Swedish at the doctor: 1177, vårdcentral, pharmacy and symptoms

Before you start

This guide explains how to find your way around Swedish healthcare and gives you the Swedish to describe what is wrong. It is general information, not medical advice. In an emergency, call 112.

Swedish healthcare is run by the 21 regions (regioner), so opening hours, fees and even the names of some clinics differ depending on where you live. We point out where things vary. Everything below uses du (you), which is how staff will talk to you and how you should talk to them. If you want the basics first, start with our essential Swedish phrases.

Where to go: 1177, vårdcentral, närakut or akuten

1177 works in two ways. You can call 1177 (from abroad or from a phone with a foreign number, call +46 771 11 77 00) and talk to a nurse (sjuksköterska) who assesses your symptoms and tells you where to go. And you can use 1177.se, which has health information in Swedish and many other languages, plus personal e-services once you log in.

The usual advice is: call 1177 before you go to the akutmottagning, unless it is an emergency. In regions with a närakut, the nurse may send you there instead. Some regions use other names for urgent care, such as jourcentral or jourmottagning.

The 1177 e-services

When you log in at 1177.se with BankID or Freja+ (Freja eID Plus), you can typically:

• see, book, cancel or rebook some appointments (se, boka, avboka och boka om tider)
• send messages to your clinic (kontakta mottagningen)
• read your medical records (läsa din journal)
• renew prescriptions (förnya recept)
• list yourself at a vårdcentral (lista dig)

Exactly which services you get depends on the region and the clinic. If you do not have BankID yet, you can still call.

Your vårdcentral

The vårdcentral is your first stop for almost everything that is not an emergency. You choose which one you belong to, and this is called being listad (registered). You can change whenever you like. In many regions you are given one near your home if you do not choose yourself.

When you call a vårdcentral, you often get a menu (knappval) and are offered a call back (du blir uppringd) instead of waiting in a queue. Listen for the word återuppringning (call back) and the time slot they give you.

Booking, cancelling and rebooking

If times trip you up, practise them with the telling time tool, and use the Swedish numbers tool for phone numbers and dates. You will be asked for your personnummer at almost every contact; the personnummer tool shows how Swedes read it aloud.

Missed appointments

If you do not turn up and have not cancelled in time, you usually pay a fee for a missed appointment (avgift för uteblivet besök), even if the visit itself would have been free. In Region Stockholm, for example, it is 400 kronor and you must cancel at least 24 hours in advance for most visits. Amounts and deadlines differ by region, and this fee does not count towards the high-cost protection. If you need to write a short cancellation, our Swedish email templates include ready-made messages.

Describing your symptoms

The most useful sentence in Swedish healthcare is Jag har ont i … (I have a pain in …, my … hurts). The body part comes in the definite form: ont i huvudet, ont i magen, ont i ryggen.

Staff will usually ask Hur länge har du haft besvären? (How long have you had the symptoms?). Besvär is the everyday medical word for symptoms or trouble, and you will see it on forms too.

Body parts

Not sure whether a word takes en or ett? Check it with the en or ett tool, or look it up in the dictionary.

Talking about pain

Swedish staff use the same 0 to 10 pain scale as many other countries. The question is usually Hur ont har du på en skala från noll till tio? (How much pain are you in on a scale from zero to ten?), where zero is no pain and ten the worst pain you can imagine. You can answer with a number noun, which is very natural: en sexa (a six), en åtta (an eight).

A läkare may also ask Var sitter smärtan? (Where is the pain?) and Tar du något smärtstillande? (Are you taking any painkillers?).

At the pharmacy

Pharmacies (apotek) belong to several competing chains (Apoteket is state-owned, the others are private), but prescription medicines in the high-cost protection scheme cost the same wherever you go. Some common painkillers and allergy medicines are also sold in supermarkets.

• Receptfritt means over the counter: you can buy it without a prescription.
• Receptbelagt means prescription-only.
• Prescriptions in Sweden are electronic (e-recept). There is no paper: you go to any pharmacy, show ID, and they find your prescriptions on your personnummer.
• The pharmacy normally offers you the cheapest equivalent product (utbyte). You can keep your usual brand if you pay the difference.

What healthcare costs

You pay a patient fee (patientavgift) for most visits. The amount is set by each region and also depends on the type of visit, so check your region's page on 1177.se. Care for children and young people is free or cheap in most regions, up to an age limit that varies.

Two separate kinds of high-cost protection (högkostnadsskydd) stop the costs from piling up:

The frikort for visits is valid in all regions. Not everything counts towards it: missed-appointment fees, certificates (intyg) and most vaccinations do not. Medicines covered by the scheme are free for children under 18. The medicine ceiling was raised to 3,800 kronor in July 2025, and people whose period started before then moved to the new levels from 1 January 2026. You can see how much you have paid by logging in at 1177.se.

Your right to an interpreter

If you do not speak Swedish well enough, you can get a professional interpreter (tolk). Public authorities, including regional healthcare, must use an interpreter when needed for you to look after your interests, and the Patient Act says information about your care must be adapted to, among other things, your language background. You do not normally pay anything extra for the interpreter in healthcare.

• Ask for an interpreter when you book, and say which language (and dialect) you need.
• Interpreting can be in person, by phone or by video.
• Children should not interpret in healthcare, and 1177 advises against using family and friends.
• Some regions charge you the interpreter's cost if you miss an appointment without cancelling.

A government inquiry published in 2026 proposed introducing a fee for interpreters at public authorities from 2028, with healthcare exempted. Nothing had been decided when this guide was last checked.

Calling 112

When you call 112, SOS Alarm answers and will ask what has happened and where you are. Swedish is best, English works too.

Know your address before you need it, including the floor and door code (portkod).

Practise before your next appointment

Medical Swedish is a lot easier when you have heard it before you need it. Read 1177.se in Swedish with the click-to-translate reader, and if a letter from your region confuses you, see our guide to decoding letters from the authorities. For the bigger picture, read learning Swedish when you move to Sweden.

Season 1 of our course, Complete Swedish, is free in full: video lessons with synced Swedish transcripts, so you hear everyday Swedish at natural speed and can read every word along with it.

FAQ

What number do I call for healthcare advice in Sweden?

Call 1177 for advice from a nurse, around the clock. In an emergency, call 112.

How do I say "it hurts" in Swedish?

Say Det gör ont (It hurts) or Jag har ont i … plus the body part in the definite form, for example Jag har ont i magen (My stomach hurts).

How much does a doctor's visit cost in Sweden?

Each region sets its own patient fees, so the price depends on where you live and the type of visit. Thanks to the high-cost protection, you pay at most 1,450 kronor for outpatient visits in a 12-month period, and regions may set a lower ceiling.

What is the maximum I pay for prescription medicines?

Under the high-cost protection for medicines, you pay at most 3,800 kronor in a 12-month period. Medicines in the scheme are free for children under 18.

Is an interpreter free at the doctor in Sweden?

You do not normally pay extra for an interpreter in healthcare. Ask for one when you book, and cancel in time if you cannot come, because some regions charge for the interpreter after a missed appointment.

What is the difference between akuten and a närakut?

Akuten is a hospital emergency department for serious acute illness and injury. A närakut, which exists in some regions, treats acute problems that are not life-threatening. Call 1177 if you are unsure where to go.

Sources

Last checked 7 October 2026.

• 1177: Högkostnadsskydd för öppenvård (1,450 kronor, frikort, exclusions).
• 1177: Läkemedel på recept: kostnader (2,000 and 3,800 kronor, free for under 18s).
• Government bill prop. 2024/25:144 on the updated high-cost protection for medicines.
• 1177: När du ringer 1177 and the närakut pages, such as Närakut Haga.
• 1177: Ny avgift för uteblivet besök i vården (Region Stockholm, 400 kronor, 24 hours).
• 1177: Tolkning till mitt språk.
• Förvaltningslagen (2017:900), section 13 on interpreters, and Patientlagen (2014:821), chapter 3 on information.
• Inquiry SOU 2026:23 Tolkavgift och förbud mot barntolkning.