Military ranks of the Swedish Armed Forces shows the rank system used in the Swedish Armed Forces today, as well as changes during the 20th century due to changes in the personnel structure.
On 1 October 2019, the Swedish Armed Forces introduced a new rank structure that differs from those used by most armed forces worldwide. In the Swedish system, non-commissioned officers (NCOs) cannot advance beyond the rank of OR-5 without completing a shortened version of Officer Candidate School tailored to their specific field. Upon graduation, they are commissioned as officers with the same status as regular officers. To indicate their specialization in a technical field, they are designated as Specialist Officers. The Specialist Officer corps forms a parallel pay grade structure alongside that of regular officers. Although specialist officers are sometimes compared to U.S. warrant officers due to their predominantly technical roles, the analogy is imperfect, as the highest specialist officer rank is equivalent to a lieutenant colonel. The ranks are divided into three categories: officers (OF-1 to OF-9), specialist officers (OR-6 to OR-9), and section commanders, soldiers, and sailorsâÂÂcollectively known in Swedish as GSS (OR-1 to OR-5). There is ongoing debate within the Swedish Armed Forces regarding the NATO designation of specialist officers.
The rank insignia shown below are those worn on the field uniform. Titles for the army, navy, and air force are also provided.
From 2023, the rank of has been introduced in the Swedish Armed Forces.
The rank insignia of commissioned officers.
The rank insignia of specialist officers (OR6 - OR9) and enlisted personnel (OR1 - OR5).
Since 2009, there are three categories of ranks, , and
Officers lead units from platoon and up. They are trained at the Military Academy Karlberg in a three-year academic program(180 ECTS credits) and graduate as . Cadets with no prior service must complete a 6-9 months preparatory course before they start at the academy.
are educated at specialist schools and centres for 1,5 years and graduate as . Experienced soldiers who have served as corporals and sergeants may take a shortened course. Civilians must complete a preparatory course before the 1.5 year specialist training starts.
The two highest ranks in this category, and , form their own sub-category, . They command squads of approx. 8 men. Ordinary soldiers are given the rank with different insignia depending on how long they have served.
When the professional NCO corps was reintroduced in 2009 it was decided that some ranks in this category should, like the old ranks in 1960âÂÂ1972, have a relative rank higher than the most junior officers. The current relative ranks are shown in the table below.
The table below shows ranks according to seniority, with the most senior to the left. OF denotes officers, OR other ranks (as per STANAG 2116). Those ranks were ratified by the supreme commander on October 24, 2008, and became effective as of January 1, 2009. Military ranks of (primarily) Great Britain have been used as a basis for harmonization with NATO.
A major change in the personnel structure in 1983 (NBO 1983), merged the three professional corps of platoon officers, company officers, and regimental officers into a one-track career system within a single corps called professional officers (). The three messes were also merged to one.
In 1972 the personnel structure changed, reflecting increased responsibilities of warrant and non-commissioned officers, renaming the as , giving them the same ranks as company grade officers (, , ). was renamed and given the rank titles of and , although their relative ranks were now placed below . The commissioned officers were renamed , beginning with . The three-track career system was maintained, as well as three separate messes.
Note that the rank of (Field Marshal) was a de jure rank before the reform of 1972, even though it has not been used since 1824.
In 1949 the relative rank of the warrant officers were elevated further so that to the following effect:
In a reform 1926 the relative rank of the then senior warrant officer, , was increased to be equal with the junior officer rank and above the most junior officer rank .
When an army based on national service (conscription) was introduced in 1901 all commissioned officers had ranks that were senior to the warrant officers () and non-commissioned officers ().