NorwayCounty number 32
Akershus is a county in Norway with 21 municipalities. Akershus surrounds Oslo with urban settlements, farmland, forests and fjord coastline. Asker and Bærum, Follo and Romerike are linked by the capital labour market, Gardermoen and knowledge centres such as Campus Ås.
Content updated:
SSB · 2026
See how many people live in the county, how many homes it has, and which municipalities have the most residents. Figures are from Statistics Norway (SSB).
Ranked by municipal population, rather than the size of cities or urban settlements. A municipality may contain several settlements and extensive rural areas.
2026 · SSB
Choose a municipality to open its profile. Small island municipalities are marked with a dot.
Known for
Eidsvoll House and Oscarsborg Fortress
Akershus includes Asker and Bærum west of Oslo, Follo to the south and Romerike to the north and east, as well as Lunner and Jevnaker. It combines dense development near the capital with extensive farmland and forests. Several municipalities form part of the Oslo urban settlement although Oslo is a separate county. Administrative boundaries and actual home–work–education connections both matter.
Norway’s Constitution was drafted at Eidsvoll in 1814, a local event with lasting national significance. Railways, the airport and urban growth later strengthened links with Oslo. Akershus joined Viken in 2020 and became a separate county again in 2024. Its present boundaries include Lunner and Jevnaker, former Røyken and Hurum within Asker, and former Rømskog within Aurskog-Høland. Historic maps may therefore show different boundaries.
The Gardermoen region grew following the establishment of Oslo Airport. Transport and trade shape its economy, while road and rail connect it to jobs in Lillestrøm and Oslo.
Gardermoen gives Ullensaker and neighbouring municipalities a substantial transport, logistics and commerce cluster. Other parts of Akershus host knowledge businesses, services, agriculture and research. Campus Ås connects Follo with environmental and life sciences. Many people commute across the Oslo county boundary. Industries therefore vary substantially, and total population does not indicate where jobs are or which qualifications they require.
Ruter plans bus and boat services in Oslo and Akershus and works with metro and tram operators. Trains support the region’s major travel corridors, with local buses continuing into residential areas. Oslo Airport at Gardermoen lies in Akershus, spanning Ullensaker and Nannestad municipalities. When assessing housing, connections, frequency and the final service matter as much as kilometres to the capital; use a current planner for the specific route.
NMBU at Ås brings together environmental science, life sciences, technology and veterinary medicine. Eidsvollsbygningen offers another learning route: the development of the Constitution and Norwegian self-government in 1814. University education, upper-secondary schools and local cultural venues operate across both urban and rural areas. Studying education alongside historic places reveals Akershus as more than the capital’s surrounding region.
Akershus is closely connected with Oslo but also contains municipalities with longer distances and dispersed settlement. Housing markets and education and transport access vary between subregions. Population growth can create school and infrastructure needs while farmland and nature require protection. Municipality profiles explain these differences better than a single county average, especially when comparing capital-adjacent communities with outer Romerike or Hadeland.
The proposed joint land-use and mobility plan for Oslo and Akershus is open for consultation until 23 October 2026. It aims to coordinate development, transport and nature protection towards 2040.
Landscapes, heritage sites and buildings offer a concrete view of the county’s history. Continue to the guides to these places and their municipalities.
Fetsund lenser in Lillestrøm preserves a timber-floating workplace on the Glomma. The river structures explain how logs from inland forests were sorted and bundled before continuing across Øyeren toward the industrial users farther downstream.
Henie Onstad Kunstsenter brings art and fjord landscape together at Høvikodden in Bærum. The low museum buildings, changing exhibitions and surrounding sculpture park offer complementary ways to experience a centre associated with modern art and performance.
Roald Amundsens hjem Uranienborg at Svartskog preserves the explorer's private world beside the Bunnefjord. In Nordre Follo, a furnished house reveals how domestic life, expedition planning and international travel came together between 1908 and 1928.
Akershus · 21 municipalities
Find local figures, history, education, housing and public services. Each municipality’s population figure refers to the stated period.
Residents · Q2 2026 · SSB
Norway has three elected levels of government: the state, county authorities and municipalities. A county is both a geographical area and the territory of an elected regional authority.
Responsibilities include upper secondary education, county roads, public transport, public dental services and regional development. These tasks connect municipalities.
Local responsibilities include primary and lower secondary schools, kindergartens, health and care services and land-use planning. Kommuneportal explains these at municipal level.
The County Governor represents the state regionally. This is a separate institution from the elected county authority. Oslo has both municipal and county responsibilities.
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A county total is shown only when every municipality has comparable figures from the same source and period. Land area excludes freshwater and sea. Density uses population and land area from the same year.
The same municipality membership is used; changes across a documented geographical break are withheld.
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