Richest and poorest municipalities

Analysis: why are some at the top and others at the bottom?

We compared mean gross income with every other municipal figure we have, from Statistics Norway, NIPH and the Brønnøysund Register Centre. Below are the figures that go most closely together with mean gross income across the country, and what marks the municipalities at the top and bottom on those figures.

The pattern across the country

• Municipalities that rank high on «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» most often rank low on mean gross income (strong association, rank correlation −0.68 across 183 municipalities; NIPH indicator 787).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Employed, share of age 20–66» most often also rank high on mean gross income (strong association, rank correlation 0.59 across 183 municipalities; Statistics Norway table 11618).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Share aged 80 and over» most often rank low on mean gross income (strong association, rank correlation −0.56 across 183 municipalities; Statistics Norway table 07459).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» most often also rank high on mean gross income (strong association, rank correlation 0.56 across 183 municipalities; NIPH indicator 508).

The highest and the lowest

• No. 1 Bærum (854,900 kr) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 4.7% (no. 357 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 84.3 (no. 6 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508); «Employed, share of age 20–66» 79.7% (no. 63 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618). Most distinctive industry: arkitektvirksomhet og teknisk konsulentvirksomhet, og teknisk prøving og analyse, 7% of the jobs, 3.4 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 2 Austevoll (808,600 kr) Fits the pattern: «Employed, share of age 20–66» 83.3% (no. 4 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 7.4% (no. 333 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Share aged 80 and over» 4.8% (no. 305 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 07459). Most distinctive industry: fiske, fangst og akvakultur, 23% of the jobs, 28.3 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 3 Sola (747,400 kr) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 6.6% (no. 352 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Share aged 80 and over» 3.8% (no. 348 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 07459); «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 83.7 (no. 30 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508). Most distinctive industry: tjenester tilknyttet bergverksdrift og utvinning, 33% of the jobs, 26.4 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 183 Sel (478,800 kr, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Share aged 80 and over» 8.1% (no. 52 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 07459). Most distinctive industry: landtransport og rørtransport, 5% of the jobs, 2.2 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 182 Søndre Land (506,400 kr, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 19.0% (no. 2 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Employed, share of age 20–66» 67.1% (no. 354 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 80.3 (no. 334 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508). Most distinctive industry: jordbruk og tjenester tilknyttet jordbruk, jakt og viltstell, 6% of the jobs, 4.5 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 181 Åsnes (513,600 kr, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 17.9% (no. 7 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Employed, share of age 20–66» 68.7% (no. 346 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 81.0 (no. 312 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508). Most distinctive industry: skogbruk og tjenester tilknyttet skogbruk, 5% of the jobs, 23.2 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).

The analysis describes what goes together, not what causes what. Two figures can follow each other because both depend on something else, such as size, location or industry. The figures are from the latest year available for each source, so the years can differ. Rank correlation runs from −1 to 1; values near 1 mean the municipalities lie in roughly the same order on both measures.