Moving to Norway
In Norway, the median gross salary is €4,600 a month (2024) and a single worker on the average wage keeps 71.9% of gross pay after income tax and employee contributions (2025).
Norway had GDP per capita of US$89,889 and life expectancy of 83.2 years. There were 4.975 doctors per 1,000 people. The national unemployment rate was 4.5% in 2025. Average gross salary was €5,170 per month in 2025, while national median net income was €2,744 per month in 2024.
Can I move to Norway?
Across 198 passports, 93 passports enter visa-free and 105 passports need a visa for Norway. Check your passport below.
- Visa-free
- 93
- Visa required
- 105
Choose citizenship and purpose to see the relevant entry steps.
Entry.
Living & working.
Official requirements [64] · Visitor-entry rules
Residence rules and exceptions
| Citizenship / situation | Starting point |
|---|---|
| EU / EEA citizenship | Free movement; longer residence has conditions.[63] |
| Swiss citizenship | Separate Swiss arrangements, including residence documentation for longer stays.[63] |
| Other citizenship | Check work, study or family requirements.[64] |
| Existing status or family rights | A passport alone cannot establish your eligibility. Check the relevant authority’s guidance. |
These are national starting points, not an eligibility decision. Long-stay residence, work authorisation and in-country application rules differ by route; a visa-free visit never settles them. Check the route that matches your purpose and circumstances with the responsible authority.
Visa and entry rules
Sources checked through 3 Sept 2026.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Norway?
The national unemployment rate was 4.5 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)14
This is the Eurostat labour-force survey series used as the canonical national answer. Other published definitions exist and are shown in the table below.
What is the median gross salary in Norway?
The median gross salary was about 4,600 EUR/month in 2024.
Half of employees earn less than this. Mean gross and national-accounts averages use different definitions and are shown in the table below.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median gross salary, monthly | 4,600 EUR/month | 30 Nov 2024 | Statistics Norway (SSB), table 12852 — national median monthly earnings46Official · national figure |
| National unemployment rate | 4.5 % | 31 Dec 2025 | Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)14Official · national figure |
Typical city (median): about 1.7%
Unemployment rate (%)
Typical city (median): about 4,460 incidents per 100,000 residents
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents
Public employment service in Norway
Official job-search, registration, counselling and training routes. Private recruitment agencies are not included.
NAV employment service — Public employment service
A national service does not prove that an office exists in every city. City pages show an office only after an exact address is linked to that city. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Taxes in Norway
National rates and comparable published scenarios. Personal tax depends on income, household and residence circumstances.
Benefits newcomers may qualify for in Norway
Public schemes where an official source defines an eligible migration or residence status. Amounts and conditions are kept in their native terms.
| Programme | Published amount | Source and application |
|---|---|---|
Child benefit (barnetrygd) — Family and child support | 512 NOK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsFinnmark and Svalbard supplement: NOK 512 per child per month in addition to ordinary child benefit. NAV states that foreign nationals resident in Norway, registered in the National Population Register and holding a residence permit or other legal residence may qualify; EEA citizens and family members who work in Norway may also qualify under the EEA rules. | ||
Financial assistance — Minimum-income support | 4,050–13,800 NOK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsNAV's official state guidelines, valid from 1 January 2026, give indicative monthly rates of NOK 8,300 for singles, NOK 13,800 for married or cohabiting couples, NOK 6,950 for shared accommodation and NOK 4,050–5,400 for children by age; the actual amount is individually assessed. NAV states that everyone may apply for an individual assessment, but normally a person must have legal residence in Norway to qualify for financial assistance; the page also requires a valid residence permit where requested. | ||
Financial support for asylum reception centre residents — Arrival and reception support | 634–8,052 NOK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe current UDI 2026 basic-support table gives monthly amounts that vary by reception-centre type, food service, protection-application status, age and household: NOK 634–8,052 for the listed child/adult household categories, with NOK 4,241 for a single adult in an ordinary self-catering centre and NOK 1,355 for an adult in an ordinary centre with a canteen; supplemental benefits are separately assessed. Everyone who applies for asylum in Norway is entitled to live at an asylum reception centre; you must live at a reception centre to be entitled to financial assistance. This is the bounded profile of an asylum seeker living in a Norwegian asylum reception centre, subject to the case-status, centre-type, household and income conditions. | ||
Housing allowance (bostøtte) — Housing support | Amount set per household by formula / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsHusbanken's current 2026 calculation page states: approved housing expenses within the upper limits minus the personal contribution, multiplied by 73.7%; the amount depends on household income and housing expenses, and the minimum payment is NOK 61 per month. The current Norwegian Housing Allowance Act applies to persons registered in the National Population Register and legally settled in Norway; this is the bounded residence profile for a foreign national registered and lawfully settled in Norway, subject to the age, household, income, housing and other statutory conditions. | ||
Unemployment benefit (dagpenger) — Unemployment support | Percentage-based | |
Eligibility and amount detailsNAV calculates dagpenger as 62.4% of previous income; income over NOK 819,294 (6 G) is excluded. The current 6 G basis is the 2026 amount shown by NAV after the 1 May 2026 regulation. NAV requires an applicant for unemployment benefit to apply, register as a job seeker, be resident in Norway and have Norwegian National Insurance coverage; country-of-residence and EEA rules are set out on the same official page. | ||
ImmigrationDB shows published rules; it does not decide personal eligibility. Confirm your status, contribution record and household circumstances with the responsible authority before applying. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.
Can migrants receive medical care in Norway?
Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Norway when the official insurance or residence conditions are met.
Language courses and integration in Norway
Government programmes, public integration services and exact provider records. The section expands only from fields present in the source; missing prices, refunds or contacts are not replaced with estimates.
Approved providers for Norwegian and social studies training — State Language Course
Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills (HK-dir)
For adult immigrants needing Norwegian and social studies training.
Norwegian municipal introduction programme — Integration course
Municipalities under the national IMDi framework
For adult refugees and other eligible immigrants.
Bergen introduction and inclusion centre route — Newcomer Adaptation
Bergen municipality / Bergen Inclusion Centre
For newly arrived immigrants and programme participants.
Bergen Learning Centre Norwegian and social studies — Municipal language course
Bergen Learning Centre for Norwegian and social studies
For adult immigrants.
Norwegian and social studies for adult immigrants in Tromsø — Integration course
Tromsø kommune / Voksenopplæringa Tromsø
For adult immigrants, adults over 16 in adult education.
Norwegian, social studies and qualification training in Stavanger — Integration course
Stavanger kommune / Johannes læringssenter
For adult immigrants, participants entitled to free Norwegian training.
Living and moving context for Norway
The 2024 groceries price-level index was 130.5 on an EU27=100 basis. Monthly estimates were €418 for groceries and €58 for utilities; household electricity was €0.290/kWh. A separate household model estimated monthly net income at €3,418 for one person, €3,982 for a couple and €4,577 for a family. The national crime rate was 6,150 offences per 100,000 people in 2024; this is a country-level measure rather than a city-level figure. For 2024, the employee calculation gave €12,431 a year in income tax and €10,170 in social contributions.
Norway cities by population
The largest published cities appear first. Population is taken from the reusable official city layer; hub labels come from the existing city taxonomy.
All published cities in Norway (177)
60 of 177 shownSearch all cities
Reports with this country
Accepted report pages with a row for this country.
What different occupation groups earn in Norway
Mean gross monthly earnings by ISCO-08 major group, from the Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (employees in enterprises with 10–49 employees).
| Occupation group | Earnings | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Managers | ≈ 7,638 EUR/month (gross) | 2022 |
| Professionals | ≈ 6,151 EUR/month (gross) | 2022 |
| Technicians and associate professionals | ≈ 5,754 EUR/month (gross) | 2022 |
| Clerical support workers | ≈ 4,355 EUR/month (gross) | 2022 |
| Service and sales workers | ≈ 3,423 EUR/month (gross) | 2022 |
Source: Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_25)) · observed 2022 · checked 2026-07-30.
Method and sources for these figures
Mean gross monthly earnings in EUR from the Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_25); employees in enterprises with 10–49 employees; ISCO-08 major groups.
Eurostat — Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_25)
An occupation major group (ISCO or national equivalent) is not a job title: each figure is the average across all occupations in the group, so it is never a salary "for" one profession. Rows from different surveys, periods or statistics are shown as separate rows and are never merged or ranked against each other.
Profession pages for Norway: Nurse · Physician · Teacher · Engineer · Architect · Software developer · Accountant · Childcare worker.
Norway facts
Current source-backed observations, grouped the way the city pages are, with geographic scope and observation periods.
Population and profile
How many people live in Norway?
The published population was 5,572,279 people in 2024. Source: World Bank55
National, resident population scope. Foreign-resident and migration-background figures are separate metrics in the table below.
How many foreign residents live in Norway?
The foreign-resident population was 987,120 people in January 2026. Source: 05182: Persons, by region, sex, immigration category, contents and year1
Residents without Norway citizenship. The migration-background population is a broader measure and appears in the table below.
Legal, tax and other context
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent deposit can be paid in instalments | 0 | 9 Oct 2026 | The Tenancy Act (Act of 26 March 1999 No. 17)48Official · national figure |
| Typical rent deposit | 6 months | 9 Oct 2026 | The Tenancy Act (Act of 26 March 1999 No. 17)48Official · national figure |
| Public healthcare access for foreign residents | Conditional | 3 Aug 2026 | Helsenorge (Norwegian eHealth Authority)23Official · national figure |
| Area | 624,500 km² | 31 Dec 2023 | World Bank56Official · national figure |
| Child benefit per month | 151 EUR/month | 27 Aug 2026 | NAV29Official · national figure |
| Published processing-time target | 90 days | 27 Aug 2026 | UDI (Utlendingsdirektoratet)49Official · national figure |
| Cost level against the capital | 130.5 index (EU27=100) | 31 Dec 2024 | Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx)11Official · national |
| Gross-to-net pay for a sample household | single person no children — 801,695 gross → 576,239 net a year (2025, national currency) | 31 Dec 2025 | Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition47Official · country household scenario |
| Population by year | 5,367,580 people (2020) | 1 Jan 2020 | Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN)42Official · country annual series |
| Doctors per 1,000 residents | 4.98 per 1,000 | Not stated | Physicians (per 1,000 people), World Development Indicators41Official · national figure |
| Household electricity price | 0.29 EUR/kWh | 31 Dec 2024 | Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas)13Official · national |
| Employer social contribution rate | 14.1 % | 3 Aug 2026 | Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration)44Official · national figure |
| People employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing | 70,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in mining and quarrying | 73,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in manufacturing | 235,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning | 19,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in water supply, sewerage and waste management | 20,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in construction | 249,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in wholesale and retail trade; motor vehicle and motorcycle repair | 372,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in transportation and storage | 151,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in accommodation and food services | 118,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in information and communication | 118,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in finance and insurance | 54,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
| People employed in real estate | 30,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu3Official · national figure |
School for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 6 to 16. Newly arrived pupils get support in the school language: særskilt norskopplæring (adapted Norwegian language education). How to enrol a child (regjeringen.no).
Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.
Settling-in index
How the conditions a newcomer meets in Norway compare with the other 35 scored destinations: integration policy, getting by in English, an established foreign community and language courses. Every point comes from the component table below.
Above the median on integration policy, getting by in English and the size of the foreign community.
| Component | Reading | Score (0–100) | Weight | Adds | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integration policy (MIPEX) | 85 of 100 | 85 | 35 | 37.2 | MIPEX 2020 |
| Getting by in English (EF EPI) | 613 EF EPI points | 82 | 25 | 25.6 | EF EPI 2025 |
| An established foreign community | 17.7% of residents | 71 | 20 | 17.8 | 05182: Persons, by region, sex, immigration category, contents and year 2026; population 2024 |
Working as… in Norway
Open a profession for its available regulation, recognition and work-route evidence.
Regions of Norway
Each region's page lists its published cities with population, rent, salary, unemployment and air quality.
Common questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
What is the unemployment rate in Norway?
The national unemployment rate was 4.5 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a).
How many people live in Norway?
The published population was 5,572,279 people in 2024. Source: World Bank.
What is the median gross salary in Norway?
The median gross salary was about 4,600 EUR/month in 2024. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 12852 — national median monthly earnings.
Cite this page
Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.
APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Moving to Norway: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 7f7a154ef78e2a7ec6edc98a8c84a966]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/countries/norway/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_moving-to-norway-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_0163b356f6f6,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Moving to Norway: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-16},
version = {7f7a154ef78e2a7ec6edc98a8c84a966},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/countries/norway/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Moving to Norway: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/countries/norway/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 7f7a154ef78e2a7ec6edc98a8c84a966; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
Every number above comes from one of these records. Open the original source for its geographic scope and publication date.
- 05182: Persons, by region, sex, immigration category, contents and year data.ssb.no · checked 2026-09-18
- Average annual wages stats.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-26
- ec.europa.eu ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-12
- EF EPI ef.com · checked 2026-08-03
- Entry Visas (D-visas) udi.no · checked 2026-10-09
- Eurofound, Working time in 2021–2022 (EF23007EN), Figure 11 'Minimum number of days of paid annual leave, 2022' and Annex 2 notes assets.eurofound.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-18
- European Medicines Agency ema.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-07
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
Show 54 more sources
- Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
- Eurostat — Distribution of income by household composition (ilc_di04) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
- Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat crim off cat (ICCS0101, NR) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
- Eurostat demo_pjan ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
- Eurostat hbs exp t121 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
- Eurostat ilc_di03 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
- Eurostat lfsta_ewhuis — Usual weekly hours of work of full-time employees (sex total, 15-64, employees, main job) Eurostat lfsta_ewhuis · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-18
- Fees udi.no · checked 2026-10-09
- GDP per capita (current US$), World Development Indicators api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- Globalization and World Cities (GaWC), Loughborough University gawc.lboro.ac.uk · checked 2026-08-03
- Helsenorge (Norwegian eHealth Authority) helsenorge.no · checked 2026-08-03
- Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- Life expectancy at birth, total (years), World Development Indicators api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- Mean monthly earnings by sex, occupation and size class of the enterprise (2022) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-30
- Minimum wage arbeidstilsynet.no · checked 2026-09-17
- MIPEX mirovni-institut.si · checked 2026-08-03
- NAV nav.no · checked 2026-06-12
- Norway — compulsory education age range Norway · eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-20
- Norway — school enrolment authority url Norway · eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-20
- Norway — school language support programme Norway · eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-20
- OECD sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
- Physicians (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- Physicians (per 1,000 people), World Development Indicators api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-29
- Skatteetaten skatteetaten.no · checked 2026-06-12
- Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration) skatteetaten.no · checked 2026-08-03
- Statistics Norway data.ssb.no · checked 2026-07-29
- Statistics Norway (SSB), table 12852 — national median monthly earnings Statistics Norway (SSB), table 12852 · data.ssb.no · checked 2026-07-29
- Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition Taxing Wages 2026 · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-29
- The Tenancy Act (Act of 26 March 1999 No. 17) regjeringen.no · checked 2026-10-09
- UDI (Utlendingsdirektoratet) udi.no · checked 2026-06-12
- UDI (Utlendingsdirektoratet) udi.no · checked 2026-06-12
- UDI 2010-129V — Pay in the absence of a collective agreement and when normal pay has not been substantiated UDI 2010-129V · udiregelverk.no · checked 2026-10-07
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- Working Environment Act, section 10-4 arbeidstilsynet.no · checked 2026-09-25
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05
- www.skatteetaten.no skatteetaten.no · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD — Taxing Wages (DF_TAXINGWAGES) tax wedge and net income OECD · oecd.org · checked 2026-07-14
- Norwegian Police — residence permit or EU/EEA registration
Official Norway starting point for EU/EEA/Swiss residence; national guidance only, not a personal eligibility decision.
- Norwegian Police — residence permits and protection
Official Norway national residence and immigration guidance; not a personal eligibility decision.