What Is Meritvärde and SALSA in Sweden? A Simple Guide for Parents

If you are comparing schools in Sweden, you will probably come across the term meritvärde. It is one of the most commonly used measures of academic results in Year 9 — but what does it actually tell you about a school?

Here is a simple guide for parents. ## What is meritvärde?

Meritvärde is a points-based score calculated from a student's final grades in Swedish compulsory school (grundskola).

Each grade is worth:

Normally, a student's 16 best subject grades are added together. The maximum is therefore 320 points.

If a student has studied a modern language as their språkval, that grade can be added as an extra 17th subject. In that case, the maximum possible meritvärde is 340 points.

For example, a student receiving a C in 16 subjects would have:

16 × 15 = 240 points

Meritvärde is used when applying to upper-secondary school (gymnasium). When an eligible programme has more applicants than available places, students with higher meritvärden are generally admitted first.

01What does a school's meritvärde mean?

When you see a meritvärde on a school profile, you are usually looking at the average meritvärde of students finishing Year 9 at that school.

There are two versions of the national statistic:

• 16-subject meritvärde — maximum 320
• 17-subject meritvärde — maximum 340

For the 2024/25 school year, the Swedish national averages were:

• 220.6 based on the 16-subject measure
• 228.5 based on the 17-subject measure

One important detail: the "17-subject" measure does not mean that every student has 17 grades. Students who have a qualifying modern-language grade as their språkval can add it as a 17th subject; other students are still calculated using their 16 best grades.

So when comparing a school's result with the Swedish average, make sure you are comparing figures calculated on the same basis.

02What is considered a good meritvärde?

There is no official Skolverket threshold for a "good" or "bad" school meritvärde.

The national average can provide useful context. For example, if you are using the 17-subject measure, the national average for 2024/25 was 228.5. A school with an average of 270 was therefore clearly above the national average that year.

However, this does not automatically mean that the school provides better teaching.

03Does a higher meritvärde mean a better school?

Not necessarily.

Meritvärde is useful because it shows the academic results achieved by students at a school. But school results are affected by many factors, including differences in the student population.

It also tells you very little about things such as:

• safety and wellbeing
• study environment
• teacher qualifications
• student-to-teacher ratio
• individual support
• school culture

This is why meritvärde is best considered alongside other information rather than used as a standalone school ranking.

04What about SALSA?

Skolverket also publishes SALSA, a statistical model designed to provide more context around Year 9 results.

SALSA takes into account three background factors:

• parents' educational level
• gender distribution
• the proportion of newly arrived students

Parents' educational level has the strongest relationship with school results within the model.

SALSA compares a school's actual result with a modelled result based partly on these factors. It can therefore help provide a more nuanced picture than raw meritvärde alone.

Skolverket also specifically states that SALSA should not be used to rank schools.

05Why doesn't every school have a meritvärde?

Sometimes you may see a school with no published meritvärde.

This does not necessarily mean that data is missing or that the school performed poorly.

For privacy reasons, Skolverket suppresses school-level results when the result is based on fewer than 10 students. In official statistics, these values are normally replaced by two dots (..).

This is particularly relevant when looking at smaller schools.

There is another detail worth knowing: Skolverket calculates average meritvärde only among students who received a passing grade — at least an E — in at least one subject. Students with no passing grades are not included in the average meritvärde calculation.

06What else should parents compare?

Meritvärde is a useful starting point, but consider it together with other indicators such as:

• percentage of students passing all subjects
• eligibility for upper-secondary school
• student-to-teacher ratio
• percentage of qualified teachers
• national test results
• safety and study environment
• SALSA
• reviews and experiences from parents and students

A school with the highest meritvärde may be the right choice for your child. But a school with slightly lower academic results and a stronger learning environment, better support or a different school culture may be a better fit.

The best way to use meritvärde is therefore as one part of a bigger picture.

Comparing schools in Sweden? School Reviews helps you explore available official school data alongside experiences shared by parents and students.

07A note about the latest data

The national figures in this article refer to the 2024/25 school year, which is the latest Year 9 final-grade data currently published by Skolverket.

Skolverket is scheduled to publish the 2025/26 Year 9 final-grade statistics on 24 September 2026, after which the national figures in this article should be updated.