What Are the Warmest Cities in Norway?

As a Scandinavian country stretching past the Arctic Circle, Norway features a climate with long, cold winters (with famous northern lights) and relatively short and mild summers (with famous midnight sun in the northern part of the country). Some areas of Norway, such as coastal cities on the west coast and south coast, feature a milder climate, though.

In this article I’ll share with you my list of the warmest Norwegian cities with at least 5,000 residents. I’ll cover the top 10 in more detail and then present the entire ranking in a table with 21 major cities in the country.

Top 10 Warmest Cities in Norway

Here are the top 10 warmest places in Norway. The places are ranked by their annual daily mean temperature. Each city also includes temperatures in January (the coldest month) and July (the warmest month).

1. Haugesund – 8.5 °C

According to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, Haugesund in southwestern Norway is the warmest city in Norway. Featuring an oceanic climate, it has very mild for northern Europe winters with temperatures between 4-6 °C. That’s not a cold winter you’d expect from Norway, isn’t it?

Summers in Haugesund are relatively cool, with average maximum temperatures going only up to 18 °C. Still, it’s the warmest place in Norway when we look at daily mean temperatures.

Average high temperature in January: 4 °C

Average high temperature in July: 18 °C

2. Stavanger – 8.4 °C

Stavanger, the fourth most populous Norwegian city, is the second warmest city in Norway. It’s located south of Haugesund on the west coast of the country. Like Haugesund, it has a mild oceanic climate. Stavanger enjoys the mildest winters in Norway, with temperatures of 5-6 °C in the coldest months. It also has slightly warmer summers than Haugesund. The reason why it’s ranked second is because it has slightly lower nighttime temperatures than Haugesund.

Average high temperature in January: 4.8 °C

Average high temperature in July: 18.6 °C

3. Bergen – 8.3 °C

Bergen, the second largest city in Norway, is the third warmest city in the country. Like the previous coastal areas, the city has relatively mild winters. Bergen is one of the rainiest cities in Europe, though, with 196 days of precipitation year round. While you may avoid temperatures below freezing point there, you won’t avoid rain: even in the least rainy month (May) it still rains on average 13 days a month. In the rainiest one, January, it rains 19 days a month.

Average high temperature in January: 4.3 °C

Average high temperature in July: 19.1 °C

4. Sarpsborg – 7.9 °C

Sarpsborg is located in southeastern Norway, south of Oslo. With a transitional climate between two climate zones (oceanic and continental), you’ll definitely need warm clothing in the winter. In exchange, you’ll enjoy much warmer summers with average temperatures over 22 °C in the warmest month.

Average high temperature in January: 1 °C

Average high temperature in July: 22.4 °C

5. Kristiansand – 7.75 °C

Kristiansand, the fifth most populous city in Norway, is also the fifth warmest city in the country. Located on the southern coast of the country, the city has relatively mild winters while still having relatively warm for Norway’s standards summers. With 1,778 sunshine hours a year, Kristiansand is also one of the sunniest places in Norway.

Average high temperature in January: 3 °C

Average high temperature in July: 21 °C

6. Sandefjord – 7.5 °C

The impact of the Gulf Stream is visible in all of Norway but it’s even more pronounced in Sandefjord. Located at a higher latitude than Juneau, Alaska (check out my list of the warmest cities in Alaska), it enjoys much warmer summers with pleasant temperatures and plenty of sunshine (the most in the summer in all of Norway). Average temperatures in the winter are cold but still much warmer than in many other cities in the country.

Average high temperature in January: 1 °C

Average high temperature in July: 22 °C

7. Moss – 7.5 °C

Moss in the southeastern part of Norway, 62 km south of Oslo, has the same average yearly temperature as Sandefjord. It has colder winters, though.

Average high temperature in January: 0 °C

Average high temperature in July: 22 °C

8. Brønnøysund – 7 °C

Brønnøysund is a small town called “the coastal town in the middle of Norway.” It’s the most northerly located place in this ranking, located 864 km north of Oslo. Because of the moderating effect of the Norwegian Sea, the town enjoys very mild for its latitude average temperatures.

Average high temperature in January: 2 °C

Average high temperature in July: 18 °C

9. Drammen – 6.95 °C

Drammen has a humid continental climate with the coldest temperatures in the winter in this ranking. In exchange, the city’s sheltered location in the innermost Oslofjord gives it the hottest summers in Norway. The highest temperature reaches over 24 °C in July.

Average high temperature in January: -1.6 °C

Average high temperature in July: 24.1 °C

10. Oslo – 6.75 °C

The capital city of Norway, Oslo, is the tenth warmest city in the country. Its average temperatures are about two degrees Celsius lower than in the warmest city in Norway. While Oslo has a lower daily mean temperature, it enjoys some of the warmest summer temperatures in the country.

Average high temperature in January: -0.4 °C

Average high temperature in July: 22.3 °C

Top 21 Warmest Norwegian Cities Ranked by the Average Temperature

Here’s a table with 21 major Norwegian cities that have at least 5,000 residents. Some cities are missing because no climate data was available for them. The data comes from several sources such as the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and Weatherbase.

You may also be interested in articles about the warmest cities in other European countries.

I also wrote a more general article on places where it’s warm all year round in Europe.