Introduction
Oslo is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of 724,290 in 2025, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,110,887 in 2025, and the metropolitan area had an estimated population of 1,546,706 in 2021. During the Viking Age, the area was part of Viken. Oslo was founded as a city at the end of the Viking Age in 1040 under the name Ánslo, and established as a kaupstad or trading place in 1048 by Harald Hardrada. The city was elevated to a bishopric in 1070 and a capital under Haakon V of Norway around the year 1300. Personal unions with Denmark from 1397 to 1523 and again from 1536 to 1814 reduced its influence. After being destroyed by a fire in 1624, during the reign of King Christian IV, a new city was built closer to Akershus Fortress and named Christiania in honour of the king. It became a municipality (formannskapsdistrikt) on 1 January 1838. The city functioned as the capital of Norway during the 1814–1905 union between Sweden and Norway. From 1877, the city's name was spelled Kristiania in government usage, a spelling that was adopted by the municipal authorities in 1897, although 'Christiania' was also used. In 1925, the city, after incorporating the village retaining its former name, was renamed 'Oslo'. In 1948, Oslo merged with Aker, a municipality which surrounded the capital and which was 27 times larger, thus creating the modern, much larger Oslo municipality. Oslo is the economic and governmental centre of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are among the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers. Oslo is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission intercultural cities programme. Oslo is considered a global city and was ranked as a "Beta World City" by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network in 2008. It was ranked number one in terms of quality of life among European large cities in the European Cities of the Future 2012 report by fDi magazine. A survey conducted by ECA International in 2011 placed Oslo as the second most expensive city in the world for living expenses after Tokyo. In 2013, Oslo tied with the Australian city of Melbourne as the fourth most expensive city in the world, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit's Worldwide Cost of Living study. Oslo was ranked as the 24th most liveable city in the world by Monocle magazine. Oslo's population was increasing at record rates during the early 2000s, making it the fastest growing major city in Europe at the time. This growth originates primarily from international immigration and related high birth rates, but also from intra-national migration. By 2010 the immigrant population in the city was growing somewhat faster than the Norwegian population, and in the city proper this had become more than 25% of the total population if the children of immigrant parents were included.
History & Origins
Oslo has a rich history intertwined with the development of Norway. As the nation's capital, it has been central to key political and cultural events throughout the country's history.
Geography & Climate
Oslo occupies an arc of land at the northernmost end of the Oslofjord. The fjord, which is nearly bisected by the Nesodden peninsula opposite Oslo, lies to the south; in all other directions Oslo is surrounded by green hills and mountains. There are 40 islands within the city limits, the largest being Malmøya (0.56 km2 or 0.22 sq mi), and scores more around the Oslofjord. Oslo has 343 lakes, the largest being Maridalsvannet (3.91 km2 or 1.51 sq mi). This is also a main source of drinking water for large parts of Oslo. Although Eastern Norway has a number of rivers, none of these flow into the ocean at Oslo. Instead Oslo has two smaller rivers: Akerselva (draining Maridalsvannet, which flows into the fjord in Bjørvika), and Alna. The waterfalls in Akerselva gave power to some of the first modern industry of Norway in the 1840s. Later in the century, the river became the symbol of the stable and consistent economic and social divide of the city into an East End and a West End; the labourers' neighbourhoods lie on both sides of the river, and the divide in reality follows Uelands street a bit further west. River Alna flows through Groruddalen, Oslo's major suburb and industrial area. The highest point is Kirkeberget, at 629 m (2,064 ft). Although the city's population is small compared to most European capitals, it occupies an unusually large land area, of which two-thirds are protected areas of forests, hills and lakes. Its boundaries encompass many parks and open areas, giving it an airy and green appearance.
Oslo has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfb) or, if the original Köppen winter threshold −3 °C (27 °F) is used, an oceanic climate (Cfb) bordering on a humid continental climate in the 1991–2020 base period. Oslo has some of the warmest summers of Norway and fairly cold winters. Oslo receives a fair amount of precipitation during the year. The driest seasons are winter and spring, and the wettest are summer and autumn. Because of the city's northern latitude, daylight varies greatly, from more than 18 hours in midsummer, when it never gets completely dark at night (no darker than nautical twilight), to around 6 hours in midwinter. The warmest month on record is July 1901 with mean 22.7 °C (72.9 °F), and the all-time high 35 °C (95 °F) was also recorded in July 1901. The warmest month in more recent years is July 2018 with mean 22.2 °C (72.0 °F) and average daily high 29 °C (84.2 °F). The record summer of 2018 also recorded the warmest May and May all-time high with 31.1 °C (88.0 °F) on 30th, and 2018 was even the sunniest year on record with 2133 sunhours. On 27 July 2018, the temperature in Oslo rose to 34.6 °C (94.3 °F), the hottest recorded since 1937, when weather recordings started at Blindern. In January, on average three out of four days are below freezing (0 °C [32 °F]) and one out of four days is colder than −10 °C (14 °F) (1961–1990). The coldest temperature recorded is −29.6 °C (−21.3 °F), on 21 January 1841, while the coldest recorded at Blindern is −26 °C (−14.8 °F) in January 1941. The coldest temperature more recently was on 6 January 2024, where the temperature reached -23.1 °C (-17 °F) at Oslo-Blindern, which is the coldest measured temperature since January 1987. The coldest month on record is January 1941 and also January 1947 with mean −12.9 °C (8.8 °F) and average daily low −16.7 °C (1.9 °F). The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below 0 °C, 32.0 °F) in spring is 23 April and average date for first freeze in autumn is 17 October giving a frost-free season of 176 days (1981–2010 average for Blindern). Oslo sits right on the border between hardiness zones 7a and 7b. Oslo Gardermoen airport is located 35 km northeast of Oslo and has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfb) bordering on a subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfc).
Demographics & Culture
The population of Oslo was by 2010 increasing at a record rate of nearly 2% annually (17% over the last 10 years), making it the fastest-growing Scandinavian capital. In 2015, according to Statistics Norway annual report, there were 647,676 permanent residents in the Oslo municipality, of which 628,719 resided in the city proper. There were also 1,019,451 in the city's urban area and an estimated 1,710,000 in the Greater Oslo Region, within 100 km (62 mi) of the city centre. According to the most recent census 432,000 Oslo residents (70.4% of the population) were ethnically Norwegian, an increase of 6% since 2002 (409,000). Oslo has the largest population of immigrants and Norwegians born to immigrant parents in Norway, both in relative and absolute figures. Of Oslo's 624,000 inhabitants, 189,400 were immigrants or born to immigrant parents, representing 30.4 percent of the capital's population. All suburbs in Oslo were above the national average of 14.1 percent. The suburbs with the highest proportions of people of immigrant origin were Søndre Nordstrand, Stovner and Alna, where they formed around 50 percent of the population. Pakistanis make up the single largest ethnic minority, followed by Poles, Somalis, and Swedes. Other large immigrant groups are people from Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Turkey, Morocco, Iraq & Kurdistan region and Iran & Kordestan province. In 2013, 40% of Oslo's primary school pupils were registered as having a first language other than Norwegian. The western part of the city is predominantly ethnic Norwegian, with several schools having less than 5% pupils with an immigrant background. The eastern part of Oslo is more mixed, with some schools up to 97% of immigrant background. In the borough of Groruddalen in 2008 for instance, the ethnic Norwegian population decreased by 1,500, while the immigrant population increased by 1,600. As of 2022, immigrants of non-Western origin and their children enumerated 164,824, and made up an estimated 24% of Oslo's population. Immigrants of Western origin and their children enumerated 71,858, and made up an estimated 10% of the city's population. Immigrants made up a total of 35% of Oslo's population in 2022. Oslo has numerous religious communities. In 2019, 48.7% of the population were members of the Church of Norway, lower than the national average of 69.9%. Members of other Christian denominations make up 8.4% of the population. Islam was followed by 9.5% and Buddhism by 0.6% of the population. Adherents of other religions formed 1.1% of the population. Life stance communities, mainly the Norwegian Humanist Association, were represented by 2.8% of the population. 28.9% of the Oslo population were unaffiliated with any religion or life stance community.
Oslo has a large and varied number of cultural attractions, which include several buildings containing artwork from Edvard Munch and various other international artists but also several Norwegian artists. Several world-famous writers have either lived or been born in Oslo. Examples are Knut Hamsun and Henrik Ibsen. The government has recently invested large amounts of money in cultural installations, facilities, buildings and festivals in the City of Oslo. Bygdøy, outside the city centre is the centre for history and the Norwegian Vikings' history. The area contains many parks and seasites and many museums. Examples are the Fram Museum, Vikingskiphuset and the Kon-Tiki Museum. Oslo hosts the annual Oslo Freedom Forum, a conference described by The Economist as "on its way to becoming a human-rights equivalent of the Davos economic forum." Oslo is also known for giving out the Nobel Peace Prize every year.
Economy & Government
Oslo has a varied and strong economy and was ranked number one among European large cities in economic potential in the fDi Magazine report European Cities of the Future 2012. It was ranked 2nd in the category of business friendliness, behind Amsterdam. Oslo is an important centre of maritime knowledge in Europe and is home to approximately 1980 companies and 8,500 employees within the maritime sector. Some of them are the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers, and insurance brokers. Det Norske Veritas, headquartered at Høvik outside Oslo, is one of the three major maritime classification societies in the world, with 16.5% of the world fleet to class in its register. The city's port is the largest general cargo port in the country and its leading passenger gateway. Close to 6,000 ships dock at the Port of Oslo annually with a total of 6 million tonnes of cargo and over five million passengers. The GDP of Oslo totaled €64 billion (€96,000 per capita) in 2016, which amounted to 20% of the national GDP. This compares with NOK253 billion (€23 billion) in 1995 (adjusting for 2016 inflation). The metropolitan area, bar Moss and Drammen, contributed 25% of the national GDP in 2003 and was also responsible for more than one quarter of tax revenues. In comparison, total tax revenues from the oil and gas industry on the Norwegian Continental Shelf amounted to about 16%. Oslo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. As of 2006, it is ranked tenth according to the Worldwide Cost of Living Survey provided by Mercer Human Resource Consulting and first according to the Economist Intelligence Unit. The reason for this discrepancy is that the EIU omits certain factors from its final index calculation, most notably housing. In the 2015 update of the EIU's Worldwide Cost of Living survey, Oslo now ranks as the third most expensive city in the world. Although Oslo does have the most expensive housing market in Norway, it is comparably cheaper than other cities on the list in that regard. Meanwhile, prices on goods and services remain some of the highest of any city. Oslo hosts 2654 of the largest companies in Norway. Within the ranking of Europe's largest cities ordered by their number of companies Oslo is in fifth position. A whole group of oil and gas companies is situated in Oslo. According to a report compiled by Swiss bank UBS in the month of August 2006, Oslo and London were the world's most expensive cities.
Landmarks & Attractions
In 2018 Oslo is named one of Lonely Planet's Top Ten Cities. The travel guide's best-selling yearbook Best in Travel has selected Oslo as one of the ten best cities in the world to visit in 2018, citing the Norwegian capital's "innovative architecture and unmissable museums alongside cool bars, bistros and cafés".
Key Facts
- Oslo is the capital of Norway
- Population: approximately 718,000+
- Elevation: 23 meters (75 feet) above sea level
- Area: 454.1 km²
- Founded: 1048 AD
- Located in the Northern Europe region
- Capital and most populous city of Norway
Fun Facts
- Oslo serves as the political, economic, and cultural center of Norway
- Oslo is an important city in the Northern Europe region
Quick Facts About Oslo
- Country: Norway
- Continent: Europe (Northern Europe)
- Country population: approximately 5.7 million
- Capital city status: Oslo is the capital of Norway, the seat of national government, and the location of foreign embassies, parliament, and the head of state's official residence.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the capital of Norway?
The capital of Norway is Oslo. Oslo is the seat of national government, hosts most foreign embassies and consulates, and is typically where the head of state and parliament are located.
What continent is Oslo in?
Oslo, the capital of Norway, is located in Europe, in the Northern Europe region. As Norway's capital, Oslo serves as the country's primary connection to the broader Europen political, economic, and cultural sphere.
Why is Oslo the capital of Norway?
Oslo was chosen as the capital of Norway for reasons that typically combine geography, history, and politics. Capital city selections often reflect a desire for centrality (being accessible from across the country), historical importance (being a longstanding seat of government or culture), or neutrality (being acceptable to multiple regions or ethnic groups within the country). The specific reasons for Oslo's designation are detailed in the city's history above.
What is Oslo known for?
As the capital of Norway, Oslo is best known for housing the country's central government institutions — parliament, presidential or royal residences, supreme court, and key ministries. It is also typically a major cultural and economic center within Norway, hosting national museums, embassies, and signature monuments. The introduction and history sections above provide detailed coverage of the city's specific notable institutions and landmarks.
Related Pages
- Norway Country Guide — full geography, climate, economy, and culture overview
- Flag of Norway — meaning, history, and design of Norway's national flag
