EXHIBIT 23
                               Consent of KPMG LLP








INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT
- -----------------------------


The Board of Directors
NBT Bancorp Inc.:

We consent to incorporation by reference in the registration  statements on Form
S-3 (File No. 33-12247) and Form S-8 (File Nos.  33-18976,  33-77410,  333-02925
and  333-67615)  of NBT Bancorp  Inc.  of our report  dated  January  21,  2000,
relating to the  consolidated  balance sheets of NBT Bancorp Inc. and subsidiary
as of December 31, 1999 and 1998,  and the related  consolidated  statements  of
income,  stockholders'  equity, cash flows and comprehensive  income for each of
the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 1999, which report appears
in the December 31, 1999 annual report on Form 10-K.




KPMG LLP
Syracuse, New York
March 8, 2000