Sweden’s home preparedness list: ready for at least a week

Sweden’s civil defence agency asks households to manage on their own for at least a week, twice the EU baseline. Its list covers heat and cooking as well as water and food: stoves and fuel, a kerosene lamp, an alternative heat source, and sleeping bags. Stoves should preferably be used outdoors.

The official numbers

Self-reliance: at least one week
Water: 3 litres per person per day
Medication: about a month’s supply (Socialstyrelsen, the National Board of Health and Welfare)

What MCF (formerly MSB), « If crisis or war comes » recommends

Gear

Supplies to buy

Bottled drinking water
Long-life food (ready to eat)
Stove fuel cartridges
Candles / tea lights
Hand sanitiser
Wet wipes
Period products / nappies
Heater fuel (kerosene / propane)

To arrange

Paper list of emergency contacts
Personal medication supply
Cash in small notes and coins
One month of prescription medication
Warm-room plan

What the authorities advise beyond the kit

Know the warning signal. “Hesa Fredrik” is tested at 15:00 on the first non-holiday Monday of March, June, September and December. Outside a test: go indoors, close doors, windows and vents, and listen to Sveriges Radio P4. From 2026 the same warning (VMA) also comes to phones via SE-alert.
Find your nearest shelter (skyddsrum) before you need it: shelters are marked with a sign and listed on MCF’s map.
Everyone aged 16 to 70 living in Sweden is part of total defence and can be called on to help in war.
If Sweden is attacked, it will never surrender. The brochure says any claim that resistance has stopped is false.
Be source-critical. Expect false information in a crisis and check it against official sources such as krisinformation.se.
Agree with family and neighbours how you will help each other, especially those who can’t manage alone.

Food to keep at home

What the official list says: Food for at least a week that doesn’t need a fridge or freezer, that you can eat directly or cook without water. Choose what you and your family usually eat.

General advice from the official food lists:

Stock food you already eat, and rotate it: use the oldest first and replace it, so nothing expires unnoticed.
For 72 hours, choose food that keeps at room temperature and can be eaten without cooking: tins, crispbread, dried fruit, nuts, muesli, long-life milk.
For a week or longer, add dry staples such as rice, pasta, oats and pulses, plus oil, salt and sugar, and a stove to cook on.
Dry staples need water to cook: count it in your water stock.
Store food cool, dry and dark, in airtight containers once opened.
Allow for babies, special diets, allergies and pets.
Keep a manual can opener, and throw away tins that are swollen, dented or rusty.

Printable one-to-two-week food list, combined from official lists. Print it or save it as a PDF.

What other governments add

These appear on most of the 12 official lists we compared, but not on this one:

Pet food and water (6 of 12 lists)
Multitool / pocket knife (5 of 12 lists)

Build your kit

Every item above is in our L1 kit (72 hours). Use the household calculator to get quantities for your household, and download the shopping list for the supplies you’ll buy at the supermarket and pharmacy.

FAQ

How long should an emergency kit last in Sweden? At least one week, according to MCF (formerly MSB), « If crisis or war comes ».

Do I need to buy a ready-made kit? No. Building your own from the official list is cheaper and you know what’s in it. Our picks cover the gear; the rest comes from the supermarket.

Sources: MCF (formerly MSB), « If crisis or war comes »; Socialstyrelsen (medication). Last reviewed: October 2026.