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How much do power production and water treatment plant operators earn in Sweden?

Power production and water treatment plant operators. 10,400 people employed in Sweden.

39,000SEK

per month is the median salary for power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden in 2025. That is 2% higher than the median across all jobs in the country, 38,300 SEK.

+3.4% since 2024

≈ €3,450 / $4,000 at September 2026 exchange rates, before tax.

That is roughly 31,056 SEK after tax in an average municipality, without the church fee.

≈ 225 SEK an hour · 468,000 SEK a year

The hourly figure is the monthly salary divided by 173.3 hours (40 hours a week × 52 weeks / 12 months); the yearly figure is twelve times the monthly salary.

The average salary for power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden is 39,600 SEK per month (2025). The median salary is 39,000 SEK. The lowest-paid 10% earn under 33,100 SEK and the highest-paid 10% over 47,200 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
39,600 SEK
Mean gross monthly salary
Lowest 10%
33,100 SEK
Earn less than this
Highest 10%
47,200 SEK
Earn more than this
People employed
10,400
In this job in Sweden

The pay range

How monthly salaries are distributed among power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden. The same scale is used in the tables further down.

33,100 SEKLowest 10%39,000 SEKMedian47,200 SEKHighest 10%
Light band: the middle 80 per cent. Dark band: the middle half, earning 35,600–43,000 SEK. The red line is the median salary across all jobs in Sweden.

Power production and water treatment plant operators starting salary

Statistics Sweden publishes no starting-salary figures. The closest proxies are what the youngest people in the job earn and where the lower end of the pay distribution sits.

The youngest in the job, aged 18–24, earn 32,900 SEK a month on average — roughly 26,500 SEK after tax in an average municipality.

Starting-salary proxies, before and after tax
Before tax After tax
Average, aged 18–24 32,900 SEK 26,455 SEK
Average, aged 25–34 38,700 SEK 30,829 SEK
Lowest 10% earn less than 33,100 SEK 26,605 SEK
Lowest 25% earn less than 35,600 SEK 28,491 SEK

These are proxies, not starting salaries. An age band holds both people who have just started and people ten years into the job, and the lowest paid are not always newcomers. The collective-agreement minimum and an individual offer can sit above or below.

Power production and water treatment plant operators pay in the private and public sector

What power production and water treatment plant operators 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 39,600 SEK 39,000 SEK 39,100 SEK 37,200 SEK
Private sector 41,000 SEK 40,400 SEK 40,600 SEK 39,100 SEK
Public sector 38,300 SEK 37,900 SEK 38,100 SEK 36,200 SEK
Central government 40,300 SEK 40,200 SEK 40,200 SEK 40,100 SEK
Municipalities 38,000 SEK 37,600 SEK 37,800 SEK 36,000 SEK
Regions (health care) 39,000 SEK 38,500 SEK 38,800 SEK 36,100 SEK

Power production and water treatment plant operators salary after tax in Sweden

What power production and water treatment plant operators actually take home depends on which municipality they live in. The table shows what 39,000 SEK a month comes to after tax in a few of them.

That is roughly 31,056 SEK after tax in an average municipality, without the church fee.

39,000 SEK a month after tax, by municipality
Municipality Municipal and regional tax After tax
Average municipality 32.38% 31,056 SEK
Stockholm 30.55% 31,583 SEK
Göteborg 32.60% 31,002 SEK
Malmö 32.42% 31,046 SEK
Österåker (lowest tax) 28.93% 31,893 SEK
Dorotea (highest tax) 35.65% 30,261 SEK
  • The youngest in the job, aged 18–24 years, earn 32,900 SEK before tax — roughly 26,455 SEK after.
  • The best paid 10% earn more than 47,200 SEK, which is roughly 36,645 SEK after tax.

Calculate the salary after tax for power production and water treatment plant operators

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 power production and water treatment plant operators

Pay for men and women

Median salary for men and women
Gender 35,000 45,000 Median pay Number
Men 39,100 SEK 9,400
Women 37,200 SEK 990

Women's average salary is 94% 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.

Power production and water treatment plant operators salary by age

Pay for power production and water treatment plant operators normally rises with years in the job.

Monthly salary by age
Age 35,000 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
18–24 years 32,900 SEK 33,000 SEK – 320
25–34 years 38,700 SEK 39,000 SEK 36,800 SEK 1,600
35–44 years 39,800 SEK 40,100 SEK 37,900 SEK 2,500
45–54 years 40,200 SEK 40,400 SEK 38,000 SEK 2,600
55–64 years 40,100 SEK 40,200 SEK 38,600 SEK 3,100

Pay by level of education

Monthly salary by level of education
Level of education 35,000 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
Primary and secondary education 9-10 years (ISCED97 2) 38,400 SEK 38,600 SEK – 740
Upper secondary education, 2 years or less (ISCED97 3C) 39,600 SEK 39,700 SEK 35,900 SEK 2,900
Upper secondary education 3 years (ISCED97 3A) 39,200 SEK 39,400 SEK 37,100 SEK 3,600
Post-secondary education, less than 3 years (ISCED97 4+5B) 40,300 SEK 40,600 SEK 38,200 SEK 2,300
Post-secondary education 3 years or more (ISCED97 5A) 40,800 SEK 41,100 SEK 39,600 SEK 770

Power production and water treatment plant operators salary by region

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

Monthly salary by region
Region 35,000 45,000 Average pay Men Women Number
Stockholm 40,800 SEK 41,000 SEK – 1,100
East-Central Sweden 39,900 SEK 40,000 SEK 38,200 SEK 1,700
Småland and islands 39,700 SEK 39,900 SEK – 1,100
South Sweden 39,700 SEK 40,000 SEK 36,900 SEK 1,600
West Sweden 39,700 SEK 40,000 SEK 37,600 SEK 2,600
North-Central Sweden 38,100 SEK 38,300 SEK – 1,100
Central Norrland 38,100 SEK 38,200 SEK – 550
Upper Norrland 39,600 SEK 39,700 SEK – 730

Power production and water treatment plant operators 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 29,400 SEK in 2014 to 39,000 SEK in 2025, +33% 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 8191, “drifttekniker vid värme- och vattenverk”. These are the titles you will actually meet in Swedish job ads.

  • Driftledare, avfallshantering
  • Driftledare, reningsverk m.m.
  • Driftledare, värmeverk m.m.
  • Driftmaskinist, kärnkraftverk
  • Driftmaskinist, reningsverk
  • Driftmaskinist, solenergianläggning
  • Driftmaskinist, vattenverk
  • Driftmaskinist, värmeverk
  • Driftpersonal, vattenrening
  • Drifttekniker, biogasanläggning
  • Drifttekniker, elkraft
  • Drifttekniker, energi
  • Drifttekniker, förbränningsstation
  • Drifttekniker, kraftvärmeverk
  • Drifttekniker, reningsverk VA
  • Drifttekniker, vattenverk
  • Drifttekniker, värmeverk
  • Drifttekniker, ångpanna
  • Eldare, fartyg
  • Eldare, kraft- och värmeanläggn
  • Frysmaskinist, anläggning
  • Kraftstationsmaskinist
  • Kraftverksmaskinist
  • Kraftverksoperatör
  • Kylmaskinist, kyl- och frysanläggning
  • Maskinist, drift-; kraftverk, vattenverk, värmeverk
  • Maskinist, kyl- o. frysanläggning
  • Maskinist, kyl- och frysanläggning
  • Maskinist, ång-
  • Maskintekniker, vattenverk
  • Miljötekniker, avfallshantering
  • Processtekniker, reningsverk m.m.
  • Processtekniker, värmeverk, m.m.
  • Reningsverksmaskinist
  • Stationsmontör, övrig
  • Stationstekniker, elkraft
  • Underhållstekniker, vattenrening
  • VA-maskinist
  • Vattenverksmaskinist
  • Ventilationsmaskinist
  • Värmeverksmaskinist
  • Ångmaskinist
  • Ångpanneeldare
  • Ångpannetekniker

Frequently asked questions

How much do power production and water treatment plant operators earn in 2026?

The latest figures are Statistics Sweden's salary structure statistics for 2025, published on 16 June 2026. The median salary was then 39,000 SEK a month before tax, against 37,700 SEK the year before (2024) — +3.4%. Figures for 2026 are normally published in June 2027; until then the 2025 figures are the latest there are, and we do not project our own.

What is the median salary for power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden?

The median salary for power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden is 39,000 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 power production and water treatment plant operators sit 2% higher than the typical job.

How much do power production and water treatment plant operators earn after tax?

The median salary for power production and water treatment plant operators is 39,000 SEK a month before tax. In an average Swedish municipality, without the church fee and for someone under 66, that works out at roughly 31,100 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 power production and water treatment plant operators?

The average (39,600 SEK) is the mean of every salary and is pulled upwards by the highest earners. The median (39,000 SEK) is the salary in the middle of the scale and usually gives a better picture of what power production and water treatment plant operators typically earn.

What is the starting salary for power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden?

Statistics Sweden does not publish starting salaries as such. The closest figure is the youngest people in the job: power production and water treatment plant operators aged 18–24 years earn 32,900 SEK per month on average. The lowest-paid 10% in the job earn less than 33,100 SEK. More in the section “Power production and water treatment plant operators starting salary” above.

How high can the salary go for power production and water treatment plant operators?

The highest-paid 10% in the job earn more than 47,200 SEK per month. Pay is shaped by sector, experience, level of education and where in the country you work.

Is there a gender pay gap among power production and water treatment plant operators in Sweden?

Women's average salary is 94% of men's in this job. The median salary is 39,100 SEK for men and 37,200 SEK for women. The figure is not adjusted for differences in age, sector or working hours.

Where in Sweden do power production and water treatment plant operators earn the most?

Pay is highest in Stockholm, where power production and water treatment plant operators earn 40,800 SEK per month on average.

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