There is significantly lower awareness and understanding of occupational pensions among residents in disadvantaged areas of Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, compared to the general population, a new report from Swedish pension provider AMF has revealed.

The survey, conducted by Indikator in May 2025, polled over 2,700 respondents – 1,254 from disadvantaged areas and 1,464 from non-disadvantaged areas.

It found that financial concern is widespread among those living in more deprived communities, with half of the respondents in these areas expressing that they are "quite" or "very" worried about their current financial situation. This compares to just one-third of the general population.

Furthermore, only one in five people in disadvantaged areas believe they will be able to cope financially as pensioners, while the majority of the general public answer yes to the same question. Almost half of those in disadvantaged areas say they have no idea.

“Much of the concern can certainly be traced back to the fact that people simply do not know what the future holds. This applies in general to pensions, which many people find complicated and consisting of many different parts, making it difficult to get an overview of how things will turn out,” AMF spokesperson, Johan Holmer, said.

“It is clear that there are major challenges in terms of reaching all groups in society with pension information. This is an important issue of fairness.”

AMF's research found an occupational pension ‘blind spot’ in disadvantaged areas, as seven times more people do not know what an occupational pension is compared to the general public. Among people with a foreign background, the lack of knowledge is even greater.

“Occupational pensions are a crucial part of future livelihoods. It is worrying that so many people do not know if they have one or even what it is,” Holmer commented.

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