---
title: "Living in Drammen as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/drammen
description: "River city 35 min from Oslo, rebuilt around a cleaned-up waterfront"
dataset: 2026.11.2 (2026-11-09)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Drammen, Norway

Drammen scores 65.8/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 333 of 1501 cities. Expect about $3,500 per month (country-level estimate), no dedicated nomad visa, and a measured median download speed of 84.1 Mbps.

Drammen is a river city at the head of the Drammensfjord whose polluted industrial waterfront became parks, promenades and bridges, and trains reach central Oslo in about 35 min and Oslo Airport in about 1 h. It is one of Norway's most diverse cities and somewhat cheaper than Oslo, but still expensive, quiet in the evenings and largely a commuter town.

Known for: Drammenselva river promenades, Spiralen tunnel viewpoint, Trains to Oslo in 35 min, Diverse population.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 65.8 |
| Cost of living | 13 |
| Safety | 88 |
| Healthcare | 92 |
| Internet | 87 |
| Visa ease | 61 |
| Getting there & around | 52 |
| Climate | 8 |
| Air quality | 93 |
| Quality of life | 98 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $3,500 | country | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Central 1-bedroom rent | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Outskirts 1-bedroom rent (basis of the monthly total) | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Homicide rate (per 100k) | 0.7 | country | 2024 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 84.5 | country | 2025 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 89 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 82.7 | country | 2023 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 84.1 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 68 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Starlink residential service | Available | country | 2026-10 | [^9] |
| Nomad visa | none listed | country | 2026-07 | [^10] |
| Entry for US / EU / UK passports | 90 days / unlimited / 90 days | country | 2026-02 | [^11] |
| Non-stop destinations (OSL/TRF) | 152 | city | 2026-10 | [^12] |
| Restaurants within 3 km of the centre (OpenStreetMap) | 54 | city | 2026-11 | [^16] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 4 / 4 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^13] |
| Comfortable months | 1 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^14] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 8 | city | 2024 | [^15] |
| Human Development Index | 0.97 | country | 2023 | [^17] |
| English proficiency band | very-high | country | 2024 | [^18] |

## Tax on income from abroad

**Residents pay 22% plus bracket tax on worldwide income (top 47.4% on wages) and up to 1.1% wealth tax.** Stay more than 183 days in 12 months and Norway taxes your worldwide income and wealth. Salary or freelance fees pay 22% plus bracket tax of up to 17.8% and national insurance (7.6% on wages, 10.8% on business income), so wages top out at 47.4%. Dividends and share gains pay an effective 37.84%, interest and rent 22%. Net wealth above NOK 1,900,000 pays 1%–1.1% a year. There is no nomad visa and no newcomer tax break.

| Question | Answer |
| --- | --- |
| How residents are taxed | worldwide income |
| Remote work for foreign clients or employers | taxed (22% plus bracket tax of 1.7%–17.8% (2026), plus 7.6% national insurance on wages or 10.8% on business income) |
| Investments and pensions from abroad | taxed (Effective 37.84% on dividends and share gains; 22% on interest and rent; pensions at 22% plus bracket tax and 5.1% national insurance) |
| Wealth | wealth tax; no inheritance tax |
| Tax resident after | 183 days a year |
| Top income tax rate | 47.4% |

Residency: You are tax resident if you stay in Norway more than 183 days in any 12-month period, or more than 270 days in any 36-month period. Every day you are in Norway counts, even part of a day, the days need not be consecutive and the reason for the stay does not matter. If you pass 183 days within your first calendar year, you are resident from the day you arrived; if the days are split across two years, residence starts on 1 January of the second year. Under the 270-day test, residence starts on 1 January of the year the total passes 270 days. Residence ends only when you settle abroad, spend no more than 61 days a year in Norway and neither you nor your spouse, partner or minor children have a home available there; after 10 or more years of residence this must hold for three full years. A treaty tie-breaker can make you resident elsewhere.

Remote work: Once resident, salary from a foreign employer and fees from foreign clients are taxed like Norwegian income: 22% on general income after deductions (a minimum standard deduction of up to NOK 95,700 on wages and a personal allowance of NOK 114,540), plus bracket tax on gross personal income: 1.7% above NOK 226,100, 4.0% above NOK 318,300, 13.7% above NOK 725,050, 16.8% above NOK 980,100 and 17.8% above NOK 1,467,200 (2026). National insurance is 7.6% on wages and 10.8% on self-employed business income, charged once income passes NOK 99,650. Whether an employee of a foreign employer pays Norwegian national insurance depends on membership of the Norwegian scheme, EEA rules or a social security agreement, which are not covered here. Before you are resident, the law taxes non-residents' pay for work done in Norway mainly when it comes from Norwegian sources, but a business carried on in Norway can be taxable from the start; treaties can change both. Tax paid abroad on foreign-source income is credited against Norwegian tax.

Investments: Dividends and gains on shares, Norwegian or foreign, are multiplied by 1.72 after a deduction for the risk-free return (skjerming) and taxed at 22%, an effective 37.84% in 2026; share losses are deductible with the same factor. Interest, net rental income and other capital income pay 22%. Foreign pensions are personal income: 22% plus bracket tax and 5.1% national insurance. Foreign tax is credited up to the Norwegian tax on the same income, subject to any treaty. Shares held with foreign banks are not pre-filled in the tax return, so you must declare them yourself. Leaving has a cost: when your residence ends, unrealised gains on shares, fund units and similar assets are taxed as if sold, if they exceed NOK 3 million in total. Gains made before you moved in are excluded, because the cost base is set at market value on the day you became resident. Payment can be deferred for 12 years, and the tax lapses if you become resident again within those 12 years.

On the nomad visa: Norway has no digital nomad or remote-work visa. EU/EEA citizens can live and work there without a residence permit; other nationals need a permit that covers the work, and on a visit or holiday may as a rule not work for their home employer beyond incidental tasks such as answering emails. Anyone who stays more than 183 days in 12 months, or more than 270 days in 36 months, becomes tax resident and pays full tax on worldwide income and wealth.

Schemes for newcomers:

- **PAYE scheme (kildeskatteordningen) for foreign workers** (no fixed end): A flat 25% withheld from gross pay instead of 22% plus bracket tax and national insurance; 17.4% if you are exempt from Norwegian national insurance. No deductions at all are allowed, and if pay exceeds NOK 725,050 the ordinary rules apply to all of it. Open-ended while you stay non-resident, plus the first income year of residence. Who qualifies: Foreign employees on short work stays whose pay is at most NOK 725,050 in 2026, who are not tax resident or are in their first year of tax residence, have no business income in Norway and no more than NOK 10,000 of capital income. It covers pay Norway taxes as a non-resident's income (typically wages from a Norwegian employer, or directors' fees), so it rarely fits a remote worker paid from abroad and never a freelancer. It is voluntary: you can opt out until 31 December three years after the income year.

Official sources: [Skatteloven § 2-1 (Person bosatt i riket)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A72-1) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Tax when you move to Norway](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/person/to-from-norway/to/moving/tax-to-norway/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven § 2-3 (Person som ikke er bosatt)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A72-3) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Vedtak om skatt av inntekt og formue mv. for inntektsåret 2026 (Stortingets skattevedtak, vedtak 212) and related decisions 213 and 242](https://stortinget.no/no/Saker-og-publikasjoner/Vedtak/Vedtak/Sak/?p=104915) (Stortinget, read 2026-10-27); [Bracket tax (rates 2026)](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/rates/bracket-tax/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Tax on general income (rates 2026)](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/rates/general-income/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [National insurance contributions (rates 2026)](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/rates/national-insurance-contributions/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Formuesskatt og verdsettingsrabatter (satser 2026)](https://www.skatteetaten.no/satser/formuesskatt/?year=2026) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Gains, losses or dividends on shares (factor 2026)](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/rates/factor-for-upward-adjustment-of-gainloss-or-dividend-on-shares/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven §§ 10-10 and 10-11 (Skatteplikt for utbytte)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A710-11) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven § 10-31 (Skatteplikt for gevinst og fradragsrett for tap)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A710-31) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Foreign shares and other financial products](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/person/taxes/get-the-taxes-right/shares-and-securities/about-shares-and-securities/foreign-shares-and-other-financial-products/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven § 10-70 (Skatteplikt for gevinst på aksjer og andeler mv. ved utflytting)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A710-70) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven § 16-20 (Skattefradrag for skatt betalt i fremmed stat)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A716-20) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Skatteloven kapittel 20 (Kildeskatteordning for utenlandske arbeidstakere)](https://lovdata.no/lov/1999-03-26-14/%C2%A720-1) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [PAYE (Pay As You Earn) for foreign workers](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/person/to-from-norway/to/work/tax-deduction-card/paye/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Inheritance tax is abolished](https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/person/taxes/get-the-taxes-right/gift-and-inheritance/inheritance-tax-is-abolished/) (Skatteetaten (Norwegian Tax Administration), read 2026-10-27); [Eigedomsskattelova § 11](https://lovdata.no/lov/1975-06-06-29/%C2%A711) (Lovdata, read 2026-10-27); [Remote work in Norway](https://www.udi.no/en/word-definitions/remote-work-in-norway/) (UDI (Norwegian Directorate of Immigration), read 2026-10-27).

Not yet reviewed by a person. General information, not tax advice. US citizens are taxed by the US wherever they live.

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | -4.8 | 104 | 97 | no |
| Feb | -4.6 | 81 | 97 | no |
| Mar | -1.5 | 72 | 93 | no |
| Apr | 4.1 | 77 | 84 | no |
| May | 9.7 | 105 | 79 | no |
| Jun | 13.8 | 106 | 78 | no |
| Jul | 16 | 121 | 81 | yes |
| Aug | 14.8 | 135 | 84 | no |
| Sep | 10.7 | 117 | 87 | no |
| Oct | 5 | 137 | 93 | no |
| Nov | 0.3 | 126 | 96 | no |
| Dec | -3.8 | 104 | 97 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oslo Airport, Gardermoen | OSL | 149 | 120 | 2 |
| Sandefjord Airport, Torp | TRF | 25 | 22 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 152, of which 123 international (Wikipedia, 2026-10).

## Similar cities

- [Oslo](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/oslo) (65.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/drammen-vs-oslo)
- [Örebro](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/orebro) (67) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/drammen-vs-orebro)
- [Lucerne](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/lucerne) (67) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/drammen-vs-lucerne)
- [Turku](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/turku) (66.5) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/drammen-vs-turku)
- [Bergen](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/bergen) (63.7) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/bergen-vs-drammen)

## FAQ

### How much does it cost to live in Drammen as a digital nomad?

A single person typically spends about $3,500 per month in Drammen (a country-level estimate for Norway). That is a 13/100 cost score, where 100 is the cheapest city in the dataset.

### Is Drammen safe for digital nomads?

Drammen scores 88/100 on safety. Norway records 0.7 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2024) and a political-stability score of 84.5/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does Norway have a digital nomad visa?

No dedicated digital nomad visa was listed for Norway as of 2026-07. Visitors from the US can stay 90 days visa-free.

### How fast is the internet in Drammen?

Measured median download speed in Drammen was 84.1 Mbps (upload 68 Mbps) across 3,268 M-Lab tests in 2024. Measured speeds run below advertised plan speeds everywhere, so compare cities rather than reading the number as a plan.

### Is Starlink available in Drammen?

Yes. Starlink's availability map lists residential service as available in Norway (checked 2026-10), so a dish can serve as a backup line in Drammen. Check the exact address on starlink.com before ordering, since capacity varies by area.

### Which airports serve Drammen and how many nonstop flights are there?

Drammen is served by Oslo Airport, Gardermoen (OSL) with 149 nonstop destinations and Sandefjord Airport, Torp (TRF) with 25 nonstop destinations, 152 unique destinations across all of them, of which 123 are international. 2 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: Wikipedia, 2026-10.

### When is the best time of year to be in Drammen?

The most comfortable months are Jul. Mean temperatures range from 23°F (-5°C) in Jan to 61°F (16°C) in Jul (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Drammen or Oslo: which is better for digital nomads?

Oslo is the city with the closest factor profile to Drammen in this dataset. Which one wins depends on your weights; the comparison page puts every factor side by side with the numbers behind them.

## Plan a trip

[Plan a trip to Drammen](https://dashboard.navoy.io/trip/new?utm_source=nostos&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=plan_trip&utm_content=drammen&destination=Drammen%2C+Norway) on Navoy, the AI travel planner behind Nostos.

## Sources

[^1]: City population (latest census or official estimate), Wikipedia (citing national statistics offices). CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^2]: 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level), WhereNext. CC BY 4.0. https://getwherenext.com/data/cost-of-living-2026 (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^3]: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows), WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^4]: Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, dataUNODC. UNODC data, free to reuse with attribution. https://data.unodc.org/datareport/hom-victim (retrieved 2026-10-12)
[^5]: Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100), World Bank. CC BY 4.0. https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^6]: UHC service coverage index, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/uhc-index-of-service-coverage (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^7]: Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/life-expectancy-at-birth-(years) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^8]: M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024), Measurement Lab. CC0 1.0. https://statistics.measurementlab.net/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^9]: Starlink availability map, SpaceX (Starlink). Factual status cited from starlink.com. https://www.starlink.com/map (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^10]: Digital Nomad Visas 2026, WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^11]: Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations), Ilya Ilyankou (compiled from passportindex.org). MIT. https://github.com/ilyankou/passport-index-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^12]: Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables), Wikipedia contributors; countries via Wikidata. CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-24)
[^13]: Walkability and transit ratings (editorial), Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/methodology (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^14]: NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means), NASA Langley Research Center. Public domain (US Government). https://power.larc.nasa.gov/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^15]: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8), World Health Organization. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/who-ambient-air-quality-database-(update-jun-2026) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^16]: OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API), OpenStreetMap contributors. ODbL 1.0. https://overpass-api.de/ (retrieved 2026-10-02)
[^17]: Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023), United Nations Development Programme. CC BY 3.0 IGO. https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/documentation-and-downloads (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^18]: EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band), EF Education First. Proprietary; band cited as a fact with attribution. https://www.ef.com/epi/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/drammen