Student blogs

Getting started

You have just arrived in Stockholm and are now getting settled in and ready for the semester to begin!

You need to stock up on some essentials though. You have to get your new home ready, buy supplies for university, feed yourself, and really get acquainted with your basic shopping options in Stockholm.

If that sounds accurate, then this is the blog for you. A no-nonsense and easy to skim list of places to buy things. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Many of you may be climate conscious and/or making socially-aware decisions on where and where not to buy things. The list I have provided in this blog doesn’t really consider these factors, and instead focuses on affordable and convenient places to shop for some essentials. If you have further tips and suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments!

Home & Furniture  

• IKEA: The Stockholm IKEA, home delivery or even consider IKEA Uppsala.
• H&M Home: cute and budget-friendly décor options.
• Rusta: cheap and practical home decor and maintenance essentials.
• Bauhaus: building and home appliances.
• Clas Ohlson: home appliances and décor
• HemTex: linens, curtains, and other home textiles.
• Cervera: kitchenware (somewhat fancy).
• Kitch’n: you guessed it, kitchenware (also somewhat fancy).

For more stores, you can also check out Fran’s blog on shopping for your home on a budget.

Stationery and textbooks

• Clas Ohlson: notebooks and stationery.
• Akademibokhandeln: more expensive, but high-quality stationery. Order textbooks in advance to make sure they are stocked!
• Medicinska Bokhandeln (on KI Solna campus): medical and relevant KI textbooks. They also stock stationery, which is great if you need some in a pinch.

Want to buy textbooks online? Try Adlibris, Campus bokhandeln, Bokus, Studentapan, or Amazon.

Feel free to check out my blog about coursebooks if you need some extra information about which textbooks to buy or other cheaper options.

Electronics

Most of the following will stock phones, laptops, chargers, adapters, and various other gadgets and accessories.

• Elgiganten: literally means “Electricity Giant”
• MediaMarkt
• Kjell & Kompany
• Webhallen
• Biltema: also sells bicyles and other equipment (like for boats, in case you have one)

Food and Drinks

Coop, ICA, Hemköp, Willys, and Lidl are some of the main grocery store chains in and around Stockholm. I believe they all have home delivery options, and you may qualify for free delivery if your order exceeds a certain amount. Some things of note:

• Coop and ICA Nära are smaller branches of Coop and ICA for particular areas. For example, ICA nära Armégatan is the ICA branch near the student housing Strix. These will also be more expensive than their bigger counterparts.

• Hemköp is just 5 minutes from KI Solna Campus. It has a pretty good range and sells the everyday basics as well as fancier cakes, bread, and cheese.

• Willys offers pretty good discounts, especially if you get a membership.

• Lidl is known for being cheap and selling products tricky to find elsewhere. American candy, Finnish bread, Polish snacks… it can be a strange but refreshing mix.

Systembolaget sells alcohol and also stocks alcohol-free drink options. Check their opening hours before you go! And note that you must be at least 20 years old to buy alcohol in Sweden.

Cuisine-specific food: If you’re looking for food items of a certain country or cuisine, you may need to do some googling. For example, you can check out Sakura’s blog for Japanese food stores in Stockholm.

Travel

Pressbyrån: If the apps and machines for SL are not cooperating with you, it is always easy to buy tickets for buses, trams, trains, etc. at Pressbyrån stores. They also sell snacks and drinks, although the prices are higher than regular grocery stores – you pay for the convenience.

SL runs public transport of all sorts in Stockholm County. There are many types of tickets and student pricing available.

SJ runs and sells tickets for trains all over Sweden (and to Copenhagen and Oslo). It will be a good place to check train options for the Kiruna trip many international students will inevitably take during their time at KI.

Tips and tricks

Second-hand stores like Myrorna and Stadsmission have some lovely things. For example, you can almost always find cheap basics like tableware, planters, and clothes. Sometimes, you find really interesting things too – I know people who have found beautiful tea sets, giant maps, curtains, and even bedside tables at second-hand stores.

Student discounts may be available in some of these stores with your Mecenat account! In-store you can show the cashier your student card on the Mecenat app. Online, you can log into your Mecenat account and search for the stores you are interested in to check for available discounts.

Becoming a member at some stores can give you great discounts but also sign you up for annoying emails, so you have to decide for yourself if it’s worth it.

Finally

I hope this list will help you in getting acquainted with where to shop for the basics in Stockholm! Feel free to add more suggestions in the comments, or, as always, you can reach out to the current digital ambassadors!

Now go, be a 💕✨💵 Material Gworl 💎🌟💫 💖

🖤 Inika

Featured image by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels