Student housing
Gothenburg is Sweden’s second largest city and is hugely popular not only with students, but also companies. Many people are moving to study and work in Gothenburg, causing a housing shortage. For this reason, we encourage you to begin looking for accommodation as soon as possible. This page offers information for all our international students looking for a place to live in Gothenburg.
Finding housing
Gothenburg is a very popular city to live in and therefore it can take a long time to find accommodation in a student room in time for the start of the autumn semester. In fact, it can take a year or longer before you receive an offer for student housing. During spring semester it can be easier to find housing due to the fact that not as many programmes start then.
Fortunately, there are other alternatives, such as long stay hotels and hostel, or renting a room in an apartment/house. Although many students would prefer private student housing, renting a room from a Swedish family can have advantages in terms of learning Swedish quicker and becoming familiar with Swedish culture and customs.
To maximize your chances of finding accommodation quickly, we recommend that you not limit your search to the city centre where the competition is the stiffest. Widen your search to include areas outside of the city centre as well. Public transportation in the city is effective and offers wide coverage, so staying outside the city centre is not a problem. You could always move closer to where your classes are later. The important thing is that you find somewhere to stay initially.
Eligible categories for University student housing
Our possibilities to provide student housing is regulated by Swedish law.
Eligible categories of students are:
- Fee-paying students
- Exchange students
Ordinance regarding the possibility for universities to provide housing
Exchange and fee paying students
Housing Services at the University of Gothenburg provide a limited number of student rooms and apartments to exchange students and fee paying students.
No Housing Guarantee
Please note that the University does not guarantee housing. There is a shortage of housing in Gothenburg, which affects student accommodations during the autumn.
For information about alternative housing options, please read the section below under the heading “More ways to find housing”.
SGS Student Housing Foundation
All international students (non fee-paying, fee-paying, exchange, and doctoral students) can apply for accommodation through SGS, which is a foundation managing Gothenburg’s largest range of student accommodation. You can register as soon as you are considering applying to the University of Gothenburg to maximize your time in the queue. This will increase your chance of getting an apartment or room.
Even though the waiting time is normally about one and a half years, it is not impossible to be offered an accommodation through SGS faster. It can pay off to keep a close eye on SGS and to check in frequently for last minute cancellations and availability.
It's important to note that you can register with SGS in advance (read above), and this won't impact your chances of University housing.
Insurance
Home Insurance for Freemover Students in Sweden
In Sweden, home insurance is not included in your rent, and if you are a freemover student (i.e. a non-exchange or non-fee-paying student), it is your responsibility to purchase home insurance.
Home insurance typically covers several important aspects:
- Personal property: In case anything is stolen, damaged, or lost from your residence, you will be responsible for repair or replacement costs.
- Liability: If you cause damage to the property such as water leaks, your insurance will cover the costs.
- Legal expenses: In case of legal disputes, home insurance can help with legal fees.
- Travel insurance: Some policies also include travel coverage for emergencies when you are abroad.
A home insurance policy (hemförsäkring) is available from most insurance companies in Sweden. If you're a member of a student union, you might be able to access subsidized home insurance options through them, which could offer good coverage at a reduced rate.
For example, if you rent via SGS they have an agreement with Hedvig insurance.
Learn more about insurances on our webpage, and on SGS webpage
More ways of finding housing
The Move to Gothenburg web portal provides a lot of helpful information about finding a home in, and around, Gothenburg. Regardless of whether you are coming to the city to study or to work, you will find useful tips about where to look, how to expand your search, and what to keep in mind. You can read about tenancy rights, different aspects of renting first hand and second hand, what to think about if you are contemplating buying a home, and much more.
Tips on finding housing on movetogothenburg.com
Chalmers Studentbostäder
Housing agency Chalmers Studentbostäder (CSB) own and maintain 2382 student apartments that are all within walking distance from Chalmers campus areas; Johanneberg and Lindholmen. Students from Chalmers and University of Gothenburg can apply by registering in the housing queue. The available apartments are published mainly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Short term housing solutions
If you haven't found a place to stay at the beginning of the semester there are many hostels and hotels offering long-stay in Gothenburg. Contact the Gothenburg Visitor Centre for a list of all of them.
Gothenburg Visitor Centre
Student Stories
Adelric Wong's housing story
In my first year in Gothenburg, securing a place was rather difficult, so I signed up with several housing queues in the meantime to secure queue time, but realistically, I knew I had to find a place to stay there and then. So, with minimal availability or alternatives otherwise, I turned to booking places via Airbnb, moved from one place to another every few months. Then, I found a room in a shared apartment through private rentals via Boplats, and stayed there for some months. Following that, I obtained long-term accommodation through SBS and stayed at the Lindholmen container apartments. I stayed there pretty long, before I was eligible in my second year of studies with sufficient student housing queue time with SGS and applied for an apartment near Lindholmen near one of my friends so we could become neighbours. It was definitely a wild journey in my first year, constantly changing neighbourhoods and adjusting to new housing environments.
Any advice to future students regarding this?
My suggestion to new students is that you should be willing to make an initial compromise and stay out of your comfort zone while upgrading your living situation over time whenever opportunity and availability presents itself, but it is best to not be too picky for the first few accommodations you get, especially if you lack any significant queue time as there are more pressing matters to focus on, such as university studies.