It is a well known fact, that Sweden is a very successful country. Its citizens enjoy very high standards of living, and they have access to health and educational systems that are among the top in the world. Swedes are also among the most respected people across the world.Therefore the question that arises naturally is why is Sweden such a successful country? Socialists rush to answer that the country’s success is due to socialism. And most people that do not know anything about Sweden tend to believe so. However a closer look at the country’s economic history shows exactly the opposite. It was the free market environment that preceded the rise of the socialists to power, that was the foundation of the Swedish success.Many sources are used in this essay, and a summary of the country’s economic history is presented. At the end of the document it will be clear that socialism had nothing to do with the Swedish “miracle”. A few words are also said about Norway. However the case of Norway is much simpler, since it is clear that its success has nothing to do with socialism, but it is due to the country’s oil riches.