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How much does a carpenter earn in Sweden?

Woodworkers, carpenters. 46,300 people employed in Sweden.

40,300SEK

per month is the median salary for a carpenter in Sweden in 2025. That is 5% higher than the median across all jobs in the country, 38,300 SEK.

≈ €3,550 / $4,150 at September 2026 exchange rates, before tax.

That is roughly 31,999 SEK after tax in an average municipality, without the church fee.

In the 2025 salary statistics, a carpenter earned 39,700 SEK a month on average in Sweden. The median salary is 40,300 SEK. The lowest-paid 10% earn under 33,400 SEK and the highest-paid 10% over 44,900 SEK.

Figures are gross monthly salary before tax, converted to full time. Income tax in Sweden is roughly 30–34% for most earners, plus a national surtax on income above about 51,000 SEK a month.

Average pay
39,700 SEK
Mean gross monthly salary
Lowest 10%
33,400 SEK
Earn less than this
Highest 10%
44,900 SEK
Earn more than this
People employed
46,300
In this job in Sweden

Carpenters and woodworkers build and renovate houses and other buildings, from frames and floor structures to windows, doors and fittings. The usual route in is the building and construction programme at upper secondary school, followed by an apprenticeship that ends with a trade certificate (yrkesbevis). Most work for private construction companies, from large contractors to small firms. Pay can be set as time rates or piece rates (ackord), which together with experience and location contributes to the spread.

The pay range

How monthly salaries are distributed among woodworkers, carpenters in Sweden. The same scale is used in the tables further down.

33,400 SEKLowest 10%40,300 SEKMedian44,900 SEKHighest 10%
Light band: the middle 80 per cent. Dark band: the middle half, earning 38,000–42,100 SEK. The red line is the median salary across all jobs in Sweden.

Pay in the private and public sector

What woodworkers, carpenters earn depends a great deal on who the employer is.

Monthly salary by sector and gender
Sector Average pay Median pay Men Women
All sectors 39,700 SEK 40,300 SEK 40,300 SEK –
Private sector 39,700 SEK 40,300 SEK 40,300 SEK –
Public sector 36,200 SEK 36,100 SEK 36,400 SEK 33,200 SEK
Central government 36,800 SEK 35,800 SEK 36,400 SEK 34,300 SEK
Municipalities 35,900 SEK 36,300 SEK 36,400 SEK –
Regions (health care) 36,600 SEK – – –

Salary after tax

What woodworkers, carpenters actually take home depends on which municipality they live in. Between the cheapest and the most expensive one the difference is several hundred kronor a month.

That is roughly 31,999 SEK after tax in an average municipality, without the church fee.

  • The youngest in the job, aged 18–24 years, earn 37,100 SEK before tax — roughly 29,622 SEK after.
  • The best paid 10% earn more than 44,900 SEK, which is roughly 35,097 SEK after tax.

Calculate the salary after tax for a carpenter

The figures assume an average municipality, no church fee and an age under 66. The calculator takes your own municipality into account.

And if the job goes? Work out unemployment benefit for a carpenter

Pay for men and women

Women's average salary is 90% of men's average salary in this job.

Statistics Sweden calculates the ratio on average monthly salary, while the table above shows median salaries, so the two do not line up exactly. The figure is also unadjusted: it does not account for differences in age, sector or position.

Pay by age

Pay for woodworkers, carpenters normally rises with years in the job.

Monthly salary by age
Age 32,500 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
18–24 years 37,100 SEK 37,000 SEK – –
25–34 years 40,100 SEK 40,400 SEK – 10,100
35–44 years 39,700 SEK 39,800 SEK – 9,300
45–54 years 40,100 SEK 40,100 SEK – 12,300
55–64 years 40,100 SEK 40,100 SEK – –

Pay by level of education

Monthly salary by level of education
Level of education 32,500 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
Primary and secondary education 9-10 years (ISCED97 2) 40,700 SEK 41,000 SEK – –
Upper secondary education, 2 years or less (ISCED97 3C) 39,800 SEK 39,800 SEK – 11,800
Upper secondary education 3 years (ISCED97 3A) 39,600 SEK 39,700 SEK 36,000 SEK 26,300
Post-secondary education, less than 3 years (ISCED97 4+5B) 41,000 SEK 41,200 SEK – –
Post-secondary education 3 years or more (ISCED97 5A) 39,600 SEK 39,400 SEK – –

Pay by region

Statistics Sweden reports pay by job at the level of national areas (NUTS 2), not by county.

Monthly salary by region
Region 32,500 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
Stockholm 40,300 SEK 40,300 SEK – –
East-Central Sweden 37,500 SEK 37,500 SEK – –
Småland and islands 39,000 SEK 39,300 SEK – –
South Sweden 40,600 SEK 40,700 SEK – –
West Sweden 41,800 SEK 41,900 SEK – –
North-Central Sweden 40,100 SEK 40,200 SEK – –
Central Norrland 39,800 SEK 39,800 SEK – –
Upper Norrland 39,400 SEK 40,400 SEK – –

Pay growth 2014–2025

Median salary per year. Years with no reported median are skipped. The dashed line marks the break between the older and the newer series at Statistics Sweden; comparisons across it should be made with care.

From 30,600 SEK in 2014 to 40,300 SEK in 2025, +32% in total. Nominal figures, not adjusted for inflation. The lighter part of the line, the years before 2023, comes from an older set of statistics at Statistics Sweden and is not fully comparable with the later years.

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Swedish job titles in this occupation

Statistics Sweden files the following Swedish job titles under SSYK 7111, “träarbetare, snickare m.fl.”. These are the titles you will actually meet in Swedish job ads.

  • Byggnadssnickare
  • Byggnadsträarbetare
  • Gruvbyggare
  • Snickare, byggnads-
  • Snickare, ospec
  • Timmerhusbyggare
  • Timmerman, husbyggnad

Frequently asked questions

What is the median salary for a carpenter in Sweden?

The median salary for a carpenter in Sweden is 40,300 SEK per month before tax (2025). That means half earn less and half earn more. The median across all jobs in Sweden is 38,300 SEK, so woodworkers, carpenters sit 5% higher than the typical job.

How much does a carpenter earn after tax?

The median salary for a carpenter is 40,300 SEK a month before tax. In an average Swedish municipality, without the church fee and for someone under 66, that works out at roughly 31,999 SEK after tax. The exact figure depends on which municipality you live in — our salary-after-tax calculator works it out.

What is the difference between average and median pay for woodworkers, carpenters?

The average (39,700 SEK) is the mean of every salary and is pulled upwards by the highest earners. The median (40,300 SEK) is the salary in the middle of the scale and usually gives a better picture of what woodworkers, carpenters typically earn.

What is the starting salary for a carpenter in Sweden?

Statistics Sweden does not publish starting salaries as such. The closest figure is the youngest people in the job: woodworkers, carpenters aged 18–24 years earn 37,100 SEK per month on average. The lowest-paid 10% in the job earn less than 33,400 SEK.

How high can the salary go for woodworkers, carpenters?

The highest-paid 10% in the job earn more than 44,900 SEK per month. Pay is shaped by sector, experience, level of education and where in the country you work.

Where in Sweden does a carpenter earn the most?

Pay is highest in West Sweden, where woodworkers, carpenters earn 41,800 SEK per month on average.

Jobs with similar pay

Other jobs in carpenters, bricklayers and construction workers

See the whole occupational group Carpenters, bricklayers and construction workers or building and manufacturing workers