Well‐being is rarely considered in studies of residential segregation. This paper explores the spatial distribution of well‐being and its relationship to various forms of residential segregation. External well‐being indices are obtained for Swedish individuals through register data. The mean well‐being of 13 scales of bespoke neighbourhoods is classified into 12 clusters. Similar to previous findings, a strongly polarised pattern of neighbourhood well‐being is found. Neighbourhood well‐being is found to strongly correlate with more traditional measures of segregation. Areas in cities found in more traditional segregation studies have lower well‐being. Half of the working population lives in areas that have homogenised levels of well‐being;14% live in a well‐being‐deprived neighbourhood. Low‐scoring areas are deprived in most well‐being dimensions, while middle and high‐scoring neighbourhoods vary in the domains they excel in. The paper is one of the first to connect segregation studies to explore the causes of the spatial sorting of well‐being. Moreover, it is one of the few that explores well‐being on scales below the regional level.

Recently, spatial sorting of well-being at the neighbourhood level has received attention. Nevertheless, most studies focus merely on the distribution itself or one aspect of the neighbourhood in relation to well-being. This study examines well-being by neighbourhood type and how attitudes to the neighbourhood might mediate this. The study uses a survey, based on a sample stratified among ten different neighbourhood types. We find that residents living in low-income, high migration, high unemployment neighbourhood types experience lower well-being. This association disappears if controls for attitudes to the neighbourhood are included. Residents in homogeneously Swedish areas have lower well-being that cannot be explained by neighbourhood attitudes. We conclude that there is a clear heterogeneous spatial sorting of well-being. These findings illustrate the importance of the neighbourhood for individual well-being. The findings suggest that the spatial sorting of people does not only affect economic prospects but also daily emotional life.

Residential relocation is a life course event that most people undergo several times in their life course. Nevertheless, how overall well-being changes as a consequence thereof is rarely assessed. Moreover, relocation is often taken as a one-size-fits-all life event. This study explores how external well-being develops differently in relation to residential relocation depending on gender, ethnicity, moving history, and moving distance. Using Swedish register data, a measure of well-being was created. Subsequently, the outcomes of residential relocations are explored and how these changes over time are different according to previous mobility events, moving distance, and individual demographic characteristics. In general, residential relocations are associated with a positive and then negative fluctuation in external well-being in the first two years after relocation. Subsequently, quick recovery is found. However, visible minorities and long-distance movers are more negatively affected and do not have a recovery. For visible minorities, a negative trend in well-being already started before moving, which might indicate forced mobility. No positive adjustment through subsequent short-distance mobility or long-distance moves has been found. This contrasts with previous findings that indicate positive effects based on internal measures and long-distance relocations. Moreover, it illustrates that relocation does not have a uniform impact.