The currency used in Norway is the Norwegian krone (plural krone), which essentially means the Norwegian crown.
It is issued by the Norwegian central bank (Norges Bank) which issues bills of 1000, 500, 200, 100, and 50 kroner, as well as coins of 20, 10, 5, and 1 krone.
1 krone equals 100 øre, which was used previously, but due to its low value is now only used in electronic transactions. Cash payåments are always rounded up or down to the nearest krone.
Where is the Norwegian krone used?
The Norwegian krone is accepted throughout Norway. However, you will also be able to pay with the Norwegian krone in shops along the Norwegian-Swedish and Finnish border.
You might also pay with the Norwegian krone in certain tourist shops in the ferry ports of Hirtshals and Frederikshavn.
What currencies and types of payments are accepted in Norway?
The Norwegian krone is accepted everywhere. While certain shops in tourist hot spots throughout Norway might accept euros and dollars, don’t count on it, the same goes for both the danish and Swedish krone.
Cash is accepted everywhere, and you can easily withdraw Norwegian krone from ATMæs found throughout most cities and towns. Many deli kiosk chains have ATMs including Narvesen, 7-Eleven, and Deli de Luca. Also when making a purchase in any grocery store (Meny, Kiwi, Coop, Rema 1000, Spar, Joker) you can ask to withdraw a limited cash amount.
Card payments are also accepted throughout Norway. Even smaller kiosks and food trucks have payment systems to pay with cards. However, keep in mind that a few stores only accept Norwegian debit cards.
Also, certain stores and restaurants won’t accept American Express cards. Payment with checks is generally not accepted regardless of the currency.
Because of the widespread penetration of card payments throughout Norway, you are likely to be able to pay using your mobile wallets such as Apple and Google pay.
Exchange rates
The exchange rate for the Norwegian krone towards other currencies fluctuates due to a number of reasons.
Norway has an open economy that is dependent on trade with other nations as well as a prominent oil and gas industry. Because of this, the world economy and the oil price are the two most important factors affecting the exchange rate for the Norwegian krone.
Because the Norwegian krone is a small currency, the krone tends to decrease in value towards larger currencies such as euros and dollars in times of economic uncertainty. This is also the case if the oil price decrease. On the other hand, a strong oil price tends to equal a stronger Norwegian krone.
At the time of writing, one US dollar is worth about 9 Norwegian krone. 1 Euro is worth 10.5 Norwegian kroner. 1 Japanese yen is worth about 0.080 Norwegian krone and 1 Chinese yuan is worth about 1.4 Norwegian kroner. (Updated July 2021).
