Data shows that the salaries of CEOs who were employed in both 2023 and 2024 increased by 5.8%. This has resulted in a new median base salary of approximately SEK 4.6 million. Total remuneration, including salary, bonuses, pensions, and equity-based incentive schemes, increased by 5.5%. Bringing the new median of total compensation to SEK 7.1 million.

“We’re now seeing that the CEO salary growth is back to its previous levels following the real wage decline in 2023,” says Erika Andersson at Allshares.

“However, total compensation hasn't increased significantly when including bonuses and equity-based schemes. This is because many of these programmes were launched during the stock market rally in 2021 and span a three-year period. The market had not fully recovered by 2024 when the programs matured” Erika Andersson continues.

The number of companies proposing equity programs in 2025 is higher than usual, at 63%. Over the past nine years, the average has been 50%. The size of the programs has also increased.

“It can be surprising that the appetite for equity-based schemes remains high, considering the market's volatility. However, it’s positive that companies and shareholders are sharing ownership with employees to a greater extent. This indicates a shift toward a more balanced distribution of ownership,” says Erika Andersson.

The proportion of companies that have implemented sustainability criteria in their remuneration programmes has nearly doubled, from 22% to 42% between 2024 and 2025.

“We’re seeing a pressure from investors to include sustainability in compensation structures. It will be interesting to see how Swedish companies and investors are affected by the Trump administration’s view on sustainability,” says Erika Andersson.

The number of female CEOs increased by six women in 2024, meaning that 14% of companies now have a female CEO. However, the gender pay gap in base salary widened in 2024 to 8.2%, compared to 5.9% in 2023.

“Despite an increase in the number of women in senior positions, the imbalance remains so great that fair comparisons of compensations are difficult to make. I believe this will be one of the key insights as the EU Pay Transparency Directive is implemented. There are simply too few women in top executive roles to achieve overall pay equality,” explains Erika Andersson.

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