Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamar and Arendal

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamar: $2,461 a month against $2,750 in Arendal, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
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Hamar Living Index
133

Cost of Living Index in Arendal
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Arendal Living Index

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Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,461

/mo nomad

Arendal

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,750

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hamar and in Arendal

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Hamar and in Arendal actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,461 in Hamar versus $2,750 in Arendal.

Hamar $2,461
Arendal $2,750

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,857 in Hamar versus $3,932 in Arendal.

Hamar $3,857
Arendal $3,932

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,253 in Hamar versus $5,113 in Arendal.

Hamar $5,253
Arendal $5,113

Living in Hamar costs roughly 11% less than in Arendal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Hamar 81% above, Arendal 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.67 NOK 201

$20.71 NOK 192

4.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$129 NOK 1,201

$67.1 NOK 624

92.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.21 NOK 151

$16.06 NOK 149

0.93%

Cappuccino

$5.89 NOK 54.7

$5.51 NOK 51.2

6.90%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 NOK 42.00

$3.75 NOK 34.87

20.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 NOK 31.48

$3.42 NOK 31.76

-0.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.04 NOK 112

$11.85 NOK 110

1.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.70 NOK 80.9

$10.58 NOK 98.3

-17.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.56 NOK 23.79

$2.49 NOK 23.14

2.81%

White Bread (500g)

$3.10 NOK 28.82

$3.55 NOK 32.97

-12.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 NOK 19.47

$4.01 NOK 37.24

-47.63%

Eggs

$6.23 NOK 57.9

$4.76 NOK 44.23

30.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.12 NOK 103

$14.98 NOK 139

-25.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.62 NOK 117

$14.93 NOK 139

-15.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.47 NOK 292

$34.94 NOK 325

-9.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 NOK 31.23

$3.61 NOK 33.50

-6.93%

Banana (1kg)

$2.77 NOK 25.76

$2.75 NOK 25.55

0.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 NOK 28.66

$3.49 NOK 32.39

-11.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 NOK 57.3

$4.99 NOK 46.34

23.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 NOK 23.26

$2.56 NOK 23.79

-2.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.61 NOK 24.28

$3.16 NOK 29.34

-17.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 NOK 20.39

$2.90 NOK 26.97

-24.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 NOK 18.66

$2.42 NOK 22.53

-16.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.50 NOK 181

$18.37 NOK 171

6.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.93 NOK 157

$15.07 NOK 140

12.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.55 NOK 33.03

$3.74 NOK 34.78

-5.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 NOK 40.69

$4.45 NOK 41.31

-1.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.66 NOK 43.25

$3.78 NOK 35.12

23.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.2 NOK 643

$94.4 NOK 877

-26.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.31 NOK 114

$6.36 NOK 59.1

93.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 NOK 17.94

$1.82 NOK 16.88

6.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$72.8 NOK 677

$108 NOK 1,007

-32.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.39 NOK 22.20

$2.33 NOK 21.67

2.58%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$49.6K NOK 460.7K

$49.6K NOK 461.2K

-0.12%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$46.3K NOK 429.9K

$41.7K NOK 387.5K

10.95%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$230 NOK 2,137

$263 NOK 2,440

-12.42%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$34.38 NOK 319

$34.00 NOK 316

1.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.1 NOK 512

$79.7 NOK 741

-30.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.1 NOK 549

$37.05 NOK 344

59.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.46 NOK 274

Cinema Ticket

$20.16 NOK 187

$15.90 NOK 148

26.79%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$217 NOK 2,013

$335 NOK 3,108

-35.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K NOK 149.1K

$14.5K NOK 134.9K

10.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 968

$131 NOK 1,213

-20.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.5 NOK 562

$44.64 NOK 415

35.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$136 NOK 1,264

$130 NOK 1,209

4.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NOK 983

$210 NOK 1,948

-49.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,270 NOK 11.8K

$1,159 NOK 10.8K

9.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$884 NOK 8,214

$1,053 NOK 9,785

-16.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 NOK 14.8K

$1,593 NOK 14.8K

0.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 NOK 14.1K

$1,518 NOK 14.1K

-0.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,359 NOK 40.5K

$4,347 NOK 40.4K

0.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,609 NOK 33.5K

$3,230 NOK 30.0K

11.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,415 NOK 41.0K

$4,235 NOK 39.3K

4.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

4.68

5.56%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Hamar: October 26, 2026

Last update for Arendal: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Hamar

$884 35.9%

Arendal

$1.1K 38.3% 19.1% $169

Groceries & Markets

Hamar

$463 18.8%

Arendal

$506 18.4% 9.1% $42

Eating Out

Hamar

$402 16.3%

Arendal

$389 14.2% 3.2% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamar

$319 13%

Arendal

$376 13.7% 17.8% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Hamar

$183 7.4%

Arendal

$232 8.4% 26.7% $49

Getting Around

Hamar

$110 4.5%

Arendal

$125 4.5% 13.8% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Hamar

$99 4%

Arendal

$69 2.5% 30.8% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,270 in Hamar and $1,159 in Arendal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamar pays 4% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $129 in Hamar vs $67 in Arendal. Groceries flip the comparison at $463 vs $506, with Hamar cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Hamar

🇳🇴 Arendal

🕒 Local time

02:01 2:01 AM

Same time as Hamar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,059

46,406

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 EUR

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Hamar Arendal 310 km

From you

Hamar
Arendal

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Hamar vs Arendal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,461 in Hamar and $2,750 in Arendal, so Hamar is about 11% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 4% higher in Hamar, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,270 in Hamar versus $1,159 in Arendal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $217 in Hamar versus $335 in Arendal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Arendal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.