NavoyNostos

Bergen vs Tromsø

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Bergen edges it, 67 to 66, winning 2 of the 9 factors. Bergen is stronger on getting there & around; Tromsø on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 1.1 of 67 points (scores 10/100)Safety: 9.7 of 67 points (scores 88/100)Healthcare: 10.1 of 67 points (scores 91/100)Internet: 9.3 of 67 points (scores 84/100)Visa ease: 6.7 of 67 points (scores 61/100)Getting there & around: 7.8 of 67 points (scores 71/100)Climate: 0.0 of 67 points (scores 0/100)Air quality: 11.1 of 67 points (scores 100/100)Quality of life: 10.9 of 67 points (scores 98/100)67
Bergen
out of 100

Gateway to the fjords, rain included

Full Bergen profile →Where to stay in Bergen →
Cost of living: 1.2 of 66 points (scores 11/100)Safety: 9.7 of 66 points (scores 88/100)Healthcare: 10.1 of 66 points (scores 91/100)Internet: 9.9 of 66 points (scores 89/100)Visa ease: 6.7 of 66 points (scores 61/100)Getting there & around: 6.5 of 66 points (scores 58/100)Climate: 0.0 of 66 points (scores 0/100)Air quality: 10.8 of 66 points (scores 97/100)Quality of life: 10.9 of 66 points (scores 98/100)66
Tromsø
out of 100

Arctic city of northern lights, polar night and midnight sun

Full Tromsø profile →Where to stay in Tromsø →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricBergenTromsø
Cost of living1011 ✓
Safety8888
Healthcare9191
Internet8489 ✓
Visa ease6161
Getting there & around71 ✓58
Climate00
Air quality100 ✓97
Quality of life9898

Cost

MetricBergenTromsø
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$3,586$3,500 ✓
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricBergenTromsø
Homicides per 100k0.70.7
Political stability (0–100)84.584.5
UHC service coverage (0–100)8989
Life expectancy82.9 yrs82.9 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricBergenTromsø
Download71.2 Mbps91.5 Mbps ✓
Upload49.9 Mbps68.4 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricBergenTromsø
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passport90 days90 days
Entry, EU passportunlimitedunlimited
Entry, UK passport90 days90 days

Getting there and around

MetricBergenTromsø
Non-stop airport destinations60 ✓48
Walkability (1–5, editorial)44
Transit (1–5, editorial)4 ✓2

Climate and air

MetricBergenTromsø
Comfortable months per year00
Annual mean PM2.55.2 µg/m³ ✓6.2 µg/m³

✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Bergen or Tromsø?
Tromsø is cheaper: about $3,500 per month versus $3,586 for one person.
Is Bergen or Tromsø safer?
Bergen scores higher on safety (88 vs 88), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Bergen or Tromsø?
Tromsø: a measured median of 91.5 Mbps versus 71.2 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

More comparisons

Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Digital Nomad Visas 2026; Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year); UHC service coverage index; Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes; M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024); Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables); NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means); WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8); Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023); EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band); Walkability and transit ratings (editorial); Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations); WhereNext city cost estimates 2026 (city pages); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.