Located on the southwest coast of Norway, Bergen is the second-largest city in the country with a population of around 280,000. Bergen is known as the picturesque “city of seven mountains” and is famous for its mild climate with a lot of precipitation.
IT salaries in Bergen
The average IT salary in Bergen is NOK 55,520 per month (NOK 666,200 per year).
Here are the average IT salaries in Bergen (NOK per year, before taxes) depending on the specialization, according to Teleport:
- Business analyst: 925,830
- Data analyst: 460,400
- Data scientist: 633,785
- IT manager: 552,620
- Mobile developer: 281,450
- Project manager: 617,390
- QA engineer: 590,370
- Software engineer: 440,430
- Systems administrator: 718,150
- UX designer: 316,590
- Web designer: 424,080
- Web developer: 318,165
Economy
Bergen is an international center for aquaculture, shipping, the offshore petroleum industry and subsea technology, and a national center for higher education, finance, media, and tourism. Bergen Port is Norway’s busiest in terms of both freight and passengers.
The unemployment rate in Bergen with surrounding towns was 3.6% before the COVID-19 pandemic — at the same level as the national average of 3.5%.
Important economic sectors in Bergen include:
- Aquaculture
- Finance
- Marine research
- Media
- Offshore petroleum industry
- Shipping
- Subsea technology
- Tourism
Popular technology companies present in Bergen include:
- itslearning
- Schibsted
- Simp
- Xsens
Cost of living in Bergen
The average monthly costs in Bergen are about NOK 10,800 for a single person or NOK 39,050 for a four-person family (excluding rent).
Here are examples of the average prices in Bergen (NOK):
- Meal at McDonald’s: 100–125
- Meal at another inexpensive restaurant: 135–280
- Average food basket (milk, bread, eggs, cheese, chicken, apples, potatoes, water, beer): 373
- Monthly fee at a fitness club: 300–600
- Monthly pass: 780–800
- Monthly rent (1 bedroom): 6,000 – 12,000
- Monthly rent (3 bedrooms): 11,500 – 20,000
- Property prices per square meter: 29,000 – 75,000
- Utilities: 1,020 – 3,090 per month
- Internet: 300–600 per month
Travel
Bergen Flesland Airport is an international airport and the second-busiest airport in Norway. It serves flights to Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Helsinki, London, Manchester, Munich, Paris, and many other European cities.
Despite its relatively small size, Bergen has both tram and trolleybus electric urban transport systems as well as an extensive city bus network.
Entertainment
Bergen’s places of interest include Bryggen’s old quayside (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), St Mary’s Church from the 12th century, Gamlehaugen castle (the Norwegian Royal Family’s residence in Bergen), Mount Fløyen (Fløyfjell), Mount Ulriken, Bergenhus Fortress, Market Square with the 700-year old Fish Market (Torget), and more.
In addition, Bergen is considered to be the street art capital of Norway. The city is also a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the category of gastronomy since 2015.