“It’s very different for me, coming from a more macho culture,” says Altoe. “I have no problem splitting the bill, but it can be confusing. Should I be more assertive here? Should I make the first move? Or do I still wait for the guy to make the first move?”

However Sweden’s more egalitarian norms do benefit many expats, including American divorcee Rachel Matchett, 36, who moved to Stockholm with her Bulgarian then-husband.

“We broke up [here] when my son was three and it was affordable for me to live alone in Sweden in a way it would not have been in the US, or in Japan, where we had lived previously,” says Matchett, who now has a boyfriend. She adds that the “practically free” day care is also a big plus for independent living.

Time and loyalty

Swede Djina Wilk, 39, co-founder of Swedish language and cultural communication business, Bee Swedish, advises expats who aren’t comfortable using websites and apps for dating to invest time in getting to know locals slowly at evening courses or through sport.

“Swedes can initially seem colder and less emotional than other cultures,” says Wilk, who has also lived in Germany, Ireland, the US and the UK.