Cookies/Biscuits
Swedish cookies and biscuits are the heart of fika: Ballerina with hazelnut cream, raspberry-jam Singoalla, sturdy Brago and Marie biscuits and the buttery Tom & Jerry. Order Göteborgs Kex classics shipped from Sweden to anywhere you call home.
What are Swedish cookies?
Swedish cookies and biscuits (kex and småkakor) are the baked goods Swedes serve with coffee at every fika. The category covers chocolate-cream sandwich biscuits like Ballerina, jam-filled rounds like Singoalla, sturdy plain biscuits like Brago and Marie, butter biscuits like Tom & Jerry, and dozens of homemade-style småkakor (drömmar, kolasnittar, hallongrottor, finska pinnar). Most factory biscuits come from Göteborgs Kex, the country's largest biscuit maker, founded in 1888 in Kungälv.
Top Swedish biscuit brands
| Biscuit | Style | Maker | Best with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ballerina | Sandwich biscuit, hazelnut cream | Göteborgs Kex | Filter coffee |
| Singoalla | Sandwich biscuit, raspberry jam | Göteborgs Kex | Tea or coffee |
| Brago | Plain crisp biscuit | Göteborgs Kex | Cheese, coffee, dipping |
| Marie | Plain round biscuit | Göteborgs Kex | Coffee, kids' snack |
| Tom & Jerry | Buttery sandwich biscuit | Göteborgs Kex | Coffee, dessert |
| Mariekex | Vanilla-arrowroot biscuit | Göteborgs Kex | Children, light coffee |
| Ballerina Choklad | Sandwich biscuit, choc cream | Göteborgs Kex | Strong coffee |
Göteborgs Kex heritage
Göteborgs Kex is Sweden's biggest biscuit producer and has been baking from its factory in Kungälv, just north of Gothenburg, since 1888. The company invented or popularised most of the biscuits Swedes consider "classics" — Ballerina, Singoalla, Brago, Marie and Tom & Jerry — and remains the dominant supplier on supermarket shelves today. Touring the Kungälv factory is a popular outing on the Swedish west coast, and the factory shop is a favourite for buying multipacks at lower prices.
Best Swedish cookies for fika
Fika demands biscuits that pair well with strong filter coffee, and a few stand out as the perfect companions. Ballerina is the universal first choice: hazelnut cream between two embossed biscuits, just sweet enough to balance dark roast coffee. Singoalla brings a fruity, raspberry-jam contrast and is loved by tea drinkers too. Tom & Jerry is buttery and rich, perfect for an afternoon fika with friends. For dipping in coffee, the plainer Brago and Marie are the household staples. A proper Swedish fika usually offers two or three biscuits at once, plus a cinnamon bun.
Cookies vs kex vs småkakor
The vocabulary can confuse English-speakers. Kex is the everyday Swedish word for biscuits — both sweet sandwich types like Ballerina and plain types like Brago. Småkakor ("small cakes") are the homemade-style butter biscuits and shortbread served at Christmas, Easter and weddings, like drömmar, kolasnittar, hallongrottor and finska pinnar. Cookies in the American sense (large, soft, chocolate-chip) are not part of the traditional Swedish baking canon, though they have become popular in modern cafés. Browse small-cake favourites in our wider bread and baking range.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best Swedish biscuit brands?
The best Swedish biscuit brands are Göteborgs Kex (Ballerina, Singoalla, Brago, Marie, Tom & Jerry), Annas Pepparkakor (thin gingerbread), and Wasa for sweetened crispbread biscuits. Göteborgs Kex dominates the everyday biscuit shelf and is the brand most Swedes grew up with.
What is "cookie" in Swedish?
"Cookie" in Swedish is most often translated as kaka for soft baked cookies and kex for crisp biscuits. Smaller homemade biscuits are småkakor, while modern coffee-shop chocolate-chip cookies are usually just called cookies. The word for the entire category at a fika is fikabröd.
What is Ballerina cookie?
Ballerina is a Swedish sandwich biscuit made by Göteborgs Kex, consisting of two round, embossed shortbread biscuits joined by a smooth hazelnut cream. It has been on Swedish shelves since 1953 and is one of the country's bestselling biscuits, known for the dancer image stamped into each cookie. Variants include Ballerina Choklad (chocolate cream) and Ballerina Original.
Where can I buy Swedish cookies abroad?
You can buy Swedish cookies abroad from Butik Hemlängtan (swedishfoodshop.com), which ships Ballerina, Singoalla, Brago, Marie, Tom & Jerry and other Göteborgs Kex biscuits to 100 countries. Biscuits are hand-packed in our Dalarna warehouse with cushioning to arrive intact. Delivery options and prices appear at checkout — see our shipping information.
What are Singoalla biscuits?
Singoalla is a Swedish sandwich biscuit made by Göteborgs Kex, with two soft round biscuits filled with raspberry jam. It was launched in 1947 and named after a famous 19th-century Swedish novel by Viktor Rydberg. Today it is one of Sweden's bestselling biscuits and a fika favourite, particularly for tea drinkers.
Are there gluten-free Swedish biscuits?
Yes. Several Swedish bakers offer gluten-free options, including Semper gluten-free biscuits and småkakor lines, and many smaller bakeries produce gluten-free versions of pepparkakor and chokladbollar. Mainstream Göteborgs Kex biscuits like Ballerina and Singoalla contain wheat and are not gluten-free.
What does Göteborgs Kex make?
Göteborgs Kex makes most of Sweden's bestselling biscuits, including Ballerina, Singoalla, Brago, Marie, Tom & Jerry, Ohoj, Mariekex and various seasonal lines. The company has been baking in Kungälv since 1888 and remains the biggest biscuit producer in Sweden.
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