Commu Expands to Norway - Tackling Loneliness and Boosting Community Engagement Across Borders

“We want to invest in our community, because in the future we will need to rely more on people helping each other. The public sector will not be able to meet all the needs of the residents. Therefore, we need solutions like Commu, which provide residents with the tools to find help outside of public services,” says Overhalla Mayor Hege Kristin Kværnø Saugen.

The municipality wants both individuals and volunteer teams and associations to use the app to do good deeds. The goal is for residents to become more comfortable both in asking for help and offering it.

“Commu is an app that enables the collective power of the community to mobilize and benefit everyone. The ultimate volunteer app! Commu is made for you and me and all of us living in Overhalla, we are all part of the community and can contribute to a better society for everyone.

Commu helps me tell others that I can be useful to someone who needs help. I can make a difference for someone for a little while. Next time, it might be my turn to need help, for example, lawn mowing, carpentry, gardening, firewood carrying, house cleaning, or other everyday tasks.”

The app makes it easy to share small needs and see who can offer help in the neighborhood. Maybe the helper lives just around the corner?

"Tinder for Good Deeds" sparks interest abroad, solving local and global social issues

Commu is a help app started by three friends, which in just a few years has gathered over 100,000 users in Finland and tens of thousands of users abroad, for example in Lisbon and in Norway. For municipalities and cities, Commu offers a neighborhood app to promote residents’ well-being and health.

"It is great to see that Finnish community innovation also interest people abroad. We are very excited about the collaboration with Overhalla. This is an important step in Commu’s internationalization and shows that a model based on helping each other works across borders," says Commu founder, psychiatric nurse Sami Ekmark.

By 2025, Commu has won the prize for the best sustainable city solution (Nordic Proptech Awards), the Best Urban Tech Solution 2025 award (TechBBQ), the Women Code award and the Imagine the Citiverse innovation competition, as well as the European Young Innovators 2025 prize as the only one from the Nordics.

Commu is free and available in several languages on Google Play and the App Store. You register with an email and can choose to verify yourself with BankID or mobile-ID for extra security and trust.

How to Get Started with Commu:

1. Download the Commu app from Google Play or the App Store

2. Register for free with email

3. You can identify yourself with BankID or mobile-ID if you wish

4. Browse requests or post an offer of help

5. Give and ask for help – easily and safely!