The avenue was constructed across Nørrefælled in 1744. It replaced an older road with almost the same course which is already seen on a map from 1695. Almindeligt Hospital was located on the west side of the street from 1892 but relocated to the former Sankt Johannes Stiftelse in Ryesgade. The football clubAkademisk Boldklub was based at the street from 1924 until the 1960s.
Notable buildings and residents
Collegium Juris' building was built as residences for nurses at the nearby Blegdam Hospital in 1917 and was later expanded in 1934. It was adapted for its current use as dormitory at the initiative of UCPH's Faculty of Law by Lundgaard & Tranberg. The dormitory opened in 2012 and now houses 48 Danish and international students. On the other side of the street, VerdensKulturCentret is a venue for cross cultural actyivities. It is located in a former municipal school building from 1887. The Alderstrøst charitable housing complex was built by Håndværkerforeningen and contained affordable housing for old craftsmen. The buildings at No. 15 and No. 19 were completed in 1895 to design by Thorvald Sørensen. The building at No. 17 was built in 1939 by Henning Hansen. from the south Almindeligt Hospital's former buildings are now part of the senior citizens home De Gamles By. The hospital buildings from the 1890s were designed by Vilhelm Petersen and the complex was expanded by Gotfred Tvede in 1910. The name De Gamles By was introduced for the whole site in 1919. The Faculty Library of Natural and Health Sciences was built in 1935-37 tto design by Noæs and Eva Koppel..
A cancer care centre inspired by British Maggie's Centres opened on Nørre Allé in 2012. It is built to a distinctive multigabled design and encloses a central courtyard and various roof terraces. UCPH's Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports is based at No. 51. The building is from 1924 and was originally constructed for the Danish Gymnastics Institute to design by Carl Brummer. Egmont H. Petersen's Kollegium, usually referred to simply as Egmont Kollegiet, was built in the early 1950s and consists of three buildings called "Gamle", "Mellemste" and "Nye". It houses 492.
Several buildings on Nørre Allé has been used as a film location. Egmont Kollegiet has been used as a location in the films Skovridergaarden, De sjove år and Pigen fra Egborg,, The Institute of Dataology is used as a location in the films My name is Petersen, Pigen fra Egborg and Nattevagten''.