The municipality Sandnes in the county of Rogaland, Norway, has 55,729 inhabitants as of January 1, 2003. Originally the municipality Sandnes was identical to the town bearing the same name, but in 1965 Sandnes merged with Høyland, Hetland and Høle municipalities.
The centre of Sandnes is located 8 km south of Stavanger, and the two towns have expanded so as to almost form a twin city. The municipality of Sola is located to the west, Klepp and Time to the south, and Gjesdal and Forsand to the east. The fjord Gandsfjorden is situated north-south and ends in the centre of Sandnes.
Sandnes hosts a large array of retail shops within most diciplines and is used by the neighburing municipalities appriciating the service and wide range of selections.
The town also holds a vibrant industry mainly in the Ganddal area in the south and the Lura and Forus area in the north towards the Stavanger boundary. It is a significant activity towards the oil exploration in the North sea and also a large cluster of IT related companies.