Best Cafés in Stockholm: Top 11 to Visit (& Map)
Stockholm is full of gorgeous cafés to visit for your daily fika fix. If you’re not yet familiar with fika, it’s essentially a tea break with friends and it is serious business in Sweden. The abundance of excellent cafés in Stockholm means you won’t be short on places to stop and put the world to rights, cinnamon bun in hand. Coffee, cake and chats, what’s not to like. The only question is where to go.
I’ve put together this guide to some of the best cafés in Stockholm to help you decide. It covers achingly fashionable joints along with laid-back gems. Whatever your idea of the best café is, you’re sure to find one you like in Stockholm.
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Map of the Best Cafés in Stockholm
I’ve created a map that shows the places listed in this guide to the best cafés in Stockholm. Click the arrow icon to the left of the map heading to view the names of each café.
Travel Coffee Cup
If you want to be sustainable when enjoying these Stockholm cafes, get yourself a fab collapsible coffee cup, they’re super easy to pack and take with you on your travels.
Check the current price of a collapsible travel cup
Most Fun Café in Stockholm – Java Whiskers Cat Café
Whilst searching for somewhere that would supply me with hot chocolate at 7 pm on a dark and cold Sunday night in Stockholm I came across the Java Whiskers Cat Café. As a cat owner, the name stood out and I was excited to discover that not only is the café cat-themed in name but it also looks after real live cats.
I spent a cosy hour at what I can happily confirm is Stockholm’s most fun café – who wouldn’t find the company of nine fluffy balls of fun, including some mischievous kittens, to be entirely entertaining and adorable.
Staff explained that there’s a particular issue in Stockholm with summer cats. Domestic cats are taken to summer houses then left to fend for themselves when summer inevitably ends and the owners leave. The cat café is trying to help with this problem and takes rescue cats only. There are plenty of rules in place to keep the cats safe, like not feeding them and keeping a low sound level, and guests seemed to be respectful of these safeguards.
Cats are kept in a separate area partitioned off from the rest of the café. The entrance fee to sit with the cats starts from 179 SEK per person, which is quite expensive but adopting a cat costs around 2000 SEK so perhaps the pricey entrance fee is more understandable. If you can’t afford to pay the fee you might still get a glimpse through the window inside the café. Do buy a drink though, even if you’re not going in to see the cats, as it all helps to fund their upkeep.
The café staff clearly really care about the animals and yes, will admit to having a favourite cat. Although you’ll have to drop in to find out that secret, you never know which feline friends might be reading this.
Booking in advance via the website is recommended, particularly on Saturdays, which is the most popular time to visit the café. If you want to go at a quieter time, Sunday evening is better (the café is open until 8 pm).
Branches have also opened up in London so if you miss the Stockholm café you can always look them up in the UK instead.
Best Stockholm Café for Hot Chocolate – Chokladfabriken (Chocolate Factory)
For one of the best cafes in Stockholm for hot chocolate head straight to Chokladfabriken. There are three locations to choose from, so you’re never too far away from some warming sweet stuff. This café has a minimalist setting which creates a very calming atmosphere in which to take a time out from sightseeing. The hot chocolate is absolutely delicious. It’s a creamy, melt-in-the-mouth chocolate flake kind of taste, which stays on the right side of decadent and sumptuous, rather than falling into the sickly bracket as many luxury hot chocolates do.
Whilst here, you might also find yourself seduced by all the other choc based goodies on sale. Chokladfabriken produces its own artisanal chocolate in a range of forms on site in Södermalm. Mmm, even more reason to try some of the sweet stuff, fresh out of the kitchen. You can even book to take a chocolate course and learn how to be a professional chocolate handler. Now that’s a job for me.
Best Stockholm Café for Entertainment – Fox in a Box
As you might expect from a café based around an escape room, there is plenty to keep you entertained here, with board games (many in English) from backgammon to Zombie Kittens and everything in between. The food menu includes a good selection of vegetarian and vegan options. Fox In a Box café is located in the city area of Stockholm, near the marvellous cultural centre, Kulturhuset. Open late on Wednesdays for board game nights, this is a great place to make new friends.
Best Cultural Café – Artipelag Café
Forming part of one of the best free museums in Stockholm, the café at Artipelag is one of the best cultural cafés in the whole of Stockholm. There are huge outdoor sculptures and regular indoor exhibitions to enjoy. The café here is all about location, location, location. It has an outdoor terrace which looks out across the waters to the more central islands that make up Stockholm city.
Combine immersing yourself in nature, fresh air and art with a Swedish fika break at this calming spot. Delicious-looking homemade bread and soups will warm you up on a chilly day, or grab an artisanal ice cream if it’s a scorcher. One negative to note, at the time I visited Artipelag there was no hot chocolate available, just teas and coffees on sale. An error this chocolate lover hopes will be changed in the future. However, I might forgive this oversight, as the toilets are possibly the most luxurious I’ve ever been in.
Coolest Stockholm Café – Fotografiska Café
A close second for the best cultural café in Stockholm, the café at Fotografiska is so cool it hurts. This is a place to see and be seen in Stockholm. The hulking great building of the gallery houses a huge café and restaurant space on the top floor.
As you’d expect, the ambience at Fotografiska Café is super cool and there is a real buzzy vibe to the place. The design is cool and classy, with an emphasis on industrial and functional elements. Entrance to the photography exhibition itself is not cheap so brace yourself for a pain in your wallet, and possibly in your heart when you’ve viewed some of the photography. Be aware that whilst the museum is open late all week, the coffee buffet and espresso bar shut at the end of the afternoon.
Best Café in Gamla Stan – Kaffekoppen
When in Stockholm you must spend some time in the old town area of Gamla Stan. This part of Stockholm is made for strolling up and down the small side streets and stumbling upon a great café at the end of a morning’s wandering. One of the best cafés to head for is Kaffekoppen on Stortorget. The hot chocolate is served in an actual bowl and, should you be so inclined, I recommend sampling their take on the traditional Swedish pastry, a kanelbullar (cinnamon bun).
The café itself appears tiny on first look but it hides a spacious and beautifully rustic basement. Ask to sit here rather than at the crowded and small street level.
The Ribbinska Huset, the building above the café, commemorates the 82 nobles who were assassinated at a supposed dinner for peace, called by the Danish King of Sweden in the early- mid-1500s. Each of the white bricks in the red facade represents one of the fallen.
Best Café in Stockholm for Sports Enthusiasts – Cykelcafé Le Mond
Located in the trendy SoFo (south of Folkungagatan) district, this cool café is a great option for anyone with a passion for the great outdoors. I love the concept, with bike memorabilia to keep you entertained, it has got me dreaming about what it could look like in my home town of Cambridge, cycle city UK.
Aside from the quirky theme, the café comes highly ranked for its food. The main courses are an eclectic mix of world food favourites and they offer a great brunch selection, with an emphasis on organic. Although if all that healthiness isn’t for you, there are plenty of sweet treats, in the form of Belgian waffles, to get you through an energetic day.
Best Café in Stockholm for Music Lovers – Söders Marley Café
Speaking of cafes in Stockholm with a theme, another great place to check out in SoFo is Söders Marley Café. If you’re a fan of the music of Bob Marley then head here for the fab decor and, of course, fantastic soundtrack. Plus you can get yourself all kinds of Marley coffee, including iced versions for the summer.
Other Cafés in Stockholm to Check Out
Whilst they didn’t make it to the top of the list, these cafes in Stockholm are still worth checking out.
Café Saturnus
You might arrive at this Stockholm institution expecting an art deco café complete with jazzy yet cool claret and blue striped wallpaper, for which it has gained a bit of a reputation over the years. However, alas, due to a makeover in early 2023, the stripes are no more. They’ve been replaced by a more subdued décor. This place is popular so be prepared to wait for a table at busy times. At 10 minutes walk from the Stockholm Public Library and Stureplan, café Saturnus makes for a good, if pricey, lunch spot.
Caffellini
This tiny hole-in-the-wall place has a reputation for serving some of the best coffee in town. Whilst it is purely standing room only, the location in the heart of Gamla Stan means you can grab your coffee and cake to go and indulge as you take in the old town.
Fabrique
There are several Fabriques around Stockholm but head to the one at Lilla Nygatan 12, Gamla Stan, for a cool café in the heart of the old town. With white underground-style tiling and exposed lighting, this place was made for your Insta grid. The locally produced baked goods ensure the food is as fresh as the interior. For inspiration to caption your travel photos, check out my article on Travel Quotes for Instagram.
Which cafes have you visited in Stockholm? I’d love to find out your favourite in the comments below.
If you’re wondering how to get around Stockholm, check out my article on Uber in Stockholm for some tips.
If you’re searching for more food and drink based fun, check out my article on the best restaurants in Ischia, Italy.