In this article we’ll have a look at the best place to live as a digital nomad. We’ll take into account various elements like the lifestyle, visa situation but also taxes.
For this overview I took into account my own experience of traveling as a digital nomad, as well as the feedback I get from my clients.
The 9 Best Places To Live As a Digital Nomad
Based on this, we came up with a list of the 9 best places to live as a digital nomad.
The list is in alphabetical order as it’s hard to give them an exact score on all of the different criteria that we take into account.
Bali (Indonesia)
- Community: strong community, especially in places like Ubud, Canggu and Seminyak. Bali offers an excellent coworking and social scene.
- Internet speed: many places in popular areas will have a fiber connection for fast internet. Yet, in more rural areas you could experience less stable internet.
- Cost of living: most digital nomads will be able live very comfortable on €1.000-2.000 depending on the area and lifestyle.
- Visa: many digital nomads will do visa runs as there is no Indonesian digital nomad visa yet. Although it was announced.
- Tax: you qualify as a tax resident if you spend more than 183 days in Indonesia. In this case, Indonesia will tax your worldwide income at progressive income tax rates.
- Lifestyle: tropical, spiritual, and wellness-oriented with strong tourism infrastructure.
Bansko (Bulgaria)
- Community: there’s an year round community who made Bansko their home. Moreover, many remote workers visit Bansko in winter for skiing and in summer for hiking and to attend the Bansko Nomad Festival.
- Internet speed: high-speed fiber internet connectivity.
- Cost of living: Bansko offers a very low cost of living where you can live comfortable for about €1.000 or even less.
- Visa: European digital nomads don’t need a visa as Bulgaria is part of the Schengen Area. For others, it’s interesting to know the Bulgarian digital nomad visa is on its way.
- Tax: you qualify as a Bulgarian tax resident if you spend 183 days in the country or have your centre of vital interests there. Yet, Bulgaria is a popular option to optimize your taxes. You can check out the details in my article about tax residency in Bulgaria.
- Lifestyle: peaceful town surrounded by nature and hot springs. Does get busy with winter sports tourists from December till April.
Barcelona (Spain)
- Community: Barcelona is not just a metropolitan city but also attracts a lot of digital nomads. Therefore, you can find a big international community in this bustling city.
- Internet speed: excellent connectivity for work and also good public transport to get around the city.
- Cost of living: popular cities like Barcelona attract a lot of people. Therefore, you can expect your cost of living to be higher than in average in Spain. Especially finding affordable housing is challenging. It’s best to have an overall budget of at least €2.000.
- Visa: Europeans can move to Spain without having to worry about a visa. If you’re from outside the EU, the Spanish digital nomad visa could be an option.
- Tax: if you register as living in Spain or spend excessive time there, you’ll become liable to progressive income taxes on your worldwide income. There are ways to mitigate this but you’ll still end up paying a good chunk in taxes if you have Spanish tax residency.
- Lifestyle: mix of Mediterranean and city vibes in one. The city combines great beaches with city amenities.
Chiang Mai (Thailand)
- Community: although it’s not at the beach, Chiang Mai is still one of the hot spots for nomads in Thailand. You’ll find a lot of remote workers flocking here at the end of the European summer till the start of the burning season.
- Internet speed: great internet speed and mobile coverage.
- Cost of living: you easily live very comfortable for less than €1.000 while eating out all the time.
- Visa: the Destination Thailand Visa is the ideal solution for digital nomads who want to spend extensive time in Thailand.
- Tax: you’ll only become a Thai tax resident after spending at least 180 days in the country. Tax residency in Thailand can actually be interesting to lower your tax burden.
- Lifestyle: Thai people are known for their warm and welcoming nature. Although the traffic could get hectic at times you’ll enjoy a peaceful stay here.
Crete (Greece)
- Community: growing expat and nomad community all over the island but especially in Chania and Heraklion. Yet, winter months are a bit calmer.
- Internet speed: good connection in the towns, a bit less in the more rural outskirts of the island.
- Cost of living: moderate but depends on the place and time of the year as the island also receives many tourists. Budget for around €1.500 per month.
- Visa: if you need a visa to stay in Greece you can check out the Greek digital nomad visa.
- Tax: like many European countries, Greece has rather high tax rates. However, as a new tax resident in Greece you can get a tax reduction of 50%.
- Lifestyle: Mediterranean lifestyle with island vibes. And, let’s not forget about the great fresh food they have to offer.
Da Nang (Vietnam)
- Community: Da Nang is an up and coming digital nomad destination with more and more nomads going there year after year.
- Internet speed: good infrastructure all over the city, especially new buildings will have fiber optic connection.
- Cost of living: just like in many places in South East Asia you can easily live very comfortable for less than €1.000 while eating out a lot.
- Visa: the main challenge with Vietnam is that it doesn’t have a digital nomad visa or any other straightforward options for digital nomads to stay in the country long term. Therefore, many opt for visa runs.
- Tax: if you live or rent long-term in Vietnam, you can qualify as a tax resident. You can check the details in my article about tax residency in Vietnam.
- Lifestyle: coastal city with long-stretched beaches to relax. Yet, traffic can become hectic at times and you might need some time to get adjusted to it.
Dubai (United Arab Emirates)
- Community: most people living in Dubai are actually foreigners. Therefore, there are expats everywhere but you’ll also find plenty of digital nomads calling Dubai home.
- Internet speed: top-notch infrastructure for working and leisure. Many apartment buildings have their own gym, pools, etc. so you don’t even need to leave the building to get your routine done.
- Cost of living: many people think Dubai is very expensive to live and to an extend that is true. However, if you’re okay with not living in the most popular neighborhoods you can drastically reduce your biggest cost which is housing.
- Visa: Dubai has a digital nomad visa as a lof of other options to obtain a visa to stay long term in the country (e.g. incorporating a company).
- Tax: Dubai is basically built on not charging income taxes. Yet, to benefit from it you need to meet certain criteria. You can read the details in my article about tax residency in Dubai.
- Lifestyle: Dubai is known for its shiny millionaire lifestyle. Yet, even if you’re not at that level, Dubai offers a very convenient lifestyle where you can find everything you need.
Madeira (Portugal)
- Community: Madeira attracts a lot of digital nomads. Some even make it their home base.
- Internet speed: although you’re in the middle of the ocean, you’ll still get good internet to work.
- Cost of living: because of its popularity and limited space, Madeira isn’t the cheapest option in this list. Make sure you have a budget of at least €1.500.
- Visa: the island of Madeira is part of Portugal. If you need a visa, you can apply for the Portuguese digital nomad visa.
- Tax: if you become a tax resident of Portugal you can expect to pay relatively high taxes.
- Lifestyle: if you’re into hiking, you definitely have to visit Madeira. Apart from that, your lifestyle will depend a bit on the area on the island you decide to stay in.
Medellin (Colombia)
- Community: many people will know Medellin for its turbulent past. Yet, seasoned digital nomads know that’s all in the past and it’s actually a great place for nomads.
- Internet speed & overall infrastructure: excellent connectivity and many coworking and coliving options to work and socialize.
- Cost of living: you can already have a good life as a digital nomad in Medelling for €1.000.
- Visa: you can check the Colombian digital nomad visa.
- Tax: you can avoid paying taxes in Colombia by spending less than 183 days in the country over a twelve month period.
- Lifestyle: Medellin is also called the city of eternal spring as it offers year long moderate temperatures. A great year long destination if you want to emerge yourself in the Latin culture.
Key Criteria To Evaluate a Destination
In order to evaluate the best place to live as a digital nomad we took into account some key criteria. Below you can find an overview.
Community
Some nomads will have more the need for social interactions than others. Nevertheless, we all need to find a community where we can plug in from time to time in order to fulfill our social needs.
In big cities you’ll normally find a bigger expat community by default. Yet, most of these expats really moved their whole life to that particular place. This doesn’t always resonate with digital nomads who are constantly on the move and rather socialize with other digital nomads.
Therefore, finding the right community can make or break a place for someone.
Internet Speed
In the end, we still need to get our work done. Nothing so frustrating as unstable internet or client calls that keep breaking up.
Therefore, impeccable internet speed is essential.
Cost of Living
As a digital nomad you can heavily improve your lifestyle by spending time in a country which has a lower cost of living than the country where you’re earning your money from.
In many countries, salaries and freelancer rates are in a way based on the cost of living. So, if you can use geo-arbitrage to bring down your cost of living, you can increase your lifestyle.
Visa Situation
Many digital nomads still mainly use tourist visas to visit many countries. However, we see that certain governments try to scrutinize this more and more.
If you’re really planning to spend a lot of time in a particular country, the availability of a proper (digital nomad) visa will help you to avoid troubles.
Taxes
Finally, we can’t forget about the taxes in the various places.
Because if you really want to spend a lot of time in a country, you’ll often end up becoming a tax resident of that country.
In that case, you want the understand the consequences.
Lifestyle
In general, all the cities on our list of best place to live as a digital nomad will offer a good lifestyle for digital nomads.
Yet, it’s of course up you to if you like more the beaches or the mountains, warm temperatures versus snow, etc.
Therefore, this is more of a personal element you need to think about for yourself.
Final Thoughts After Years As a Digital Nomad
What is the best place to live as a digital nomad will in the end depend on your needs.
If you’re more budget conscious, you might be better off in South East Asia than in Europe.
Furthermore, you also need to define for yourself what ‘living somewhere’ means to you. Do you want to slow down on the traveling and live there for most of the year or do you just look for a base for part of the year. In the latter case, you might be able to save yourself some visa headaches and taxes.
Reach out if you need assistance with setting up the perfect plan for your individual needs.