Sweden is known for high-quality higher education, but tuition can be expensive for students who are required to pay fees.
Swedish universities generally do not charge application or tuition fees to citizens of the EU, EEA, and Switzerland, as long as they document their citizenship. Students from outside the EU/EEA/Switzerland usually need to pay a SEK 900 application fee and tuition fees for bachelor’s and master’s studies. The universities below include some lower-cost and comparatively moderate-cost options in Sweden, but tuition costs are still significant and vary by program.
Many Swedish universities offer scholarship opportunities to international students that can reduce or cover tuition fees. However, these scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis, and only a limited number of applicants are selected.
For admissions selectivity, you can also check out Universities in Sweden with Highest Acceptance Rates.
This article will walk you through several affordable universities in Sweden for international students. Before that, let’s go over some information!
Affordable Schools in Sweden for International Students
1. Stockholm University
- Admissions | Tuition Fees | Scholarships
- Tuition Fees: SEK 90,000/year for humanities, social sciences, and law; SEK 140,000/year for sciences; some special or collaborative programs may cost more
Located in Sweden’s capital, Stockholm University is a public research university with programs in the humanities, social sciences, law, and the sciences. Its published tuition fees are SEK 90,000 per academic year for studies in the humanities, social sciences, and law, and SEK 140,000 per academic year for studies in the sciences. Some programs have special prices within that range, while a few collaborative programs have higher tuition fees. This makes Stockholm University one of the lowest-cost options among the universities listed here.
Stockholm University offers bachelor’s and master’s programs, along with a wide range of master’s-level courses in English. For doctoral education, there are no tuition fees in Sweden, and doctoral students at Stockholm University are employees who receive a salary and standard employment benefits.
2. Uppsala University
Uppsala University is another comparatively affordable university in Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic region. It also ranks among the top 100 universities in recent major rankings, including 87th in the QS World University Rankings 2027 and 93rd in the Academic Ranking of World Universities 2025.
Uppsala University offers a wide range of master’s programs. To find the exact tuition fee, choose the program you are interested in and check the program page, since tuition varies by subject and level.
PhD programs in Sweden are free of charge regardless of citizenship. At Uppsala University, PhD candidates apply for available doctoral positions at specific departments rather than applying through one centrally listed doctoral program, and PhD students are generally regarded as university employees.
3. Karolinska Institutet
- Admissions | Tuition Fees | Scholarships
- Tuition Fees: SEK 82,500–100,000/semester for global master’s programs; SEK 90,000/semester for the Bachelor’s Programme in Biomedicine
Ranked highly in medicine and health, Karolinska Institutet is one of Sweden’s most important institutions for medicine and health sciences. It accounts for the largest share of academic medical research conducted in Sweden and offers a broad range of education in medicine and health sciences.
Karolinska Institutet also has a special connection to the Nobel Prize. By the terms of Alfred Nobel’s will, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded by the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet since 1901.
As mentioned above, PhD programs in Sweden do not charge tuition fees. Since this university is a medical school, Karolinska Institutet’s bachelor’s and master’s tuition fees are generally higher than those of many non-medical universities.
4. Lund University
Founded in 1666, Lund University is one of Sweden’s oldest and largest universities, and it is frequently ranked among the world’s top universities. It is included on this list because some of its programs have comparatively moderate tuition fees for fee-paying students.
Lund University is also open to international students, offering numerous international degree programs. The university is strongly research-oriented and hosts or participates in a wide range of research infrastructure, including national and international research facilities.
The tuition amount for each specific program is listed on Lund University’s program pages. Make sure to check the exact program page before applying, since the tuition fee can differ substantially by field and degree level.
There are no tuition fees for PhD studies at Lund University, and regular doctoral positions come with a salary and formal employment at the university.
5. KTH Royal Institute of Technology
- Admissions | Tuition Fees | Scholarships
- Tuition Fees: SEK 423,000 total for the 3-year bachelor’s program in Information and Communication Technology; most 2-year master’s programs are SEK 360,000 total
The final university on this list is the KTH Royal Institute of Technology. KTH is one of Sweden’s leading institutions for engineering and technology, offering many master’s programs taught in English. It is also one of the best universities in the field of engineering and sciences.
KTH’s bachelor’s tuition fee applies to its English-taught Bachelor’s Programme in Information and Communication Technology. For master’s studies, the full tuition fee for most two-year programs is SEK 360,000, although fees can vary by program. KTH also offers tuition-fee scholarships for selected fee-paying master’s applicants, but it does not offer scholarships for its bachelor’s program in Information and Communication Technology.
As with many Swedish universities, doctoral students at KTH are generally employed through advertised doctoral positions rather than paying tuition for a PhD.
FAQS About Studying in Sweden
Which College in Sweden is Cheapest for International Students?
Among the universities in Sweden listed here, Stockholm University currently has one of the lowest published starting tuition rates for fee-paying international students. However, tuition fees are not the only cost to consider. You should also budget for living expenses such as rent, food, transportation, insurance, and any residence permit maintenance requirements that apply to you. For 2026 applications, the Swedish Migration Agency’s maintenance requirement for higher education students is at least SEK 10,656 per month.
How Can You Lower Your Tuition in Swedish Universities as an International Student?
EU/EEA citizens and Swiss citizens are not charged application or tuition fees at Swedish universities, but they must document their citizenship when applying.
If you are a fee-paying student from outside the EU/EEA/Switzerland, you can lower your costs by choosing lower-fee programs, applying for university scholarships, applying for Swedish Institute scholarships if eligible, and comparing tuition fees by program before submitting your application.
As mentioned earlier, PhD studies in Sweden do not charge tuition fees, regardless of citizenship. In most cases, doctoral students apply for paid doctoral positions instead of paying tuition.
The information regarding affordable universities in Sweden is just one of the many posts that we are making. Make sure to also check out the Available Programs in Europe!
