It is considered part of Stor-Oslo (Greater Oslo), and is home to offices of numerous domestic and international businesses.

By the 1900s Lysaker was a primarily residential area, and its main claim to fame was that the polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen took up residence there.

The most notable industry at the time was Granfos Brug, a major timber refining and paper manufacturing company established in 1869.

Timber was floated down the Lysakerelva to the factory, where it was refined and shipped out to national and international customers by way of the fjord.

During the 1970s Lysaker became attractive due to its location between, and good transport connections with, the affluent residential areas of Bærum, Oslo proper, and Fornebu Airport.

During the 1980s the old, polluted industrial sites and central residential areas became the subjects of major developments, eventually forming Lysaker into the commercial hub of today.

As more workplaces were added, so the need for transport and other services increased and businesses such as the CC Vest shopping centre were established.

Accordingly, the Lysaker of today is quite unrecognizable as compared to 30 years ago, with much of the central part and the railways elevated above ground level.