Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oslo and Kolbotn

For one person, living is cheaper in Kolbotn: $2,540 a month against $3,538 in Oslo, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

170

Cost of Living Index in Oslo
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Oslo Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Kolbotn
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Kolbotn Living Index

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Oslo

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,538

/mo nomad

Kolbotn

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,540

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Oslo and in Kolbotn

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,538 in Oslo versus $2,540 in Kolbotn.

Oslo $3,538
Kolbotn $2,540

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,096 in Oslo versus $3,844 in Kolbotn.

Oslo $5,096
Kolbotn $3,844

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,653 in Oslo versus $5,147 in Kolbotn.

Oslo $6,653
Kolbotn $5,147

Living in Oslo is roughly 39% more expensive than in Kolbotn, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Oslo 160% above, Kolbotn 87% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.75 NOK 200

$21.37 NOK 197

1.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$130 NOK 1,196

$129 NOK 1,188

0.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.04 NOK 148

$16.00 NOK 148

0.25%

Cappuccino

$5.84 NOK 53.9

$5.87 NOK 54.1

-0.51%

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

$4.38 NOK 40.34

$4.54 NOK 41.84

-3.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 NOK 30.85

$3.43 NOK 31.58

-2.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.65 NOK 107

$11.92 NOK 110

-2.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.81 NOK 118

$12.78 NOK 118

0.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.61 NOK 24.08

$2.11 NOK 19.47

23.70%

White Bread (500g)

$4.38 NOK 40.40

$2.46 NOK 22.71

78.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.70 NOK 43.33

$2.27 NOK 20.95

107.05%

Eggs

$6.25 NOK 57.6

$5.09 NOK 46.88

22.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.48 NOK 143

$15.04 NOK 139

2.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.84 NOK 146

$16.10 NOK 148

-1.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$32.30 NOK 298

$31.83 NOK 293

1.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 NOK 30.93

$2.92 NOK 26.93

15.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 NOK 25.11

$2.02 NOK 18.61

34.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.65 NOK 33.65

$3.64 NOK 33.52

0.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.96 NOK 54.9

$4.90 NOK 45.20

21.63%

Potato (1kg)

$2.69 NOK 24.83

$2.16 NOK 19.88

24.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.85 NOK 26.27

$2.31 NOK 21.28

23.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.26 NOK 30.06

$3.13 NOK 28.81

4.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 NOK 23.03

$1.64 NOK 15.11

52.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.21 NOK 177

$19.35 NOK 178

-0.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.64 NOK 153

$16.73 NOK 154

-0.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.60 NOK 33.19

$3.62 NOK 33.40

-0.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 NOK 38.94

$4.22 NOK 38.91

0.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.02 NOK 46.28

$4.67 NOK 43.08

7.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.5 NOK 769

$86.3 NOK 795

-3.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.39 NOK 114

$12.09 NOK 111

2.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 NOK 16.99

$1.85 NOK 17.05

-0.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 NOK 653

$72.9 NOK 672

-2.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.48 NOK 22.87

$2.23 NOK 20.55

11.21%

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

$49.9K NOK 459.9K

$50.3K NOK 463.7K

-0.82%

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

$44.7K NOK 411.8K

$44.8K NOK 412.7K

-0.20%

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

$433 NOK 3,995

$112 NOK 1,033

286.84%

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

$34.50 NOK 318

$21.57 NOK 199

59.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 NOK 513

$54.8 NOK 505

1.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.1 NOK 535

$49.22 NOK 454

18.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.79 NOK 275

$37.00 NOK 341

-19.49%

Cinema Ticket

$20.78 NOK 192

$15.48 NOK 143

34.24%

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

$240 NOK 2,208

$242 NOK 2,228

-0.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K NOK 149.0K

$16.1K NOK 148.1K

0.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 961

$105 NOK 965

-0.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.8 NOK 569

$61.0 NOK 562

1.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 NOK 1,243

$135 NOK 1,244

-0.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$160 NOK 1,475

$159 NOK 1,466

0.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,133 NOK 19.7K

$1,253 NOK 11.6K

70.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,645 NOK 15.2K

$1,067 NOK 9,833

54.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,270 NOK 30.1K

$2,044 NOK 18.8K

59.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,466 NOK 22.7K

$1,493 NOK 13.8K

65.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$12.4K NOK 114.0K

$6,511 NOK 60.0K

89.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,462 NOK 68.8K

$4,158 NOK 38.3K

79.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,703 NOK 43.3K

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 Oslo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kolbotn: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oslo

$1.6K 46.5%

Kolbotn

$1.1K 42% 35.1% $578

Groceries & Markets

Oslo

$530 15%

Kolbotn

$465 18.3% 12.3% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oslo

$524 14.8%

Kolbotn

$188 7.4% 64% $335

Eating Out

Oslo

$407 11.5%

Kolbotn

$406 16% 0.1% $0.6

Clothing & Footwear

Oslo

$207 5.9%

Kolbotn

$207 8.1% 0.3% $0.6

Getting Around

Oslo

$125 3.5%

Kolbotn

$126 5% 1% $1.2

Sport & Entertainment

Oslo

$100 2.8%

Kolbotn

$80 3.2% 19.5% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,133 in Oslo and $1,253 in Kolbotn. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $130 in Oslo vs $129 in Kolbotn for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $530 vs $465 per month, with Kolbotn cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Oslo

🇳🇴 Kolbotn

🕒 Local time

08:00 8:00 AM

Same time as Oslo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,098,061 Capital

4,500

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.85 USD

100 NOK = 9.72 EUR

100 NOK = 10.85 USD

100 NOK = 9.72 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Oslo Kolbotn 12 km

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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

Oslo vs Kolbotn: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kolbotn wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Oslo. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kolbotn the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $5,307 in Oslo and $3,811 in Kolbotn to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,133 in Oslo versus $1,253 in Kolbotn. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Oslo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $3,538 per month in Oslo versus $2,540 in Kolbotn – Kolbotn is about 28% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Kolbotn is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Safety-wise, Oslo and Kolbotn are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.