Sweden
NorwayStockholm makes sense if
- You want the easier housing and budget equation in this comparison.
- Access to stronger healthcare matters most to you.
- You want the broader career options in this comparison.
Stockholm vs Trondheim
Stockholm offers the deeper technology and startup market, plus far broader restaurants, museums, and music, at lower rent. Trondheim is safer and more intimate, with a focused university and research economy.
The grey shape is all 283 cities; each row says whether lower or higher is better. Ratings out of 10 are our reviewed estimates; the rest is published data. How we measure
The choice in one minute
Trondheim makes sense if
- A calmer day-to-day safety profile matters most to you.
What matters to you
Set how much each area counts. The ranking updates as you go. Climate and values are left out because there is no better or worse there, only your taste.
Money
Nature & outdoors
City life
Safety & health
Work & family
Moving & settling in
- 1Stockholm73
Leads on city life, work & family and moving & settling in; stands out for flight connections and music & art scene.
- 2Trondheim70
Leads on safety & health; stands out for easier house-hunting and mountains.
Scores out of 100, averaged from the areas you weighted. For a ranking built around your own situation, take the quiz.
Side by side
Money
Rent on a new lease, everyday prices and tax.
Section score out of 100
Stockholm66Trondheim63
One-bedroom rent
Per month, new lease, citywide
$135/mo$2,444/mo
- $1,184/mo
- $1,350/mo
Rent as share of local pay
One-bedroom rent vs. typical net local pay
21%120%
- ~31%
- ~32%
Everyday prices
Excluding rent · United States = 100
25131
- 95, leads
- 102
Income tax + social contributions
Range: average-wage rate to top marginal rate; the dot marks its midpoint
0%46%
- 23–52%
- 28–40%, leads
Climate
The year month by month. Whether it suits you is yours to judge.
Solid line: average daytime high. Dashed: night-time low. Point at the chart for any month; point at a city name to shade its range.
Bright days
Under 80% cloud and under 1 mm rain
30 days347 days
- 181 days, leads
- 110 days
Muggy days
Days that feel sticky (dew point)
0 days365 days
- 11 days
- 2 days
Air pollution
Annual mean fine particles (PM2.5)
4.6 µg/m³84 µg/m³
- 6.1 µg/m³
- 5.7 µg/m³
Nature & outdoors
How easily you get to water, mountains and green space.
Section score out of 100
Stockholm68Trondheim68
Beach & sea
110
- 7/10, leads
- 5/10
Mountains
110
- 3/10
- 7/10, leads
City parks
110
- 9/10, leads
- 8/10
Weekend escapes
110
- 7/10
- 8/10, leads
City life
Getting around on foot, food, culture and the feel of the streets.
Section score out of 100
Stockholm80Trondheim71
Walkability
110
- 8/10, leads
- 7/10
Public transport
110
- 9/10, leads
- 6/10
Restaurants
110
- 8/10, leads
- 7/10
Public spaces
110
- 9/10, leads
- 8/10
Safety & health
Crime, how safe people feel, and the care you would get.
Section score out of 100
Trondheim83Stockholm78
Homicide rate
Per 100,000 residents per year
0.247
- 1.2
- 0.7
Feels safe day to day
110
- 7/10
- 9/10, leads
Healthcare quality
110
- 10/10, leads
- 8/10
English-speaking care
110
- 9/10
- 9/10
Work & family
Jobs, working culture, schools and raising kids.
Section score out of 100
Stockholm79Trondheim72
Job market
110
- 8/10, leads
- 6/10
Jobs in English
110
- 9/10, leads
- 8/10
Work–life balance
110
- 9/10
- 9/10
Schools
110
- 8/10
- 8/10
Moving & settling in
Visas, language, paperwork and staying connected.
Section score out of 100
Stockholm66Trondheim60
Visa & residence difficulty
Typical case; your passport changes this
110
- 7/10
- 6/10, leads
Language barrier
For an English speaker
110
- 2/10
- 2/10
Openness to newcomers
110
- 5/10
- 5/10
Flight connections
110
- 8/10, leads
- 5/10
Society & values
Where each city sits. There is no right end of these scales.
Social attitudes
ConservativeLiberal
- 10/10
- 9/10
LGBTQ+ acceptance
LowHigh
- 10/10
- 9/10
Diversity
HomogeneousDiverse
- 8/10
- 6/10
Religion in public life
ReligiousSecular
- 10/10
- 9/10
Life in each city
Daily life
Stockholm
Neighbourhoods are well-kept and human-scaled, car dependency is low, and the pace is unhurried rather than frenetic. Apartments tend to run on the smaller side, which is the usual catch in a city this dense and sought-after.
Trondheim
Trondheim's scale is its appeal: it is compact, walkable, and easy to navigate without a car. The urban mix works well for daily errands, while the calm tempo and average housing space make the city feel more like a settled regional centre than a major metropolis.
Safety
Stockholm
By almost any measure, Stockholm is very safe. Serious violent crime is rare, the streets feel secure after dark, and traffic is handled with a care that keeps road risk among the lowest anywhere.
Trondheim
Violent crime is close to nonexistent, traffic is calm and well managed, and walking home alone at night barely registers as a concern. Petty theft exists but stays low.
Work and healthcare
Stockholm
Stockholm's tech and startup base is strong, and remote work is well supported. The public system is high quality and keeps personal costs low, with reliable emergency care and strong overall standards.
Trondheim
Trondheim has a workable market for in-demand fields, with particular strength in its established industries and startup scene, though the overall range is not broad. Care is solid and the public system keeps out-of-pocket costs low, with reliable emergency services and easy access to English-speaking medical staff.
Culture and public life
Stockholm
The food and cultural scene is confident and well-curated, from serious restaurants and a deep cafe culture to strong museums and a music scene with real international reach. Stockholm is a clean, orderly capital strung across its many islands.
Trondheim
Culture here is intimate and student-flavoured rather than grand: a good cafe habit, a respectable music and art scene, and a handful of museums and venues. Trondheim is a clean, tidy Norwegian city, well kept throughout.
Summary
Choose Stockholm for professional breadth, international culture, and a larger urban network. Trondheim is the better fit for safety and a compact academic or technical career, with healthcare close in both.
Read on
Which of these fits you?
These numbers treat everyone the same. The quiz weighs them by your budget, climate taste, family and work, and ranks all 283 cities for you.