Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oslo and Stavanger

For one person, living is cheaper in Stavanger: $3,248 a month against $3,538 in Oslo, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Oslo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

170

Cost of Living Index in Oslo
Learn more

Oslo Living Index
156

Cost of Living Index in Stavanger
Learn more

Stavanger Living Index

Jump to prices

Oslo

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,538

/mo nomad

Stavanger

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,248

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Oslo and in Stavanger

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 Stavanger actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,538 in Oslo versus $3,248 in Stavanger.

Oslo $3,538
Stavanger $3,248

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,096 in Oslo versus $4,717 in Stavanger.

Oslo $5,096
Stavanger $4,717

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,653 in Oslo versus $6,186 in Stavanger.

Oslo $6,653
Stavanger $6,186

Living in Oslo is roughly 9% more expensive than in Stavanger, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Oslo 160% above, Stavanger 139% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.75 NOK 202

$24.67 NOK 229

-11.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$130 NOK 1,206

$98.0 NOK 910

32.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.04 NOK 149

$16.23 NOK 151

-1.17%

Cappuccino

$5.84 NOK 54.3

$6.22 NOK 57.7

-6.11%

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

$4.38 NOK 40.67

$5.89 NOK 54.7

-25.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 NOK 31.10

$4.53 NOK 42.07

-26.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.65 NOK 108

$13.76 NOK 128

-15.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.81 NOK 119

$10.62 NOK 98.7

20.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.61 NOK 24.27

$2.53 NOK 23.48

3.16%

White Bread (500g)

$4.38 NOK 40.73

$3.52 NOK 32.69

24.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.70 NOK 43.68

$3.98 NOK 36.94

18.09%

Eggs

$6.25 NOK 58.1

$4.75 NOK 44.17

31.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.48 NOK 144

$15.22 NOK 141

1.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.84 NOK 147

$17.54 NOK 163

-9.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$32.30 NOK 300

$36.16 NOK 336

-10.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 NOK 31.17

$3.53 NOK 32.81

-4.82%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 NOK 25.31

$2.86 NOK 26.55

-4.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.65 NOK 33.92

$3.62 NOK 33.62

0.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.96 NOK 55.4

$4.93 NOK 45.80

20.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.69 NOK 25.03

$2.55 NOK 23.73

5.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.85 NOK 26.48

$3.11 NOK 28.91

-8.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.26 NOK 30.30

$2.90 NOK 26.91

12.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 NOK 23.22

$2.33 NOK 21.66

7.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.21 NOK 178

$18.27 NOK 170

5.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.64 NOK 155

$18.94 NOK 176

-12.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.60 NOK 33.45

$3.80 NOK 35.34

-5.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 NOK 39.25

$4.51 NOK 41.90

-6.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.02 NOK 46.65

$4.75 NOK 44.09

5.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.5 NOK 775

$85.4 NOK 794

-2.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.39 NOK 115

$6.27 NOK 58.3

97.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 NOK 17.12

$1.80 NOK 16.73

2.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 NOK 658

$106 NOK 983

-33.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.48 NOK 23.05

$2.46 NOK 22.90

0.81%

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

$49.9K NOK 463.6K

$49.1K NOK 456.2K

1.61%

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

$44.7K NOK 415.1K

$42.2K NOK 392.2K

5.85%

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

$433 NOK 4,027

$260 NOK 2,412

66.98%

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

$34.50 NOK 321

$33.92 NOK 315

1.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 NOK 517

$79.9 NOK 742

-30.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.1 NOK 540

$52.0 NOK 483

11.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.79 NOK 277

$37.64 NOK 350

-20.86%

Cinema Ticket

$20.78 NOK 193

$22.16 NOK 206

-6.23%

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

$240 NOK 2,226

$325 NOK 3,023

-26.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K NOK 150.2K

$14.3K NOK 133.2K

12.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 NOK 969

$130 NOK 1,205

-19.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.8 NOK 574

$61.9 NOK 575

-0.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 NOK 1,253

$151 NOK 1,401

-10.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$160 NOK 1,487

$206 NOK 1,911

-22.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,133 NOK 19.8K

$1,805 NOK 16.8K

18.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,645 NOK 15.3K

$1,429 NOK 13.3K

15.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,270 NOK 30.4K

$2,895 NOK 26.9K

12.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,466 NOK 22.9K

$2,145 NOK 19.9K

14.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$12.4K NOK 114.9K

$6,468 NOK 60.1K

91.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,462 NOK 69.3K

$5,430 NOK 50.4K

37.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,703 NOK 43.7K

$5,086 NOK 47.3K

-7.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

5.24

-5.73%

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

Last update for Oslo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Stavanger: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oslo

$1.6K 46.5%

Stavanger

$1.4K 44% 13.1% $216

Groceries & Markets

Oslo

$530 15%

Stavanger

$530 16.3% 0% $0.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oslo

$524 14.8%

Stavanger

$373 11.5% 28.7% $150

Eating Out

Oslo

$407 11.5%

Stavanger

$452 13.9% 11.1% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Oslo

$207 5.9%

Stavanger

$247 7.6% 18.9% $39

Getting Around

Oslo

$125 3.5%

Stavanger

$120 3.7% 4.4% $5.5

Sport & Entertainment

Oslo

$100 2.8%

Stavanger

$96 3% 3.4% $3.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,133 in Oslo and $1,805 in Stavanger. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stavanger pays 8% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $130 in Oslo vs $98 in Stavanger. Groceries flip the comparison at $530 vs $530, with Oslo cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Oslo

🇳🇴 Stavanger

🕒 Local time

22:14 10:14 PM

Same time as Oslo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,098,061 Capital

149,330

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Oslo Stavanger 300 km

From you

Oslo
Stavanger

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 Stavanger: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Stavanger is about 8% cheaper overall, especially in transport and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 8% 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: $2,133 in Oslo versus $1,805 in Stavanger. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Stavanger – a meal for two runs $98 versus $130 in Oslo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Childcare runs $240 in Oslo versus $325 in Stavanger. 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. Stavanger is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Stavanger delivers better value at $3,248 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Stavanger hard to pass up.

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