Last updated: August 2025
All those beautiful and handy tunnels, bridges and new roads in Norway have to be paid for somehow. That’s the reason toll roads were created, and why you pay tolls in Norway. Most toll roads are paid for temporarily and become ‘free’ as soon as the cost of construction has been recovered. The Atlantic Road, for example, was once a toll road too, but the construction costs were recovered so incredibly fast that everyone can now drive it for free!
Tourists have to pay tolls too. Whether you’re driving through Norway in a car, on a motorcycle, in a camper or with a caravan. You can pay tolls in several ways:
Paying tolls with a rental car
Rental cars used to have a little box stuck to the windshield. It automatically registered when you drove onto a toll road (with scanners). These days almost everything goes by license plate. In most cases, your credit card is automatically charged after your trip for the tolls you’ve racked up. Sometimes administration fees are charged on top of that. To be on the safe side, check this with your rental company beforehand to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Paying tolls with your own car
Cars from the Netherlands, where I live, generally don’t have toll tags on the windshield, but paying tolls with your own car is almost as easy. The Norwegian government will simply find you on its own when you drive your car on their toll roads. Not a fan of that idea? Then you can choose to register before your trip at www.autopass.no. Your Autopass account gives you instant insight into the costs you’re running up. Some time after your trip (usually between 4 and 6 months, sometimes after a year and a half), you’ll receive an invoice at home, which you need to pay within the set term.
Paying tolls with your debit card or credit card
Of course there are exceptions! On most major roads, it all happens automatically. In the more remote places and on mountain passes, there are still barriers every once in a while! Here you can pay the toll with your debit card or credit card. At the machine, you indicate what kind of vehicle you want to drive the road with, and based on your choice you pay a one-time amount with the card of your choice. Driving through without paying is a punishable offense!
Paying tolls in cash in Norway
When we wanted to drive from the Lovatnet to the Kjenndalsbreen in 2015, we came across this unusual phenomenon. No barrier, automatic toll machines or credit card terminal. No, a mailbox with empty envelopes and a pen! So you put cash in the envelope (40 NOK for a passenger car), wrote your license plate number on it and put it back in the mailbox. This box has since been upgraded to a license plate scanner, but I loved it too much to remove it from this blog. What it comes down to: be prepared when you leave the main roads in Norway. You never know what you’ll run into..
