Same in the Netherlands, it was recently announced that Amazon will open a Dutch store (not sure when) but it was quite a shock for me when moving to Germany that people here have no clue how to order things other than by going to Amazon. Too much effort to use google and try different web shops if all the web shops can come to a monopolizing marketplace instead I guess? Too bad that the marketplace also competes with its own sellers and has deeper pockets than any of them because they all pay the Amazon tax on every purchase anyway.

I'm trying to avoid it but between my poor German and few web shops catering to the tiny non-Amazon-going audience, it's hard.

In Germany there are a lot of price comparison sites, geizhals and idealo being just two examples. If I am looking for electronics the filtering capabilities of geizhals are way better than Amazon and it is often the case that I can get a better price in one of the many other web shops.

Same in Sweden. What’s missing is the rock bottom pricing, simple listing and cheap delivery for more everyday items such as cables, toilet paper, ... The price comparison sites tend to be good for books, electronics etc but not food etc.

I don’t need Amazon for books or computers but I envy those who can get a cable for $5 with shipping in a few hours when in a pickle. In that situation I have to go to the physical store.

Geizhals is really crappy compared to the Tweakers Pricewatch I was used to, but yes I use that one to at least narrow down the comparison. Still, thanks for the tip!

Amazon.de delivers to the Netherlands and Poland, for example. They offer Prime for the Netherlands too. And you can set language to English.

No Amazon would mean I’d have to use comparison sites, make a bunch of accounts on different websites, pay for shipping each time, and make more orders in total. I’m beyond happy that Amazon.de works perfectly for Poland. I see almost no upside to the alternative.

It’s significantly harder to shop there, especially as an American. I found the same products I would get on Amazon to be 2 or 3x the price when I would shop in stores or online there excluding VAT and exchange rates. Maybe it allows more competition? But it surely isn’t an easier, cheaper experience in general. And as far as not being a Swedish speaker(which many people in Sweden are not), online shopping is even harder because the e-commerce options there tend to primarily work in Swedish, and have limited or no English support

Amazon.de does free delivery to Sweden, but it is not next-day of course.

To me the idea for ordering toilet paper online is a bit foreign. In order to collect the package, I would have to go to my local store, where they already sell toilet paper.

An increasing number of sites are offering next delivery in major cities like Stockholm by partnering with Budbee or Airmee, usually at no extra charge. Same day delivery? It's rare and probably a more expensive delivery option only available in Stockholm.

Ultimately, I think that the small market size, taxes and staffing costs are why lots of international brands - Amazon included - skip Sweden as a market or fail to make an impact after many years.