Taxis are on the expensive side. The Stockholm taxi market was deregulated several years ago which made it considerably easier to find a taxi, but since the market is free some small operators charge outrageous prices. The antidote for visitors is to check for the black and yellow price sticker which all taxis has to display. It's usually on a rear side window, clearly visible from the outside. The price shown is for a 10 km, 15 minute journey and reputable companies charge around 300 SEK for this. If the sticker shows a much higher price, stay away or be ripped off.
Try to stick with the major companies (Taxi Stockholm, +46 8 15 00 00; TopCab, +46 8 33 33 33; Taxi Kurir, +46 8 30 00 00; and Taxi 020, 020 20 20 20 - free number, national calls only) to avoid the risk of being ripped off. (Note that many minor companies use "Stockholm" in their names to mimic their competitor, so look for the phone number 15 00 00 which appears below the logo on all Taxi Stockholm cars.)
Authorized taxis have yellow license plates. Late at night in the city centre, you may be offered a ride with an unauthorized taxi, svarttaxi (literally "black taxi"), usually by discrete whispering of "taxi". Most of the time this will get you home for roughly the same cost as ordinary taxis, just don't ask for a receipt. Rumours say that these cabs are usually controlled by organized crime, and some unpleasant episodes have been known to happen to passengers, so try this at your own risk, and preferably not alone.
It's often possible to negotiate a price with a licensed taxi driver before entering the cab. In this case, it's implied that you won't receive a receipt, and the driver won't be paying any taxes or his employer. The money (paid in cash) will go straight into the driver's pocket, which means that you can often get a cheaper ride. However, if you don't know the area well enough to estimate the regular metered price you might get ripped off. Negotiating the price also undermines the swedish system of taxes and employment security which will be considered very rude by many (not all) swedes.
Most taxi firms operate a fixed price regime from central Stockholm to Arlanda airport, mirroring the rates for the journey into town of around 450-500SEK. It is a good idea to check with the driver that you will get the fixed price before you set off - the meter price for the same ride may cost twice as much.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Stockholm
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Stockholm - updated May 2024
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Stockholm Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
