Best Online Brokers in Sweden for Expats
Sweden is a great place to invest, whether you want to grow your savings or invest for the long term. As an expat, the tricky parts are knowing which broker to use and understanding the Swedish investment account (ISK). This guide compares online brokers available in Sweden, explains ISK and how to buy stocks, and shows how to start investing even before you have a personnummer.
TIP: if a Swedish trading site is in Swedish, right-click anywhere on the page (Google Chrome only) and choose “Translate to English”.
Online brokers in Sweden compared
| ETFs | Crypto | Low fees | Stocks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitvavo | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| eToro | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Saxo | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| DEGIRO | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
eToro: 74% of retail CFD accounts lose money. Investing involves risk of loss.
ISK: the Swedish investment account
The ISK (investeringssparkonto) is the standard investment account in Sweden and the first thing to understand. Instead of paying capital-gains tax on each profit, an ISK is taxed with a low flat annual rate (schablonskatt) on the account value, and you do not have to declare each individual trade. This makes it simple and, for most long-term investors, tax-efficient. ISK is offered by Swedish brokers and banks, and opening one requires a personnummer and BankID.
How to buy stocks in Sweden
Getting started is straightforward:
- Open a broker account (an ISK with a Swedish provider, or a regular account with an international broker).
- Deposit money into the account.
- Search for the stock, fund or ETF you want.
- Place a buy order and confirm it.
Compare the fees, available markets and tools before you choose – a broker that is cheap for Swedish shares may be pricier for foreign ones, and vice versa.
Investing as an expat, with or without a personnummer
This is where many newcomers get stuck. Swedish brokers such as Avanza and Nordnet, and the ISK account, require a personnummer and BankID, and are mostly in Swedish. Until you have those, the practical route is an international broker – eToro, Saxo or DEGIRO – which you can open with a passport, in English, and start investing straight away. Once you have a personnummer, you can also open an ISK to benefit from its simple tax treatment. To fund your investing, you will want a Swedish bank account in place first.
Types of broker
Full-service brokers offer hands-on help, tools and human advisers, and charge higher fees. Discount brokers give you the platform and resources to invest yourself at low cost, making money on commissions and spreads. Robo-advisers use algorithms to manage a portfolio for you at a low annual fee. Most expats start with a discount broker or a robo-adviser.
Choosing the right broker
Before you start, ask yourself what you want: a few individual stocks, long-term retirement saving, or more active trading. Then weigh brokers on pricing and execution, commissions, reliability, any account minimum, and the tools and education they offer. Make sure the broker is properly regulated – in Sweden by Finansinspektionen, or by an equivalent EU regulator – so your money is protected.
Investing always involves risk. You could lose part or all of the money you invest.
Frequently asked questions
Brokers operating in Sweden are regulated by Finansinspektionen or an equivalent EU regulator, but all investing carries risk and you can lose money. Only invest what you can afford to lose.
Open a broker or ISK account, deposit money, search for the stock, fund or ETF you want, and place a buy order. Compare fees and available markets before choosing a broker.
An ISK (investeringssparkonto) is a Swedish investment account taxed with a low flat annual rate instead of capital-gains tax, with no need to declare each trade. It suits long-term investing but requires a personnummer and BankID.
Swedish brokers and ISK accounts need a personnummer and BankID. International brokers such as eToro, Saxo and DEGIRO let you open an account with a passport, so they are the practical route for newcomers.