Why Sweden Has More Islands Than Any Country on Earth — and What That Means for Visitors

Sweden has more islands than any other country on earth. Not more than Indonesia. Not more than the Philippines or Japan. Sweden — a cold, landlocked-looking country in northern Europe that most people associate with ABBA, flat-pack furniture, and unpronounceable vowels — has a jaw-dropping total of 267,570 islands, with only around 984 of them — less than 0.4% — actually inhabited.

That record comes with an asterisk, as all records do. The official Swedish research concluded 221,831 islands, while the official European Union definition — which requires an island to be at least 1 km² in size, situated further than 1 km from the nearest landmass, and not permanently connected to the mainland — results in Sweden having only 24.
What you count depends entirely on how you count. And Sweden counts generously, which is its right when the geography supports it.

Of all these islands, the most dramatic concentration sits immediately east of the capital. The Stockholm Archipelago has slightly over 24,000 islands, islets and skerries and covers approximately 1,700 km², of which approximately 530 km² is land.
From the city's eastern shore, they stretch out into the Baltic for roughly 80 kilometres — an almost incomprehensible scatter of granite, pine and water that begins in the shadow of Djurgården and ends where the open sea begins.

Why Does Sweden Have So Many Islands? The Short Answer Is Ice.

Around 10,000 years ago, the last ice age ended. What it left behind in Scandinavia was a coastline broken almost beyond recognition.

Several key factors contribute to Sweden's high island total: an extensive glaciated coastline along the Baltic Sea, where retreating glaciers created irregular shorelines and scattered rock formations; numerous inland lakes containing thousands of small islands; highly fragmented coastal terrain with bays, narrow channels, peninsulas and rocky outcrops; and detailed modern geographic surveys using satellite mapping to identify even small islands.

Here's the part that most people don't know: the process isn't finished. Scientists report that islands in this region are still rising today, and predict there will be further upliftment of land for the next thousand years. Sweden and its surrounding islands are rising by 2–4 millimetres per year.
As the land rises, more rock breaks the surface. Islands that didn't exist a century ago exist now. The archipelago is, technically, still being born.

The word skärgård — the Swedish name for an archipelago — tells you something about how deeply this landscape is embedded in Swedish culture. It derives from "skär" (skerry, a small rocky island or reef) and "gård" (yard, enclosure, or farm), literally translating to "skerry yard" or "skerry garden."
The name suggests not wilderness but a domestic space — something tended, lived in, known intimately. That tension between wildness and familiarity is exactly what the skärgård feels like when you're out there.

Who Lived Here, and How

People have been living in the Stockholm Archipelago for a very long time. Viking Age settlements left their marks on the islands, and the fishing economies they established shaped life in the skärgård for centuries.

Archaeological findings indicate that organised fishing was conducted in the archipelagos as part of the manorial farm economy during the Viking Age, and later as a starting point for trade. For a time, fishing became essential for the economic development of the Swedish east coast counties, from Småland to Uppland. Based on a fishing statute in 1450 at Huvudskär in the Stockholm Archipelago, regulation of fishing on the east coast followed.

What the archaeology confirms, the landscape still suggests. The archipelago runs on herring. Herring fishing dominated both in the inner and middle archipelago, as well as at the outer archipelagos and in the open sea just off the coast.
Families built their lives around it — the seasonal migrations of fish, the smokehouses, the boat sheds, the harbours oriented toward the best fishing grounds. This was subsistence at a high level of skill, not misery: a culture that knew exactly where it was and what it was doing.

For a long time, the archipelago was inhabited by small farmers who fished for their own needs, living almost self-sufficiently, with few economic exchanges.
The outer islands especially were worlds unto themselves. Before reliable steamship connections, the distance between an outer island and Stockholm was measured not in kilometres but in days, weather, and the condition of the ice in winter.

Then came 1719, and the Russians.

Following the devastating Russian raids on the Swedish coast during the final phase of the Great Northern War in 1719–1721, which pillaged and burned numerous settlements in the Stockholm Archipelago, traditional farming and fishing economies experienced a sharp decline as populations were displaced and infrastructure destroyed. Entire communities were erased. On Möja, every building on the island burned to the ground except one small chapel. The outer islands spent much of the mid-18th century in a state of slow recovery and economic stagnation.

The reversal came from an unexpected direction: leisure.

In the late 18th and 19th centuries, the archipelago began transitioning toward recreational use, with affluent Stockholm residents constructing summer retreats on accessible islands to escape urban life. This development, driven by the growing bourgeoisie and nobility, marked the initial shift from subsistence-based livelihoods to seasonal leisure, as steamship services improved access from the capital by the 1830s.

The wealthy arrived first, as they always do. The aim was to escape the poor sanitary conditions of the city during the summer and get closer to nature. Because of their poor insulation, these houses were closed in winter.
A Victorian-era summer house on a Stockholm island was a status symbol, the Nordic equivalent of a Riviera villa. Artists followed — the island of Furusund became associated with Strindberg and Astrid Lindgren; painters discovered the quality of light.

Then came democratisation. After the Second World War, access to the archipelago was greatly democratised with the development of paid vacations. Stockholmers started building much simpler cottages without electricity or running water to spend their vacations in.
The skärgård stopped being exclusively for people who could afford it and became a Swedish right of sorts — something everyone was entitled to reach.

The Numbers Today: Who Actually Lives There

Here's where the story gets quietly poignant.

There are around 10,000 permanent residences and 50,000 holiday homes in the archipelago.
Read that again. 50,000 holiday homes, 10,000 permanent ones. The balance is lopsided in a way that tells you everything about what happened to these communities in the 20th century.

During the 20th century, many of the outer islands were depopulated and transformed into summer resorts, with very small permanent populations during winter. Today, most island-dwellers commute to Stockholm for work and enjoy maritime life as a hobby. Wikivoyage

The fishing industry, which had sustained generations, effectively collapsed mid-century. By the mid-20th century, the traditional fishing industry had largely faded due to overexploitation, pollution, and competition from industrial trawling, with catches in the archipelago dropping significantly by the 1950s.
The economic reason to live year-round on an outer island disappeared, and the populations followed.

From Öregrund in the north to Landsort in the south, only around 150 of these islands are inhabited year-round compared to nearly 1,000 islands populated in the summer.
In July, Värmdö municipality — which encompasses a huge swathe of the archipelago — sees its population grow from around 38,000 permanent residents to over 100,000 in summer.

What this means practically: you can be on an island in late June surrounded by two hundred people eating grilled fish and drinking rosé, and return in November to find it almost entirely empty, the shutters closed, the jetty quiet. The archipelago has a double life, and the summer version is the one most visitors see.

In 2025, National Geographic named the Stockholm Archipelago one of its must-visit destinations for the year. The archipelago was inaugurated in October 2024 as home to the Stockholm Archipelago Trail, a 270-kilometre hiking route connecting 21 islands from Stockholm to Landsort in the outer archipelago, combining ferry crossings, walking paths, and overnight stops.

The Islands: A Practical Guide to Who They Are

Rather than a ranked list of "best," here's a more honest breakdown — what each island actually is, who it's for, and why you might go.

The Inner Archipelago (20–60 minutes from Stockholm)

Fjäderholmarna — The gateway, the taster Four small islands just 20 minutes by ferry from Nybrokajen. Fjäderholmarna serves as an excellent introduction for limited-time visitors, featuring artisan workshops, breweries, restaurants, and short coastal walks. Open primarily May through September, these islands work well for half-day excursions.
This is where Stockholm takes its lunch break on warm days. Go here if you have three hours and no other plan. Don't expect wilderness.

Vaxholm — The capital of the archipelago Often called the "capital of the archipelago," Vaxholm combines accessibility — 45-minute ferry from Stockholm — with a charming small-town atmosphere. The 16th-century Vaxholm Fortress dominates the harbour, offering museum tours and historical exhibits.
The fortress is the reason to come beyond the atmosphere: it sat at the strategic entrance to Stockholm for centuries, defending the city through multiple wars. It's now a military history museum accessible by cable ferry from the town jetty. Vaxholm works for first-time visitors and families, and it genuinely rewards a slow afternoon wander through the fishing district's painted wooden houses.

Björkö (Birka) — The Viking UNESCO site Technically in Lake Mälaren rather than the Baltic archipelago, but reachable by boat from Stockholm and impossible to leave off any serious list. Birka Museum on Björkö Island is the essential starting point for exploring Sweden's first authentic town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an unparalleled window into Viking Age life, trade and culture.
Thought to have been founded around 750 AD, Birka flourished as a trading post for roughly 200 years, with its prime location on Lake Mälaren connecting Scandinavia with Baltic lands, the emerging Kievan Rus and the Byzantine Empire.
The island today is home to just 11 permanent residents and over 3,000 Viking-era graves. The guided tour walks you among the burial mounds; the museum shows you what was found in them, including the famous Warrior Woman of Grave 581 — a high-status burial assumed for over a century to be male, until recent DNA analysis proved otherwise. Allow a full day. Book via Strömma.

Drottningholm — The royal palace island Also in Lake Mälaren. The Swedish royal family's primary residence, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The palace and its baroque gardens are open to visitors; the 18th-century court theatre — Slottsteater — still performs opera in its original condition with original stage machinery. If you visit Stockholm in summer and don't make it to Drottningholm, you've missed one of the genuinely extraordinary things the city offers.

The Middle Archipelago (60–150 minutes from Stockholm)

Grinda — The nature reserve, the swimming island Grinda is almost completely owned by Skärgårdsstiftelsen (the Archipelago Foundation), which helps preserve the island's natural beauty and ensures totally free access to explore the forest or swim.
Car-free, calm, family-friendly. The beaches and swimming coves are among the best in the accessible archipelago. Good for a full day, even better for an overnight at Grinda Wärdshus. About 90 minutes from Stockholm by Waxholmsbolaget, slightly less on the Cinderella boats.

Ingmarsö — The local's island On the edge of the outer archipelago, with around 100 year-round residents. A small restaurant and shop, cycling and kayaking. The kind of island that doesn't appear in most tourist guides, which is exactly why it's worth knowing about.

Finnhamn — The island group with the hostel Stockholms skärgårds first hostel lies on Stora Kalholmen. The building is the only house on the island and was built as a summer house in 1914. Today it's a hostel for archipelago wanderers who want stillness and solitude.
Finnhamn is a cluster of islands with good hiking and the quiet that the inner islands no longer offer at peak season.

Möja — The real thing One of the larger outer middle-archipelago islands, with 230 year-round residents, a Coop that stays open year-round, several villages, a STF hostel, kayak rental and functioning fishing heritage. Möja nämns första gången i en jordebok från 1543.
It's been continuously inhabited since at least then — probably much longer. Cyclists, hikers, kayakers, and people who simply want to know what the archipelago looked like before it became a summer destination. Take the three-hour Waxholmsbolaget ferry from Strömkajen and arrive somewhere that feels genuinely far away.

The Outer Archipelago (150+ minutes from Stockholm)

Sandhamn — The sailor's island Sandhamn is famous for its impressive sand dunes — which give the island its name — and for being the starting point of many regattas and maritime events. This is also where the Viveca Sten crime novels are set, which has given the island an unlikely literary tourism industry. In July, Sandhamn is busy, social and expensive. The Trouville beach is genuinely beautiful — sandy beaches are rare in this granite world. Come for a night if you can; the island changes character completely after the day-trippers leave.

Utö — The mining island Utö is an outer-archipelago idyllic island with a closed-down silver mine and remnants of the mining industry. The mine — Sweden's oldest iron ore mine — dates to the 12th century and is now open as a heritage site. Utö is also one of the archipelago's better cycling islands, with forest trails and southern cliffs. About three hours from Stockholm; plan for an overnight.

Landsort (Öja) — The lighthouse island at the end of the world The southernmost point of the archipelago. The Landsort lighthouse on Öja is an important landmark when arriving from Gotland. A working lighthouse, a small permanent community, and the particular atmosphere of islands that know they are at the edge of things. Not for first-time visitors. For people who've already seen the rest and want to go further.

How to Actually Get There

The Waxholmsbolaget ferry network covers the archipelago year-round from multiple departure points in Stockholm. Most services leave from Strömkajen or Nybroplan in central Stockholm. The five-day båtluffarbiljett (archipelago hopping pass) costs 445 SEK and is excellent value for anyone planning more than two islands. Ferries work like buses — no seat reservations, you simply board. In peak summer on popular routes, arrive early.

The Cinderella boats (Strömma) run a faster, more comfortable service to the middle and outer archipelago from mid-April, departing from Strandvägen. They're pricier but significantly quicker on longer routes.

A practical note: check schedules carefully. On smaller outer islands, there may be only two or three departures a day. Missing the last boat means an unplanned overnight, which some people consider a feature rather than a problem.

A Word on What You're Actually Looking For

The Stockholm Archipelago is not the Maldives. The water is cold (16–20°C in high summer on a good year), the rock is hard, and the July weather is genuinely uncertain. What it offers instead is something rarer: a landscape at human scale, the sense of a place that has been continuously inhabited and worked and understood over centuries, and the particular freedom of water travel — the ferry pulling away from the jetty, the city receding, the islands multiplying, the horizon widening.

National Geographic named Stockholm's archipelago a must-visit destination for 2025.
The recognition is deserved, though the archipelago has been here for ten thousand years and will be here when the trend cycles on. The land is still rising. New islands are still appearing. Come when you're ready, bring layers, and take the long ferry.

Tags: Stockholm, Stockholms skärgård, Sweden Travel, Island Guide, Archipelago, Outdoor Sweden, History, Viking History, Sustainable Travel, Skärgård, Visit Sweden

Official sources

• Skärgårdsstiftelsen (Archipelago Foundation): skargardsstiftelsen.se

• Waxholmsbolaget (ferries): waxholmsbolaget.se

• Visit Stockholm archipelago section: visitstockholm.com/see–do/nature–outdoors/the–archipelago

• Naturkartan (trails and nature reserves): naturkartan.se

• Birka UNESCO site / Strömma tours: stromma.com/en-se/stockholm/excursions/day-trips/birka-the-viking-city

• Länsstyrelsen Stockholm (all nature reserves): lansstyrelsen.se/stockholm

• Explore Archipelago (rental and activity directory): explorearchipelago.com

• Stockholm Archipelago Trail: stockholmarchipelagotrail.com