Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Stavanger and Hamar

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamar: $2,461 a month against $3,248 in Stavanger, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Stavanger
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Stavanger Living Index
118

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
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Hamar Living Index

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Stavanger

🇳🇴 Norway

$3,248

/mo nomad

Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,461

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Stavanger and in Hamar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,248 in Stavanger versus $2,461 in Hamar.

Stavanger $3,248
Hamar $2,461

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,717 in Stavanger versus $3,857 in Hamar.

Stavanger $4,717
Hamar $3,857

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,186 in Stavanger versus $5,253 in Hamar.

Stavanger $6,186
Hamar $5,253

Living in Stavanger is roughly 32% more expensive than in Hamar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Stavanger 139% above, Hamar 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.67 NOK 227

$21.67 NOK 200

13.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.0 NOK 903

$129 NOK 1,191

-24.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.23 NOK 150

$16.21 NOK 149

0.12%

Cappuccino

$6.22 NOK 57.3

$5.89 NOK 54.3

5.60%

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

$5.89 NOK 54.3

$4.52 NOK 41.67

30.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 NOK 41.73

$3.39 NOK 31.23

33.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$13.76 NOK 127

$12.04 NOK 111

14.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.62 NOK 97.9

$8.70 NOK 80.2

22.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.53 NOK 23.30

$2.56 NOK 23.60

-1.17%

White Bread (500g)

$3.52 NOK 32.43

$3.10 NOK 28.60

13.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.98 NOK 36.65

$2.10 NOK 19.32

89.52%

Eggs

$4.75 NOK 43.82

$6.23 NOK 57.5

-23.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.22 NOK 140

$11.12 NOK 102

36.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.54 NOK 162

$12.62 NOK 116

38.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$36.16 NOK 333

$31.47 NOK 290

14.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.53 NOK 32.55

$3.36 NOK 30.98

5.06%

Banana (1kg)

$2.86 NOK 26.34

$2.77 NOK 25.55

3.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.62 NOK 33.36

$3.08 NOK 28.43

17.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.93 NOK 45.44

$6.17 NOK 56.9

-20.10%

Potato (1kg)

$2.55 NOK 23.54

$2.50 NOK 23.08

2.00%

Onion (1kg)

$3.11 NOK 28.68

$2.61 NOK 24.08

19.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.90 NOK 26.70

$2.19 NOK 20.23

32.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 NOK 21.48

$2.01 NOK 18.51

15.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.27 NOK 168

$19.50 NOK 180

-6.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.94 NOK 175

$16.93 NOK 156

11.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.80 NOK 35.05

$3.55 NOK 32.77

7.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.51 NOK 41.57

$4.38 NOK 40.37

2.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.75 NOK 43.74

$4.66 NOK 42.91

1.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$85.4 NOK 787

$69.2 NOK 638

23.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.27 NOK 57.8

$12.31 NOK 113

-49.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.80 NOK 16.59

$1.93 NOK 17.80

-6.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$106 NOK 975

$72.8 NOK 671

45.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.46 NOK 22.72

$2.39 NOK 22.02

2.93%

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

$49.1K NOK 452.6K

$49.6K NOK 457.0K

-0.96%

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

$42.2K NOK 389.1K

$46.3K NOK 426.5K

-8.78%

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

$260 NOK 2,393

$230 NOK 2,120

12.85%

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

$33.92 NOK 313

$34.38 NOK 317

-1.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.9 NOK 736

$55.1 NOK 507

45.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.0 NOK 479

$59.1 NOK 545

-12.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.64 NOK 347

$29.46 NOK 272

27.77%

Cinema Ticket

$22.16 NOK 204

$20.16 NOK 186

9.92%

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

$325 NOK 2,999

$217 NOK 1,997

50.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.3K NOK 132.1K

$16.1K NOK 148.0K

-10.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$130 NOK 1,195

$104 NOK 960

24.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.9 NOK 571

$60.5 NOK 557

2.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$151 NOK 1,390

$136 NOK 1,254

10.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$206 NOK 1,896

$106 NOK 975

94.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,805 NOK 16.6K

$1,270 NOK 11.7K

42.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 NOK 13.2K

$884 NOK 8,149

61.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,895 NOK 26.7K

$1,595 NOK 14.7K

81.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,145 NOK 19.8K

$1,517 NOK 14.0K

41.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,468 NOK 59.6K

$4,359 NOK 40.2K

48.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,430 NOK 50.0K

$3,609 NOK 33.3K

50.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,086 NOK 46.9K

$4,415 NOK 40.7K

15.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.24

4.94

6.07%

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

Last update for Stavanger: October 25, 2026

Last update for Hamar: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Stavanger

$1.4K 44%

Hamar

$884 35.9% 38.1% $545

Groceries & Markets

Stavanger

$530 16.3%

Hamar

$463 18.8% 12.6% $67

Eating Out

Stavanger

$452 13.9%

Hamar

$402 16.3% 11.2% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Stavanger

$373 11.5%

Hamar

$319 13% 14.4% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Stavanger

$247 7.6%

Hamar

$183 7.4% 25.8% $64

Getting Around

Stavanger

$120 3.7%

Hamar

$110 4.5% 8.3% $9.9

Sport & Entertainment

Stavanger

$96 3%

Hamar

$99 4% 3.3% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,805 in Stavanger and $1,270 in Hamar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stavanger pays 15% 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: $98 in Stavanger vs $129 in Hamar. Groceries flip the comparison at $530 vs $463, with Hamar cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Stavanger

🇳🇴 Hamar

🕒 Local time

05:12 5:12 AM

Same time as Stavanger

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,330

33,059

💱 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

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Stavanger Hamar 380 km

From you

Stavanger
Hamar

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

Stavanger vs Hamar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,248 in Stavanger and $2,461 in Hamar, so Hamar is about 24% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 15% higher in Stavanger, 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: $1,805 in Stavanger versus $1,270 in Hamar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

Dining out is cheaper in Stavanger – a meal for two runs $98 versus $129 in Hamar. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,461 in Hamar versus $3,248 in Stavanger, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Hamar but tight or insufficient in Stavanger. The gap between the two cities makes Hamar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Hamar wins on affordability, Stavanger on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.