Norwegian Prices

How much are Norwegian prices going to eat my soul, really?

Today I found this great website, Numbeo, that lets me compare cost of living in different cities. I pulled up Kansas City, Tampa, Bergen, Pamplona, Cologne, and Helsinki (closest to Columbia/St. Louis, Tampa, Bergen, Pamplona, Bonn, and Turku as I could get.. and those are the cities I have spent the most time in, oddly enough!)

What I found pretty much confirmed my feelings, but at least it wasn't way worse than I had expected. Groceries are pretty much evenly 2x as much as in America. (Germany and Spain are roughly 1.5x, on average, except for the most basic raw staples which are usually a little bit cheaper than in the States.) Meat, though, at least pretty, processed chicken breast, is a full 4x as expensive. 1kg of chicken breast is $5 in the US, $8 in Spain, $13 in Germany and Finland, and, wait for it... $20 in Norway.

Ouch. But, I'll be okay. I've learned to shop smart, look for sales, and utilize local deals - shrimp for example is not quite as many times more expensive in Norway than in the US, plus it tastes way better in Norway!

Restaurants, now. In the US, you can get a cheap meal for $10, and that's after taxes and tips have been added on top. In Germany, Finland, and Spain, that's bumped up to about $14, which is still not terrible. In Norway, you won't get a combo meal at McDonalds for that. At every range, Norwegian restaurant prices are a full 2x the American price. Meaning that eating in, and packing lunches, will be my main strategy for dealing with hyperinflation. :)

Alcohol? Forget-about-it. Crazy nights out on the town will be my second sacrifice, this time in exchange for fun outdoorsy outings, which are also distinctly not-free.

The last problematic thing in Norway is transportation. In Germany I had free transportation, and the local busses in Columbia and Pamplona run about $1.50 each way. In Norway? Try $4.50 each way. Why do you think I put Alrek residence hall, one of the only decently priced ones within (hopefully) walking distance of the campus, as my top priority? $9 per day just to get to and from school is the kind of thing that can take you down, and fast. If the walks are getting unmanageable, I'll also seriously considering a bike. I loved doing so in Bonn, and even if I have to pay twice as much, it could pay for itself very fast with fares like that.

So, I didn't find any 'good' news, per se. But it's sort of relieving just to see some hard numbers and not just 'ungodly expensive' again and again until you start to imagine $30 peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches. And I can handle it, I'm sure. I just won't travel quite as much as in Germany, won't eat out quite as much as in Spain - I'll hunker down a bit and be glad I can cook, be glad I'm small enough not to need a lot to eat, and be glad I like to walk.

Who knows, I might even turn into the stereotypical starving student who lines her dresser drawers with oatmeal and lives exclusively on ramen noodles.