Finding a home (in Swedish)
Homes for sale (Hemnet, in Swedish)
Vacant lots (in Swedish)
Welcome to the little municipality with the magnificent waterside location right next to Lake Vättern! Karlsborg stretches from the beautiful surroundings of Undenäs to the north and Brevik to the south. In between are central Karlsborg and the glorious nuggets of Granvik, Forsvik and Mölltorp.
While we number just a little over 7,000 residents, we’re planning to enable more people to live, work and thrive in Karlsborg. And so we’re building new homes, developing new subdivisions and planning for more of everything.
- Number of residents
7,061
- Towns
Karlsborg, Forsvik, Mölltorp and Undenäs
- Neighboring municipalities
Tibro, Hjo and Töreboda
- Price per square meter (single family/town house)
SEK 16,087
- Number of companies
940
- Major industries
Manufacturing, retail, construction, agriculture and forestry, defense industry and public sector
- Employers
Swedish Armed Forces, Karlsborg’s municipality, Nammo, Brodit and others
- Popular places to visit
Karlsborg’s Fortress, Tiveden, Forsvik’s Mill, Göta Canal, Granvik and all of the lakes, guest harbors and bathing beaches
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Living here
Living in Karlsborg
Nature is something we Karlsborg residents think a lot about. Our location between the lakes means fishing and boating are second nature. Many of us hunt in the surrounding forests, of which there are also plenty.
Living here is safe, and whenever safety surveys are conducted among the nation’s municipalities, we’re always in the top 10. In this regard, we’re a long way from the big cities. But in purely geographical terms, they’re real close. Just under one hour to Skövde, two to Gothenburg and three to Stockholm.
So no wonder so many people move here. Which is good, as it lets us do more of such things we believe are important, like building attractive subdivisions, developing more leisure activities and upgrading our schools. While there’ll always be more of us, Karlsborg will never be big.
Around 7,000 people live here, almost everyone within walking distance from a beach. It’s what to expect when it’s never far to a lake.
Moving here
Moving to Karlsborg
If you’re moving to Karlsborg – and we really think you should – you will need to choose somewhere in the municipality to live. Karlsborg is more than just the regional center, there are also four somewhat larger communities. Each of them has its own style and character.
Forsvik has one of the country’s best preserved historical mills. It’s where Vadstena Monastery ran an industry, if that’s the right word, back in the 15th century. The actual mill was founded in 1686 and was in use right up until 1977. You could hardly wish for better neighbors.
Undenäs is around 10 kilometers inland, toward Mariestad. In beautiful rural majesty next to Lake Unden lies Undenäs with its wide vistas and enormous church. It’s known as Tiveden Cathedral in local parlance and it does the name proud. It’s a living village, and has e.g. its own library and country store.
A little way toward Skövde by the shores of Lake Kyrksjön, is charming little Mölltorp. Yet another living community. It’s a place where horse farms and houses rub shoulders with stores and summer homes. And Mölltorp has its own school, too.
Our municipal housing company, Karlsborgsbostäder, has homes in every part of the municipality. There are also a number of private landlords you can turn to. If you’d rather live in your own house, there are often single-family homes and row houses for sale.
Photo: Axel Adolfsson
Jobs
Working in Karlsborg
Something that makes Karlsborg a little special is having by far the country’s highest proportion of public employees. The reason is of course K3, a major regiment, which together with the municipality is Karlsborg’s biggest employer. Both have great recruitment needs for today and tomorrow.But t
here are naturally private sector employers, too. Karlsborg is a pronounced small business municipality; there are many companies, but most of them have fewer than 10 employees. Together, public sector employers and the many people moving here mean Karlsborg has a rather unusual, in fact exciting, mixture of often highly qualified skill sets.
Links:
• The municipality as an employer (in Swedish)
• Vacant positions in Karlsborg (in Swedish)
• Information concerning trade and industry in Karlsborg (in Swedish)
Business Karlsborg
If you want to start a company, Karlsborg is a great place to do so. Because the municipality is small, most people know each other. Fast contacts, short decision paths. It’s much easier this way. And if you haven’t quite made your mind up, you can always discuss the issue with our business developer. Call the municipality’s number and let them give you a hand.
A selection of local employers
Education
Education in Karlsborg
We’re truly fortunate in Karlsborg to have our excellent preschools and schools. For example, we could boast that in 2022 we had the country’s second highest proportion of grade 9 pupils achieving their knowledge requirements in all subjects.
What’s more, the Swedish Teachers’ Union nominated us as the 15th best school municipality – not bad considering there are an additional 289 municipalities in Sweden.
Photo: Axel Adolfsson
For the youngest
The municipality has four municipal preschools and one non-profit independent preschool. For children who for various reasons do not attend an ordinary preschool, there is also the Open Preschool at our Families Center. It shares the Health Center premises in the center of town.
As in other places, the preschools here naturally enjoy different conditions. For example, Vätter School is literally only a stone’s throw from the water, a little over 50 meters. Others, such as Myran’s preschool, have give-or-take 100 meters further to stroll when it’s time for fun on the beach.
In the schoolyard at the Kompassen preschool there are woods, a sledding hill and the school’s own barbecue. And it’s close to the water of course, 130 meters to be precise.
In Mölltorp, the children get to go to Kvarnbäcken’s preschool. Here too, the forest is right around the corner just like in Mölltorp’s big schoolyard, which comprises around two acres of climbing frames, lawns and slides. There’s also a library and a gymnasium within walking distance. And the water, naturally.
Closeness to nature also applies to the preschool in Forsvik. It has a fantastically beautiful rural location, right next to Forsvik’s church and outside the community proper. It doesn’t get any more peaceful than this.
So there are often strolls and excursions for the little ones at Karlsborg’s preschools, despite the generously sized schoolyards they have to play in.
For the little older
A school with its own 200-meter beach-front lot – beat that! Strand School houses grades 1–6 and lives up to its name in its location by Lake Bottensjön in the center of Karlsborg village.
The school shares the waterside lot with the after-school center, and while the water is still late-summer warm in August, there’s plenty of splashing around in the afternoons. During cold winter weeks, the lake freezes and Bottensjön turns into the school’s own skating rink instead.
A little less than 10 kilometers from Karlsborg is Mölltorp and Mölltorp School for grades 1–6, with just over 100 pupils. It’s a municipal school within easy walking and cycling distance for most Mölltorp residents. Mölltorp School has the luxury of being located alongside a major nature area, and as if that weren’t enough, pupils and personnel also have their very own school forest. Lake Kyrksjön a few hundred meters away invites pupils to swim in the summer and ice skate in the winter.
Forsvik’s independent school has a little over 100 pupils and has been run by a non-profit organization for more than 20 years. It also runs a preschool and after-school center. All of these operations are characterized by small groups. In other areas, the independent school has the same general focus as the municipal schools.
High school
Karlsborg does not have its own high school, but Skövde is only 45 minutes away, and it has several. As of fall 2023 there is also Olin’s High School, which has a focus on sports, in Tibro, our neighboring municipality.
Adult education
Adult education in Karlsborg includes elementary and high school levels, Särvux, SFI and vocational training. If you wish to study at college or university, there are colleges within commuting distance of Skövde and Jönköping, and the University of Gothenburg is two hours away.
Leisure
Things to do in Karlsborg
If you’re not already a lover of the outdoors when you move here, you’ll soon be one once you arrive. The forests, the lakes and the Tiveden national park’s hiking trails are nothing less than paradise for enthusiasts thirsting for the great outdoors.
By now you’ve probably come to realize just how much water there is in and around Karlsborg. The village snuggles between Lakes Vättern and Bottensjön. The area is home to beautiful Lake Unden and the Göta Canal, and a multitude of smaller lakes and watercourses.
It’s pretty obvious that boating is a way of life for most Karlsborg residents – in central Karlsborg alone there are no fewer than 13 mooring associations!
Some boat owners enjoy sailing on Lake Vättern’s inland sea, others would rather go canoeing in the municipality’s northern archipelago. Yet others putter away from the many popular beaches to find their own little cove in which to enjoy swimming and fishing.
By the way, fishing is a pastime that attracts people from near and far. Not least because fishing for Lake Vättern’s famous salmon and Arctic charr is an extraordinary experience, while perch and pike are caught in great quantities, too.
And there’s plenty of beaches, naturally. Some, like the beach in Mölltorp with its diving tower and beach volleyball courts, or the long sandy beach at Karlsborg’s Camping, are teeming with people and life during hot summer days. Some are a little quieter, despite their conveniently accessible location close to the village. And if you truly want to be left in peace you can always slink away to one of the thousands of small beaches or smooth, rocky outcrops along the municipality’s 350 kilometers of shoreline.
Gilt-edged exercise
Karlsborg is a veritable Mecca for the devoted wellness enthusiast. No matter which way you turn, you’re always close to tracks, pathways and trails, whether you prefer running, cycling, paddling, horseback riding or skiing. Beautiful natural settings and the constant presence of lake views are part of the bargain, and if you prefer to go hiking or just take a stroll, well that’s okay too.
And it’s just not possible to talk about leisure activities in Karlsborg without mentioning sports. Moliden’s swimming and sports facility may seem hugely over-dimensioned, which naturally derives from Karlsborg’s long military tradition. There’s a swimming hall with two pools, a gym, a sports hall, table tennis, dance studio and martial arts dojo. Outdoors are running tracks and two soccer fields, and right next door are the Swedish Armed Forces assault courses, which are also accessible to the general public.
What this place has more than any other is the opportunity to shape one’s own leisure time. Karlsborg is a municipality that’s growing and developing.
We’re used to seeing new faces here. People have been moving here since Karlsborg became Karlsborg 200 years ago. The place is always open to new initiatives. If you start a business here there’s a very real chance someone will latch on.
Welcome!
Contact
Contact us
(phone) +46 (0)505-170 00
Karlsborg's municipality
Storgatan 16
SE-546 82 Karlsborg, SWEDEN
Any questions? Contact our relocation guides!
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