Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Longyearbyen and Oslo

For one person, living is cheaper in Longyearbyen: $2,733 a month against $3,427 in Oslo, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Oslo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

134

Cost of Living Index in Longyearbyen
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Longyearbyen Living Index
165

Cost of Living Index in Oslo
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Oslo Living Index

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Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,733

/mo nomad

Oslo

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,427

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Longyearbyen and in Oslo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,733 in Longyearbyen versus $3,427 in Oslo.

Longyearbyen $2,733
Oslo $3,427

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,180 in Longyearbyen versus $4,942 in Oslo.

Longyearbyen $4,180
Oslo $4,942

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,627 in Longyearbyen versus $6,457 in Oslo.

Longyearbyen $5,627
Oslo $6,457

Living in Longyearbyen costs roughly 20% less than in Oslo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Longyearbyen 102% above, Oslo 154% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.05 NOK 189

$20.56 NOK 194

-2.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 NOK 996

$126 NOK 1,185

-15.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.00 NOK 169

$15.56 NOK 146

15.68%

Cappuccino

$6.85 NOK 64.5

$5.83 NOK 54.9

17.50%

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

$6.11 NOK 57.5

$4.32 NOK 40.70

41.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.58 NOK 52.5

$3.33 NOK 31.39

67.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.43 NOK 70.0

$11.46 NOK 108

-35.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.96 NOK 84.3

$12.30 NOK 116

-27.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.40 NOK 22.57

$2.45 NOK 23.11

-2.04%

White Bread (500g)

$3.71 NOK 34.95

$4.20 NOK 39.55

-11.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.33 NOK 40.78

$4.76 NOK 44.80

-9.03%

Eggs

$4.97 NOK 46.82

$5.79 NOK 54.5

-14.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.26 NOK 134

$14.59 NOK 137

-2.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$20.30 NOK 191

$15.42 NOK 145

31.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.52 NOK 297

$31.00 NOK 292

1.68%

Apples (1kg)

$6.42 NOK 60.5

$3.34 NOK 31.43

92.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.55 NOK 24.03

$2.66 NOK 25.05

-4.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.85 NOK 64.5

$3.39 NOK 31.95

102.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.66 NOK 62.7

$5.76 NOK 54.3

15.63%

Potato (1kg)

$5.49 NOK 51.7

$2.70 NOK 25.43

103.33%

Onion (1kg)

$4.53 NOK 42.66

$2.87 NOK 26.99

57.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.51 NOK 42.50

$3.18 NOK 29.90

41.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.53 NOK 33.23

$2.35 NOK 22.17

50.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.34 NOK 163

$19.05 NOK 179

-8.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.45 NOK 136

$16.27 NOK 153

-11.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.54 NOK 33.31

$3.48 NOK 32.79

1.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.24 NOK 39.93

$4.15 NOK 39.09

2.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.27 NOK 49.65

$4.70 NOK 44.24

12.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.2 NOK 811

$80.2 NOK 755

7.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.06 NOK 85.3

$12.10 NOK 114

-25.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 NOK 16.93

$1.80 NOK 16.94

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$73.7 NOK 694

$69.3 NOK 652

6.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 NOK 20.05

$2.35 NOK 22.10

-9.36%

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

$50.3K NOK 473.1K

$48.1K NOK 453.1K

4.41%

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

$41.3K NOK 388.9K

$43.8K NOK 412.4K

-5.68%

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

$242 NOK 2,274

$425 NOK 3,999

-43.14%

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

$32.99 NOK 311

$33.77 NOK 318

-2.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.1 NOK 509

$53.7 NOK 505

0.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.5 NOK 475

$59.8 NOK 563

-15.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$36.19 NOK 341

$29.20 NOK 275

23.94%

Cinema Ticket

$14.85 NOK 140

$20.11 NOK 189

-26.16%

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

$200 NOK 1,887

$238 NOK 2,237

-15.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K NOK 133.8K

$15.5K NOK 145.6K

-8.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 981

$101 NOK 949

3.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.3 NOK 530

$58.8 NOK 554

-4.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 NOK 1,179

$135 NOK 1,271

-7.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 NOK 1,447

$157 NOK 1,474

-1.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,104 NOK 10.4K

$2,018 NOK 19.0K

-45.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,017 NOK 9,569

$1,587 NOK 14.9K

-35.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 NOK 18.7K

$2,978 NOK 28.0K

-33.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,698 NOK 16.0K

$2,397 NOK 22.6K

-29.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,197 NOK 58.3K

$11.7K NOK 110.2K

-47.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,017 NOK 37.8K

$6,719 NOK 63.3K

-40.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,931 NOK 27.6K

$4,687 NOK 44.1K

-37.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

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

Last update for Longyearbyen: October 13, 2026

Last update for Oslo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Longyearbyen

$1K 37.2%

Oslo

$1.6K 46.3% 56.1% $570

Groceries & Markets

Longyearbyen

$586 21.5%

Oslo

$511 14.9% 12.9% $76

Eating Out

Longyearbyen

$398 14.6%

Oslo

$394 11.5% 1.2% $4.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Longyearbyen

$329 12%

Oslo

$512 15% 55.9% $184

Clothing & Footwear

Longyearbyen

$198 7.2%

Oslo

$203 5.9% 2.7% $5.3

Getting Around

Longyearbyen

$125 4.6%

Oslo

$120 3.5% 4.2% $5.2

Sport & Entertainment

Longyearbyen

$80 2.9%

Oslo

$100 2.9% 24.7% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,104 in Longyearbyen and $2,018 in Oslo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oslo pays 60% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $106 in Longyearbyen vs $126 in Oslo. Groceries flip the comparison at $586 vs $511, with Oslo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Oslo

🕒 Local time

08:22 8:22 AM

Same time as Longyearbyen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,400

1,098,061 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Longyearbyen Oslo 2,040 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

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Longyearbyen
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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

Longyearbyen vs Oslo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Longyearbyen is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, utilities, and leisure. The 25% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 60% lower in Oslo. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,104 in Longyearbyen versus $2,018 in Oslo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Longyearbyen runs roughly 7% less than in Oslo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $200 in Longyearbyen versus $238 in Oslo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Longyearbyen is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Longyearbyen is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Oslo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Longyearbyen and Oslo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Longyearbyen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Oslo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.