Moving to Austria from Norway

moving to

What to Expect

A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Norway to Austria — from daily expenses to quality of life.

If you moved from Norway to Austria, you would find that Austria is 17.2% cheaper than Norway overall. A NOK720,000 salary in Norway would need to be roughly €55,700 in Austria to maintain the same lifestyle, and you’d need to navigate life in German.

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How Far Will Your Money Go?

How your spending power changes when you relocate from Norway to Austria.

What does your salary buy?

NOK720,000 → €55,700

To maintain the same standard of living in Austria

Calculate with your salary →

The biggest cost differences at a glance

Restaurants

pay 17.8% less

Groceries

pay 17.3% less

Transportation

pay 24.8% less

Housing

pay 20.0% less

Childcare

pay 94.4% more

Entertainment and Sports

pay 31.3% less

See full cost of living breakdown
Exchange rate: 1 NOK = 0.0934 EUR (October 2026)

Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.

Cost of living by city

Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).

On average, cities in Austria cost about 17% less than cities in Norway.

Norway

Oslo ★ 78%
Arendal 69%
Drammen 69%
Sandnes 68%
Haugesund 68%

Austria

Dornbirn 56%

Compare cities head-to-head

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Who Else Is Making This Move?

Real numbers on people moving from Norway to Austria, and how the trend has changed.

Moved in 2023
215 ↑ 4% vs 2022

people moved from Norway to Austria · OECD (latest data available)

Who's moving to Austria?

Top countries of origin for Austria's foreign-born residents.

Foreign-born population · UN DESA (2020)

Key Indicator Comparison

How Norway and Austria stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.

Is it safe?

Homicide rate World Bank, 2023

per 100,000 people per year

NO
0.7
AT
0.9
Road traffic deaths United Nations SDG Indicators, 2021

per 100,000 people per year

NO
1.5
AT
4.6

Norway performs better than Austria across all safety metrics.

How's the healthcare?

Healthcare spending per person World Bank, 2024

annual government + private spending per person

NO
$9,523
AT
$8,250
Doctors per 10,000 people World Bank, 2023

affects wait times and access to care

NO
49.8
AT
55.1

Austria generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Norway leads in health coverage index.

What about the environment?

Air pollution deaths United Nations SDG Indicators, 2019

deaths attributable to air pollution per 100k people

NO
8.0
AT
17.0
CO₂ emissions per capita World Bank, 2024

tonnes of CO₂ emitted per person per year

NO
7.2t
AT
6.3t

Norway generally does better on environment, though Austria leads in co₂ emissions per capita.

Will I have good infrastructure?

Broadband per 100 people World Bank, 2024

fixed broadband subscriptions — key for remote work

NO
45.2
AT
30.1
Water stress level World Bank, 2022

higher means greater strain on freshwater supply

NO
2.0%
AT
8.7%

Norway performs better than Austria across all infrastructure metrics.

What are the job prospects?

Unemployment rate World Bank, 2025

percentage of the labour force without work

NO
4.6%
AT
5.6%
GDP per capita World Bank, 2025

a broad measure of economic output per person

NO
$94,594
AT
$62,930

Norway performs better than Austria across all employment & economy metrics.

Is it good for families?

Life expectancy World Bank, 2024

average years of life at birth

NO
83.2 yrs
AT
82.0 yrs
Infant mortality World Bank, 2024

deaths per 1,000 live births — lower is better

NO
2.0
AT
2.8

Norway performs better than Austria across all family life metrics.

Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), Norwegian Tax Administration (2017), Federal Ministry of Finance (2016). How we calculate this

What's the Climate Like?

Monthly averages — select a city to compare.

Oslo Rain: 30.0 in/yr (763 mm)
49° / 36°F

Avg. annual high / low

Vienna Rain: 24.4 in/yr (620 mm)
58° / 44°F

Avg. annual high / low

Months Oslo Vienna
Jan–Mar 32°/22°F (0°/-6°C) 43°/31°F (6°/0°C)
Apr–Jun 59°/43°F (15°/6°C) 67°/50°F (20°/10°C)
Jul–Sep 66°/51°F (19°/10°C) 75°/58°F (24°/14°C)
Oct–Dec 39°/30°F (4°/-1°C) 48°/37°F (9°/3°C)
View all months
Month Oslo Vienna
Jan 29°/20°F (-1.8°/-6.8°C) 37°/28°F (2.9°/-2.0°C)
Feb 30°/20°F (-0.9°/-6.8°C) 41°/30°F (5.1°/-0.9°C)
Mar 38°/26°F (3.5°/-3.3°C) 51°/36°F (10.3°/2.4°C)
Apr 48°/33°F (9.1°/0.8°C) 59°/42°F (15.2°/5.8°C)
May 60°/44°F (15.8°/6.5°C) 69°/51°F (20.5°/10.5°C)
Jun 69°/51°F (20.4°/10.6°C) 74°/56°F (23.4°/13.5°C)
Jul 71°/54°F (21.5°/12.2°C) 78°/60°F (25.6°/15.4°C)
Aug 68°/52°F (20.1°/11.3°C) 78°/60°F (25.4°/15.3°C)
Sep 59°/46°F (15.1°/7.5°C) 69°/53°F (20.3°/11.7°C)
Oct 49°/39°F (9.3°/3.8°C) 58°/45°F (14.2°/7.0°C)
Nov 38°/29°F (3.2°/-1.5°C) 46°/36°F (7.5°/2.4°C)
Dec 31°/22°F (-0.5°/-5.6°C) 39°/31°F (4.0°/-0.5°C)

Data: Norwegian Meteorological Institute Norwegian Meteorological Institute, GeoSphere Austria GeoSphere Austria

Visitor Visa Requirements

Short-stay tourist visa rules between Norway and Austria. To live, work, or study long-term in Austria, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check Austria's immigration authority.

Norway passport

Norway passport holder visiting Austria

Visa Free
Norway passport holders can enter Austria without a visa.
Austria passport

Austria passport holder visiting Norway

Visa Free
Austria passport holders can enter Norway without a visa.

Data: Henley Passport Index. Check with the destination country's embassy for the most current requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to live in Austria than Norway?

Generally yes: Austria runs about 17% cheaper than Norway on average, though it depends heavily on the city.

How much money do I need to move to Austria?

A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a NOK720,000 comparable salary, that's around €13,925 in Austria for everyday spending, before flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees.

Can I work remotely from Austria?

With 30.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Austria can support video calls in major cities. The hard part is paperwork — visa category, employer policy on overseas staff, and tax residency in Norway and Austria.

Is Austria safe for expats?

Norway performs better than Austria across all safety metrics. The homicide rate in Austria is 0.9 per 100,000 people, compared to 0.7 in Norway.

How is healthcare in Austria compared to Norway?

Austria generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Norway leads in health coverage index. There are 55.1 doctors per 10,000 people in Austria, compared to 49.8 in Norway. Austria scores 85 on the WHO universal health coverage index (Norway: 87).

What's the weather like in Austria compared to Norway?

The average high temperature in Vienna is 58°F, compared to 49°F in Oslo. Vienna receives around 24.4 in of rainfall per year, while Oslo gets 30.0 in.

What language do they speak in Austria?

The official language in Austria is German. In Norway, the official languages are Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Sami.

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At a Glance

NO AT
Population 5,610,870 9,208,163
Currency Norwegian Krone (NOK) Euro (€)
Languages Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Sami German
Driving side Right Right
Calling code +47 +43
Time zones 1 1
Emergency number 112 112