Norway (NO)
Norway is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy in Northern Europe — one of the three Scandinavian nations, occupying the western and northern portions of the Scandinavian Peninsula.
Daily Life
Practical day-to-day information for living in Norway.
🛒 Supermarkets
Norway's most popular budget supermarket chain. Part of the Reitan Group. Found throughout Norway including in smaller towns. Straightforward product selection, competitive prices. Very popular with everyday shoppers.
NorgesGruppen's discount chain — very popular and widely distributed. Typically open longer hours than competitors. Known for good value on basics and fresh produce. Strong presence in urban areas.
Coop's value-oriented chains. Coop is the cooperative alternative to NorgesGruppen and Reitan. Members receive dividends. Found widely across Norway.
NorgesGruppen's mid-range supermarket. Larger stores with broader selection, deli counters, and better fresh produce. Found in larger towns and suburbs.
International brand operated under NorgesGruppen franchise in Norway. Mid-range positioning. Convenient locations.
Coop's larger format stores with broad selection. Mega focuses on large-format hypermarket-style stores. Member discounts available.
Convenience stores operated by NorgesGruppen franchise. Local, neighbourhood-focused. Essential in rural areas and smaller communities. Higher prices than supermarkets but often the only option locally.
Opening Hours
Most supermarkets open Monday–Friday 07:00–22:00, Saturday 08:00–21:00, Sunday 10:00–21:00 (where permitted). Smaller shops typically Monday–Friday 09:00–17:00 or 18:00. Shopping centres: Monday–Friday 10:00–20:00 or 21:00, Saturday 10:00–18:00 or 19:00, Sunday sometimes 12:00–18:00. NOTE: Sunday trading is legally permitted but restricted in Norway. Alcohol sales: Vinmonopolet (the state wine and spirits monopoly) has limited hours — weekdays until 18:00 or 20:00, Saturdays until 15:00 or 18:00, CLOSED Sundays.
Sunday Rules
Sunday trading (søndagsåpent) is legally restricted in Norway. Most grocery stores and shops are closed or have reduced hours on Sundays. Petrol stations and kiosks (Narvesen, 7-Eleven) are typically open. Many shopping centres close on Sundays. The main exception: stores in tourist areas and airports may have extended Sunday opening. Vinmonopolet (state alcohol shops) is closed on Sundays — plan ahead for any alcohol needs.
Recycling
Norway has a well-developed recycling system. The pantesystem (bottle deposit system) is one of the world's most successful — over 92% of plastic bottles are returned. Return bottles and cans at pant machines in supermarkets for NOK 2.50–3.00 per container. Glass, paper, plastic, food waste, and residual waste have separate bins in most municipalities. Municipalities provide different coloured bags or bins. Oslo uses colour-coded bags: green for food waste, blue for paper, transparent for plastic, black residual. Hazardous waste (farlig avfall): taken to dedicated recycling centres (gjenbruksstasjoner).
Dining Out
Eating out in Norway is expensive compared to most European countries. A main course at a mid-range restaurant costs NOK 200–350. A beer in a bar costs NOK 90–120. A coffee: NOK 45–65. Oslo has an excellent and diverse food scene. Restaurant culture is strong in cities — Norwegian cuisine has had a remarkable quality renaissance since the 2010s (Noma's influence on Nordic food is evident). In the evening, most Norwegians eat dinner at 17:00–19:00. Matpakke (packed lunch) culture is deeply embedded — most Norwegians bring a packed lunch of open sandwiches to work rather than going out.
Utilities & Internet
Electricity is the dominant energy source in Norway — powered by nearly 100% hydroelectric power, making electricity cheap and clean. Average electricity consumption is very high due to electric heating and EVs. Electricity price (strømpris) fluctuates significantly — it has been volatile since 2021. Government electricity support scheme (strømstøtte) was active 2021–2024. Internet is fast and widely available. Fjord1, Altibox, Telenor, and Telia are major broadband providers. District heating (fjernvarme) available in some urban areas. Gas heating is rare.
Cultural Tips for Expats
- → Matpakke culture: most Norwegians bring packed lunches (matpakke) to work — typically open sandwiches on knekkebrød (crispbread) wrapped in paper. This is a deeply ingrained practice even among professionals.
- → Cabin culture (hyttetur): Norwegians own cabins (hytter) at extremely high rates — an estimated 500,000 cabins across Norway. Trips to the hytte for skiing, hiking, or just peace and quiet are a fundamental part of Norwegian life.
- → Friluftsliv (outdoor life): weather is irrelevant — Norwegians hike, ski, and enjoy the outdoors year-round. "Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlige klær" (There's no bad weather, only bad clothing).
- → Allemannsretten (right to roam): a legal right unique to Scandinavia — everyone can freely hike, camp, and access all uncultivated land in Norway. Treat nature with respect.
- → Vinmonopolet: the state-owned alcohol retail monopoly is the ONLY place to buy wine and spirits above 4.75% ABV. Beer up to 4.75% is sold in supermarkets until 20:00 on weekdays and 18:00 on Saturdays. Plan ahead.
- → Dugnad: a tradition of communal voluntary work — cleaning common areas in housing cooperatives, maintaining parks, community events. Expected participation in your borettslag (housing cooperative) or neighborhood.
Quiet Hours
Norway has strong cultural norms and often local rules around quiet hours (nattero / husordensregler). In housing cooperatives (borettslag) and apartment buildings (sameier), the house rules (husordensregler) typically specify quiet hours. These are taken seriously — violating them repeatedly can lead to formal complaints and even eviction in borettslag.
Residential buildings, apartments, borettslag
Residential buildings — check your husordensregler
Residential buildings — check with your borettslag or sameie board
- •Not reading the husordensregler (house rules) for your borettslag/sameie upon moving in
- •Having noisy social gatherings past 23:00
- •Doing renovation or drilling work outside permitted hours
- •Allowing pets to make noise that disturbs neighbours
Repeated violations of husordensregler in a borettslag (housing cooperative) can lead to formal warnings, fines, and in serious cases, compulsory sale of your share (tvangssalg). In private rental, noise violations can be grounds for eviction.
Postal Services
Posten Norge (the Norwegian Post) handles mail and parcels. The traditional post office (postkontor) has largely been replaced by postal services in supermarkets and kiosks (Posten i butikk). Norway Post has a good tracking system and the Posten app for managing deliveries.
Posten operates Pakkebokser (parcel lockers) at many supermarkets and public locations. Very convenient for collecting parcels without queuing. Managed via the Posten app.
Norwegian passport or driving licence. For some services: fødselsnummer required.
Rekommandert post (registered mail) available at post service points in shops. Electronic notification and tracking included.
Apply for mail forwarding (ettersending) at posten.no or at a post service point. Fee applies.
- →Set up the Posten app to receive delivery notifications and manage parcel collections
- →Posten service in shops (ICA, Kiwi, Coop) is most common — locate your nearest at posten.no
- →Postboks (PO Box) can be rented for mail if you move frequently
- →Track all parcels via posten.no or the Posten app