The municipality has been voted the best Norwegian place to live in considering governance and public services to citizens.

Industries such as paper mills, nail factories, sawmills, glassworks, and brickworks were established along the rivers Lysakerelven and Sandvikselva in the following centuries.

[10] A number of artists established themselves in Bærum, particularly around the art school run by Johan Fredrik Eckersberg.

Among the artists who did much of their work in Bærum are Frits Thaulow, Christian Skredsvig, Harriet Backer, Kitty Lange Kielland, Otto Sinding, Eilif Pettersen, Gerhardt Munthe, and Erik Werenskiold.

On 10 August 2019, a gunman opened fire on congregants at the Al-Noor Islamic Centre, after shooting and killing his ethnically Chinese adopted stepsister at their home.

The mountain of Kolsås forms a natural center, but the municipality also includes the secluded valley of Lommedalen.

Four major rivers flow through the municipality: Lysakerelven, Sandvikselva, Lomma, and Øverlandselva, and there are numerous lakes, both in residential and forested areas.

[13] Since nearly two-thirds of Bærum's area consists of forests, there are rich opportunities for outdoor activities, such as skiing, hiking, and fishing.

There has been considerable development of office parks along E18, especially around Lysaker in the last 20–30 years, reducing some of the pressure on downtown areas of Oslo.

[20] When the airline Busy Bee of Norway existed, its head office was on the grounds of Fornebu Airport.

The population for each section on 1 January 2005 was: According to a local survey conducted by Dagbladet, Bærum is the best place to live in Norway in terms of governance and services to residents.

Bærum score high on national surveys when it comes to local economical governance, education and possibilities for young people, health coverage, school rankings, and work rights and possibilities[25] There are a number of schools in Bærum, both public and private.

[26] There are eight public high schools in Bærum; Dønski, Eikeli, Nadderud, Rosenvilde, Rud, Sandvika, Stabekk and Valler.

Sandvika High School has had the highest number of applications in the county for the past six years,[28] and is now ranked within top 10 in the country.