and the hardest one to control is accommodation. However, there are budget alternatives for most things required by over 80’000 students living in the city. Student discounts are available on everything from grocery stores and restaurants to sports facilities and public transportation. A student budget for one month in Stockholm is around SEK 8,568. This sum includes accommodation, food, local travel, telephone, internet, hobbies and leisure. Exactly how much you’ll need each month will depend on your lifestyle, habits and where you live.

Are you doing extra work as an international student?

International students are allowed to work in Sweden, and there is no legal limit to the number of hours allowed to work while studying full time. Of course, your studies should always be your top priority. Bear in mind that if you want to work in Sweden, learning some Swedish is vital since it is often a requirement for jobs.

Cost of living

Accommodation 4,600-7,500 | Food 2,700 | Unlimited travel across Stockholm 650 | Phone and internet 400 | Clothing, hobbies and leisure 1,964 | Total SEK 10,314-13,214

Find a new hobby

Students playing boule

Studying at KTH will allow you to take part in an ever-growing array of activities, and participating in sports is a fantastic way to let go of studies for a few hours, while also making friends outside the classroom. Every campus has training facilities, gyms and outdoor recreation areas nearby, providing excellent opportunities for exercise. There are gyms in and around all campuses and a lot of them offer student discounts on memberships. 

The student union at KTH, THS , also offers plenty of opportunities to meet and exercise with other students. The list of THS sports associations includes the KTH Football Club, KTH-Hockey, and KTH Basketball Club, to name a few. If you would like to engage in activities other than sports, THS offers a smorgasbord of societies for students to be involved in. There will also be a THS-chapter related to your specific programme, offering even more activities with fellow students. Simply put – there will always be something to do or get involved in, no matter what interests you might have!

Images: Lieselotte van der Meijs/imagebank.sweden.se, Simon Paulin/imagebank.sweden.se, Tina Stafrén/imagebank.sweden.se