Mortgage interest deduction 2026: how much you save

Taking a mortgage, you pay interest. But you do not carry the whole cost yourself. The interest deduction (ränteavdrag) puts part of the interest on the state instead of your wallet.

Sounds simple. In practice the rules confuse many home buyers. This guide shows how much you actually save, depending on loan size and rate. Then you can calculate your real ability to pay, not just the price you see in bidding.

What is the interest deduction?

The interest deduction is a tax reduction on your interest costs. In Sweden you deduct interest against your tax, lowering what you pay the state. It covers mortgage interest, but also other loans you pay interest on.

Technically it is not a deduction against income, but a reduction of your final tax. As a borrower the difference matters little. What matters is that part of the interest comes back.

How the deduction works: 30 and 21 percent

The deduction is 30 percent of interest costs up to 100,000 kronor per year per person. Paying more than 100,000 kronor in interest, the deduction drops to 21 percent on the part above the line.

An example. Paying 80,000 kronor in interest over a year, you get 24,000 back (30% × 80,000).

Paying 150,000, the deduction counts in two steps. 30% on the first 100,000 kronor gives 30,000 kronor. 21% on the remaining 50,000 gives 10,500. Total 40,500 back.

The 100,000 line applies per person. Two people owning the home together and splitting the loan evenly have 100,000 each to count at the 30-percent rate before tipping into 21 percent. Worth thinking about with big loans.

Calculate your deduction step by step

You can calculate your interest deduction yourself with three figures: your rate, your loan amount, and the 100,000 line.

Step 1: work out yearly interest. Loan amount times rate. A loan of 3,000,000 kronor at 3.5 percent gives 105,000 kronor in interest per year.

Step 2: split the interest at the 100,000 line. The first 100,000 kronor gives 30 percent back, so 30,000 kronor. The last 5,000 gives 21 percent, so 1,050.

Step 3: add up. Total deduction is 31,050 kronor. Your net interest for the year is 105,000 minus 31,050, so 73,950 kronor, roughly 6,160 a month.

Worked examples for common loan amounts

Let us put concrete figures on it. We start from a 3.5 percent mortgage rate, a reasonable level for a variable loan in summer 2026.

Loan 2,000,000 kr: yearly interest 70,000 kr. Deduction 30% = 21,000 kr. Net cost 49,000 kr per year, or about 4,080 kr a month.

Loan 3,500,000 kr: yearly interest 122,500 kr. Deduction 30% on 100,000 kr = 30,000 kr, plus 21% on 22,500 kr = 4,725 kr. Total deduction 34,725 kr. Net cost about 7,315 kr a month.

Loan 5,000,000 kr: yearly interest 175,000 kr. Deduction 30% on 100,000 kr = 30,000 kr, plus 21% on 75,000 kr = 15,750 kr. Total deduction 45,750 kr. Net cost about 10,770 kr a month.

Note the deduction usually shows in your final tax calculation. Many banks help adjust your preliminary tax monthly so the money arrives ongoing instead of as a lump sum at declaration.

Is the deduction changing in 2026?

Easy to mix things up here, so let us be clear. A political discussion about phasing the interest deduction down has run for years. But for mortgages the ordinary rules still apply in 2026: 30 percent up to 100,000 kronor and 21 percent above. The worked examples above hold.

What actually changed concerns another loan type. The deduction for unsecured loans, personal loans and similar consumer credit, is being scaled down and phased out. That does not affect your mortgage, but holding such loans alongside, worth knowing their deduction is no longer the same.

Rules can of course change ahead. To be sure what applies right now, check with Skatteverket or your bank. But for 2026 mortgage interest the starting point is unchanged.

Debt ratio and stress rate: what banks calculate

Banks do not let you use the interest deduction in your loan application. They calculate your ability to pay with a stress-test rate without deduction, often 6 to 7 percent. That checks you manage rising interest costs even if rates climb hard.

That means in practice you can afford more than the bank approves on paper. The interest deduction is a real saving improving your actual cash flow each month, but it does not count in the bank’s granting.

Match the right price level to your ability to pay

Knowing what you actually pay monthly, after deduction and amortisation, is decisive before you bid. A home’s price and your monthly cost are not the same thing. A flat at 4,000,000 kronor can carry a lower net monthly cost than a terraced house at 3,500,000, depending on fee, running costs and loan-to-value.

On SökHem you register your buying brief with your actual budget and requirements. The matching filters out places that truly fit, including sellers who have not yet listed on the open market. That lets you focus searching on homes inside the price level where your calculation actually holds, rather than browsing places you cannot afford once interest and fees count in.