(edit title) To Canadians who moved to Sweden Is Sweden better than Canada, if yes, why? Options

[Benzed]

Again, interesting stuff. Thanks for that. I'm sold, for a visit at least.

[CanadianCoder]

I'd recommend checking out the west coast. BC is a great place. Victoria Island is definetely a great place to visit as well as Vancouver all the way over to the banff area.

Calgary is alright, but I wouldn't bother going on a visit really.

[Greg in Canada]

Any opinions on Winnipeg / Manitoba? Is it akin to something like Dalarna in terms of provincial makeup or what?

Winnipeg is often referred to as "Winterpeg". It gets damn cold out on the prairies. Brrrrrrrrrrrr!!

[cogito]

"Dental is covered through Forsakringskassan and is subsidized in Sweden."
(writes Furu)

Technically true, but wildly misleading. The subsidy for dental care in Sweden is so stingy it might as well not exist.

From age 30-74 it is subsidized at 150 kronor a year.
From the age of 75 it is 300 kronor a year.

http://www.forsakringskassan.se/privatpers/tandvard

(Of course, the bureaucracy to administer this dental "subsidy" helps hide the real unemployment stats.)

Dental care is in fact more expensive in Sweden than in the US or Europe.

[007]

The subsidy for dental care in Sweden is so stingy it might as well not exist.

while the subsidy amounts quoted seem small, they cover a significant chunk of an annual check up. if you need more significant dental work there's is an upper limit (högkostnadskort) after which the national insurance takes over. that's worth existing if you ask me.

[Brad_L]

As a young person who has grown up in Vancouver, I can say that Stockholm is actually cheaper and much more hip and exciting. To me, Sweden aligns to a great extent with the liberal Canada that I grew up in; therefore, I much prefer the Swedish sociopolitical landscape to the current conservative Canadian one. From my experience as a young worker, Vancouver is a difficult economy to crack if you want to earn enough and grow in a career. Eventually you have to move to Calgary, Toronto, or overseas anyway or else you are stuck in regional/middle management forever. Sweden, on the other hand, seems to be ideal for launching an international career if one is not interested in staying put for the long term. (I say this based on young Swedes that I know.) I realize that this would mean that a lot of young people choose to leave Sweden, but young people choose to go abroad from all countries that are good countries to live in (UK, Australia, Germany, etc.). To me, it shows that Swedes are well connected and social contacts there can bring about more international opportunity. It is probably true that Canada is more accessible and that social/economic mobility is higher for immigrants who would have difficulty integrating, though.

[Furu]

Dental care is in fact more expensive in Sweden than in the US or Europe.

You have absolutely no idea how much it costs to see a dentist in Canada or the US.

[Essjay]

I just recently bought a book called Sweden ...The Forest Kingdom from Amazon , lovely book with some stunning photos ,people who saw the photos mentioned Canada,the big plains and forests ,lakes ,mountains , lots of space plus almost identical wildlife .
If my Dad had , had his way we would be living in Nova Scotia ,didn.t happen but he sees the similarities between the two countries and can,t wait to visit Sweden !!!

[mjennin2]

Ahhh Winterpeg, my one true love I spent a week in Winnipeg in January (ooomph!) in 2007 for a business competition I was competing in at the University of Manitoba (we won...no big deal!) I had SO much fun. I am still really close to the Canadians I met during the competition (Canadians still top my list of the world's nicest people), most of whom live in Vancouver now. There was all sorts of stuff to do in Winnipeg - indoor go-karting, ice skaing on a real-life frozen lake (first time I ice-skated so it was a pretty awesome experience..and cheap too!), we went to a casino out there, a few bars...superbly nice people making the best of an arctic situation :] I've also done a little time in Vancouver in the summer...went ziplining on Vancouver Island, was utterly fantastic. Spent a summer afternoon at Esquimalt lagoon with some friends, playing the guitar and watching the sun go down. Good times.

With all of that said...I would still go for the metro european charm of Sweden, IMO, but I think that's just cuz the adventure of a different continent, with different languages and cultures, is worth more to me than what Canada has to offer. Ooooh Canada!

[LostInSweden]

In Canada you do NOT feel like an immigrant... you feel HOME!
I have been in Canada for 6 years (Toronto 1 year and Montreal 5 years) and in Sweden (Stockholm) for 4 and half years. I MISS Canada! I love Canada! From the moment I step here I knew that I WANT to go back in Canada! The nature, the people, the stores, the taxes, the services (medical - for example) etc - everything is way better in Canada... Well... maybe not... I remembered now one thing that I like more here then in Canada: the system for collecting the garbage...

[splendidsun]

OK so we have talked about economic, socio, etc reasons....what about weather...which has better winters/summers (if it exists)?

[caucasus]

both places seem great.
unfortunately i can t get viza for any of them.
would be happy to live in any of the above mentioned countries

.

[cogito]

Furu writes: "You have absolutely no idea how much it costs to see a dentist in Canada or the US."

Huh? "Absolutely no idea..."??? Wow. Are you absolutely certain of your absolutist statements?

What a strange assumption to make about someone you know "absolutely" nothing about.

FYI: I have been to dentists in France, the USA and Sweden. Swedish dentists are the most expensive. The subsidy is a farce. "Absolutely."

[Greg in Canada]

I'll add that dentists are expensive in Canada, but fortunately many people have supplementary insurance coverage at work that will pay the dentist bills. My wife is a teacher so she has this insurance which is fortunate for me since I'm self employed but am covered under her insurance. I have no idea if dentists are more expensive in Sweden.

[LostInSweden]

In Canada, most of the employers are offering health insurance to their employees and their family. It is part of the "package" (salary, holiday, health insurance). My former employer offered me a package with 1000CND/year for the dentist but I took my husband's insurance because he had 1500CND/year. Sometimes the health insurance covers also massage, optometrist, medical analysis, etc... It depends for each and every company.
In Canada you have the possibility to save every year a certain amount of money (a percentage of your yearly income) in your private pension plan... and these money are TAX-FREE...
About the weather... well it depends where you are living. For example in Montreal during the winter you can have between -20 and -5 C(with snow, ice, etc) and during the summer between 25 - 40C...