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WORKING IN SWEDEN

Ten easy-access cafés and libraries to study or work from in Stockholm

Whether you are a student looking for a place to study or someone who works remotely and is looking for a new atmosphere, Stockholm caters to a diverse range of preferences and needs.

Published: 21 February 2024 11:29 CET
Ten easy-access cafés and libraries to study or work from in Stockholm
There are plenty of cafés and libraries to choose from in Stockholm. Photo: Plattform/Scandinav/Imagebank.sweden.se

At times, it’s necessary to seek out a fresh workspace or study environment to enhance our focus and productivity.

Here’s our selection of Stockholm cafés where you can enjoy a cup of coffee and the aroma of the beans in the air, to libraries where you can completely get into the zone and options that give you a chance to network in an office-like space.

Stockholm City Libraries

If you like to work in a quiet and peaceful place, then one of Stockholm City’s Libraries might be the place for you. It offers work and study places, free Wi-Fi and they also have printing facilities. A library card is not required to access the library, but if you want to borrow or reserve books then it is needed.

More information and to find the closest library to you, can be found here.

Stockholm University Library

The library on Stockholm University’s campus is open to everyone. This library has a mix of quiet work areas as well as noisy sections. Most seats have power outlets available, students and those who have access to Eduroam can use that network, but a temporary login can be found at the library entrance. In addition, there is a café and two shops situated within the same building.

More information can be found here.

Location: Universitetsvägen 14D, 114 18 Stockholm

KTH Library

Another university library which is open to everyone is the KTH Royal Institute of Technology’s library.

Here you can find a number of quiet places to work and study, with the majority of seats equipped with power outlets. Eduroam’s wireless network is available throughout the library along with a guest network, details on how to connect to this can be found at the information desk.

Café Stories is located in the entrance hall, but be aware that no foods, such as sandwiches, wraps or salads are allowed in the quiet sections of the library. Snacks and drinks which have lids are allowed in.

Find additional details here.

Location: Kungliga Tekniska högskolans bibliotek, Osquars backe 21, 114 28 Stockholm

Goto 10

Goto 10 allows its members to access work lounges, hold events, record podcasts and test a 3D printer all within their premises (they’ve also got hubs in Malmö and Linköping). The membership is free and in return you are asked to contribute to creating content for Goto 10.

Their lounges include Wi-Fi, seating with power outlets, microwaves and a coffee machine.

Information about Goto 10 and how you can become a member can be found here.

Location: Hammarby kaj 10D, 120 30 Stockholm

Scandic Hotel

The hotel group Scandic offers co-working spaces and a hotel room office in their hotels. Prices for their co-working spaces start from 99 kronor per day and it includes free Wi-Fi, power outlets, coffee and tea, printing and copying services, and a 10 percent discount on food.
The co-working spaces are available in all 270 Scandic hotels, in six countries and 26 of those are in Stockholm.

More information and a price list can be found here.

Bröd & Salt

The café chain Bröd & Salt has shops all across the city. The chain also offers a workspace subscription called Club Salt, which gives you access to six of their co-working spaces. These workspaces are located in Torsplan, Jarlsgatan, Odenplan, Kungsholmen, Fleminggatan and Uppsala if you want to venture outside the capital. They offer shared spaces to work, with power outlets and Wi-Fi, and the subscription comes with a discount on a variety of menu items sold at Bröd & Salt.

Subscriptions for the co-working space start from 599 kronor per month.

More information can be found here.

Espresso House

You can find Espresso House in many corners of the country. They may be part of a chain with everything that entails, but they are popular spots to work from, which is evident from the many laptops that can be seen when you enter. The cafés usually offer free Wi-Fi and some seats have a power outlet as well. It is important to note that it could get a bit loud in the café.

Find your closest Espresso House here.

Waynes

Another café chain in Sweden and in Stockholm is Waynes. The company has a number of shops across the city and like many cafés it provides free Wi-Fi and a certain amount of power outlets. If you do not want to travel too far, but still want a nice coffee shop to work from then Waynes fits that description.

Find out more here.

ilcaffé

Another popular café to work from is ilcaffé. Located in Bergsgatan, Drottninggatan, Långholmsgatan and Södermannagatan, this café has free Wi-Fi and a number of power outlets. The café offers a range of sandwiches, treats and coffee, so there is no wonder why it has become a popular work hub.

Information about ilcaffé can be found here.

Urban Deli

The hotel, restaurant and café chain Urban Deli has five shops in Stockholm. They are located in Sveavägen, Nytorget, Sickla, Centralen and Hagastaden. The shop in Sveavägen in particular is a popular spot used by those who want to enjoy a coffee or a meal and work or study away. It has free Wi-Fi and power outlets at certain seats.

You can find more information here.

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For members

WORKING IN SWEDEN

Why you could land a job in Sweden but still leave within a year

As many as 70 percent of internationals want to stay in Sweden but only 40 percent end up doing so. What can be done to improve this figure?

Published: 8 May 2024 12:12 CEST
Why you could land a job in Sweden but still leave within a year

Almost ten years ago, Stockholm Akademiska Forum started its Dual Career Network, a network for the partners and spouses of top academics at Swedish universities to help them find work.

“The starting point was actually that one of our biggest universities had problems… they lost top scholars they had finally recruited to Sweden, and almost every time it was because the partner didn’t find a job in Stockholm,” Stockholm Akademiska Forum’s CEO, Maria Fogelström Kylberg, told The Local during a live recording of our Sweden in Focus podcast held as part of Talent Talks, an afternoon of discussions at the Stockholm Business Region offices on how to attract and retain foreign workers in Sweden.

“We thought ‘we’re in a good position representing 18 universities and the city to do something’, there’s strength in numbers,” she said.

To date, the forum has supported around 1,000 people, helped by a collaboration with Stockholm Business Region, which opened the network up to companies recruiting international staff.

In a new report, the forum highlighted the financial benefits for Swedish companies in hiring international talent, calling on Swedish companies to be more open to hiring foreign workers.

“There’s a lot of cost involved when you hire someone from abroad,” Fogelström Kylberg said. “They are often too focused on the person they are employing, but often for more senior roles, it’s a question of the whole family, it’s a family decision to move abroad.”

Companies invest a lot of money in employing someone, she said, but if their partner can’t find a job, they could leave within a year.

“Our numbers show that 88 percent of our members, these partners, have left an ongoing career and they are ready to start working tomorrow… but in Sweden, also for Swedes, it’s quite normal for it to take a year to get a new job,” she added.

“It’s a complete waste, because the person leaves and also Sweden loses money, because we could be getting income tax from two people,” she said.

It’s not just income tax which Sweden is missing out on, either. Accompanying family consume goods and services in Sweden, contributing towards the economy even if they are not working.

So-called third country students – students from non-Nordic, non-EU countries – often have particular issues with finding a job in order to stay in Sweden, as they only have a short amount of time to secure a position after their studies are complete, Fogelström Kylberg said.

“We’re doing a pilot project now starting in October, called the Stockholm Student Academy, built on the same basis as the Dual Career Network academy, for 250 students, master students from all universities together in a common programme with the same content to get to know Sweden, how the job market is organised, meeting in six different universities, extra social activities together. We need to do something as it’s a really big problem, they cannot stay but they want to. Students are an important resource.”

Laureline Vallée, who moved to Sweden alongside her partner and found a job after five months, describes dual career support as “really important”.

“It’s really challenging for the following partner,” she said. “So they also need to be integrated into society, and if not, the company has a high risk of losing their employee. And it means another move for the family.”

The Dual Career Network run by Stockholm Akademiska Forum is based in the capital, but there are other similar networks available for people based elsewhere in Sweden.

“There’s a similar one in Lund, they have a bigger region, as they have Malmö and Copenhagen too, and they have other challenges,” Fogelström Kylberg said.

“There are also a lot of other good initiatives, like Korta vägen or Yrkesdörren, which can really help. So the situation isn’t hopeless, it’s started and it has to grow, as we don’t want to lose more people.”

Listen to the full interview with Maria Fogelström Kylberg, Amanda Herzog and Laureline Vallée in The Local’s Sweden in Focus Extra podcast for Membership+ subscribers.

Interview by Paul O’Mahony, article by Becky Waterton

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