City dossier for Skien: live jobs, official statistics, commuting, large employers, a pay-versus-cost calculator and how it compares.
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By AtiveSite · Published 06/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Skien is Norway's #18 municipality by population: 56,906 residents (SSB, 1 Jan 2026). It lies in Telemark county, 133 km (130 min) by road from Oslo centre and offers 27,237 jobs by workplace (Q4 2025); the largest employing industries are Health and social work (31% of jobs), Retail and wholesale trade (13% of jobs), Construction (8% of jobs). Skien is a balanced local labour market. Compared with Norway as a whole, jobs are concentrated in health and social work. Today 87 job ads are live here (3.2 per 1,000 jobs).
See all 87 jobs in Skien →Telemark county guideAll 50 cities
87 active ads. Full-time 56% · permanent (Fast) 67% · substitute (Vikariat) 22% · private sector 28% · public sector 63%. Open the job search →
| Field ⇅ | Open ads ⇅ | Share ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Health & social care (Helse og sosial) | 60 | 69.0% |
| Sales & service (Salg og service) | 10 | 11.5% |
| Education (Utdanning) | 5 | 5.7% |
| Transport & warehouse (Transport og lager) | 3 | 3.4% |
| Security & emergency (Sikkerhet og beredskap) | 2 | 2.3% |
| Tourism & food (Reiseliv og mat) | 2 | 2.3% |
| Culture & creative (Kultur og kreative yrker) | 2 | 2.3% |
| Construction (Bygg og anlegg) | 1 | 1.1% |
| Office & finance (Kontor og økonomi) | 1 | 1.1% |
| Skilled trades (Håndverkere) | 1 | 1.1% |
| Sub-category (NAV, Norwegian) ⇅ | Field ⇅ | Open ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Sykepleier | Health & social care | 16 |
| Lege | Health & social care | 10 |
| Helsefagarbeider | Health & social care | 8 |
| Salg, butikk- og varehandel | Sales & service | 7 |
| Vernepleier | Health & social care | 6 |
| Andre helseyrker | Health & social care | 5 |
| Barnehage- og skolefritidsassistenter | Education | 4 |
| Hjemmehjelper og personlig assistent | Health & social care | 4 |
| Leder innenfor helsetjenester | Health & social care | 4 |
| Miljøarbeidere | Health & social care | 3 |
| Tog-, sporvogn- og vegtrafikk | Transport & warehouse | 3 |
| Politi, fengsel og toll | Security & emergency | 2 |
| Personlig tjenesteyting | Sales & service | 2 |
| Arealplanlegging og arkitektur | Construction | 1 |
| Helsesekretær | Health & social care | 1 |
| Ledelse, administrasjon og rådgivning | Office & finance | 1 |
| Psykolog | Health & social care | 1 |
| Restaurant | Tourism & food | 1 |
| Bioingeniør | Health & social care | 1 |
| Videregående skole | Education | 1 |
Ads are job offers, not the number of jobs that exist. NAV does not publish salary, so none is shown or estimated. Ads are removed when NAV marks them inactive.
Skien had 27,237 employed persons by place of work in Q4 2025 (+0.7% vs 2024). A specialisation index above 1 means the industry weighs more here than in Norway as a whole.
| Industry (SSB divisions) ⇅ | Employed ⇅ | Share here ⇅ | Share Norway ⇅ | Specialisation index ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing | 205 | 0.8% | 2.3% | 0.33 |
| Mining and quarrying | 14 | 0.1% | 2.3% | 0.02 |
| Manufacture | 2,190 | 8.0% | 7.7% | 1.05 |
| Electricity, water supply, sewerage, waste management | 134 | 0.5% | 1.3% | 0.38 |
| Construction | 2,268 | 8.3% | 8.1% | 1.03 |
| Wholesale and retail trade: repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 3,653 | 13.4% | 12.4% | 1.08 |
| Transportation and storage | 1,213 | 4.5% | 4.8% | 0.93 |
| Accommodation and food service activities | 683 | 2.5% | 3.7% | 0.67 |
| Information and communication | 430 | 1.6% | 4.0% | 0.39 |
| Financial and insurance activities | 242 | 0.9% | 1.8% | 0.48 |
| Real estate, professional, scientific and technical activities | 1,159 | 4.3% | 6.8% | 0.62 |
| Administrative and support service activities | 1,240 | 4.6% | 4.4% | 1.03 |
| Human health and social work activities | 8,432 | 31.0% | 20.8% | 1.49 |
| Other service activities | 1,216 | 4.5% | 4.3% | 1.04 |
Of the 27,236 people who work in Skien, 17,726 (65%) also live there and 9,510 (35%) commute in. Of the 27,034 residents who are employed, 66% work inside Skien and 9,308 (34%) work elsewhere.
Employed persons aged 15–74 by workplace and residence municipality. A high share of in-commuters means jobs here are open to people living in neighbouring municipalities, which widens where you can live.
No company headquartered in Skien is among Norway's 100 largest employers; employers with open jobs are listed on the Jobs tab.
Type the gross monthly salary you were offered. We apply the 2026 tax rules and subtract an average rent from SSB.
Method: national insurance 7.6%, standard deduction 46% (max NOK 95,700), personal allowance NOK 114,540, ordinary income tax 22% (assumed unchanged; verify), bracket tax 1.7/4.0/13.7/16.8/17.8%. Ignores pension, union fees, deductions, municipal differences and holiday-pay timing. Rent = SSB 2025 survey average, not a current asking price. Food, energy, transport and insurance must still come out of what is left. Not advice.
| Item (wage earners, 2026) ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| National insurance contribution on wages | 7.6% |
| Personal allowance (personfradrag) | NOK 114,540 |
| Standard deduction on wages | 46% (max NOK 95,700) |
| Bracket tax step 1 from NOK 226,100 | 1.7% |
| Step 2 from NOK 318,300 | 4.0% |
| Step 3 from NOK 725,050 | 13.7% |
| Step 4 from NOK 980,100 | 16.8% |
| Step 5 from NOK 1,467,200 | 17.8% |
Ordinary income tax (22%) is applied on income after deductions; lower rates apply in parts of northern Norway. Confirm current rates on Skatteetaten before relying on them.
SSB publishes rent only for some areas (Oslo+Bærum, Akershus except Bærum, Bergen, Trondheim, Stavanger and the whole country). For Skien we preselect Whole country; see the rent table.
| Indicator ⇅ | Ads ⇅ | Share ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Ads whose description is mostly in English | 1 | 1.1% |
| Ads asking for Norwegian language skills (phrase match) | 46 | 52.9% |
| Ads mentioning visa, work permit, relocation or sponsorship | 1 | 1.1% |
| Ads mentioning authorisation or licence | 37 | 42.5% |
| Ads mentioning remote or hybrid work | 0 | 0.0% |
These are simple text searches in the ad descriptions (Norwegian and English keywords). They are a rough guide, not a legal reading of each ad: always read the ad itself.
Rules and routes: Permits and first steps · Recognition and authorisation · Law.
| City ⇅ | Straight-line km ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Live ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Porsgrunn | 8 km | 37,435 | 51 |
| Larvik | 29 km | 49,022 | 45 |
| Sandefjord | 36 km | 67,062 | 66 |
| Færder | 45 km | 27,743 | 29 |
| Tønsberg | 45 km | 60,246 | 99 |
| Kongsberg | 50 km | 29,169 | 97 |
| Holmestrand | 50 km | 27,086 | 36 |
| Horten | 54 km | 28,173 | 40 |
Compare this city with another
Skien: 87 live ads on the last snapshot, -3 (-3.3%) since 06/11.
| Date ⇅ | Live ads ⇅ | Change vs previous day ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| 07/11/2026 | 87 | -3 |
| 06/11/2026 | 90 | – |
56,906 residents in the municipality on 1 January 2026 (SSB), rank 18 among Norwegian municipalities.
27,237 jobs by workplace in Q4 2025 (SSB), and 87 live job ads on 07/11/2026 (NAV).
35% of the people who work in Skien live in other municipalities (SSB, Q4 2025).
Health and social work (31% of jobs), Retail and wholesale trade (13% of jobs), Construction (8% of jobs).