⭐️ Total score | 2.92/5 (Rank #309) |
👍 Quality of life score | Okay |
👶 Family score | Okay |
🎒 Community score | Okay |
💵 Cost | 😙 Affordable: $1,082 / mo |
📡 Internet | 🏎 Fast: 32Mbps (avg) |
😝 Fun | Bad |
⛅️ Temperature (now) | 🌞 Perfect: 24°C75°F (feels 24°C75°F) |
💦 Humidity (now) | 😊 Comfy: 64% |
💨 Air quality (now) | 🌱 Good: 72 US AQI |
💨 Air quality (annual) | 🌱 Good: 57 US AQI |
👌 Safety | Good |
🤮 Food safety* | Bad |
👮♀️ Lack of crime* | Good |
🤝 Lack of racism* | Okay |
🎓 Education level* | Mediocre |
⚡️ Power grid | Great |
🌊 Vulnerability to climate change | Okay |
💰 Income level* | Very low: $493 / mo |
🙊 English speaking* | Bad |
🚶 Walkability | Great |
✌️ Peace (no pol. conflict) | Okay |
🚦 Traffic safety* | Bad |
😄 Happiness* | Good |
🍸 Nightlife | Good |
📶 Free WiFi in city | Okay |
🖥 Places to work from | Great |
❄️ A/C or heating | Okay |
😁 Friendly to foreigners | Great |
🗯 Freedom of speech* | Okay |
👩 Female friendly | Okay |
🌈 LGBTQ+ friendly | Bad |
🎅 Startup Score | Bad |
🌍 Continent | Asia |
🚩 Country | Thailand |
⏱ Average trip length | 3 days |
📡 Internet speed (avg) | 32 Mbps |
⛅️ Weather (now) | ☀️ 24°C 75°F + 😊 Comfy (64%) = feels 24°C 75°F |
💨 Air quality (now) | 👍 72 US AQI 🍃 OK |
💨 Air quality (annual avg) | 👎😷 57 US AQI |
🔌 Power | 230V50Hz |
🚕 Best taxi app* | |
🚑 Travel medical insurance | ![]() |
💸 100 THB in USD | USD 2.86 |
🏧 Suggested ATM take out: | THB 10,000 = USD 286 |
💸 Tipping | Yes, 5% |
💳 Cashless | 💳 Yes, cards OK almost everywhere |
☕️ Best coffee place | True Coffee |
🚰 Tap water | 🚫 No, not drinkable |
♻️ Return rate | 👎1% of visitors return |
👨👩👧👦 Population | 70,000 people |
👨👩👧👦 GDP per capita* | $5,911 / year |
👫 Gender ratio (nomads) | 👨 81% 👱♀️ 19% |
⛪️ Religious government | Non-religious |
💻 Online electronics shop | Lazada |
🏠 Apartment listings | 9 Apartment |
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier | Air Asia |
✈️ Best int'l air carrier | Air Asia |
💵 Cost of living for nomad | $1,082 / month |
💵 Cost of living for expat | $606 / month |
💵 Cost of living for family | $1,192 / month |
💵 Cost of living for local | $341 / month |
🏨 Hotel (median price) | $572 / month |
🏡 Airbnb (median price) | $1,144 / month |
🏠 1br studio rent in center | $211 / month |
🏨 Hotel (median price) | $27 / night |
🏠 Airbnb (median price) | $38 / night |
🏢 Coworking hot desk | $255 / month |
🍛 Dinner | $1 |
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L) | $0 |
🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L) | $2 |
☕️ Coffee in cafe | $2 |
👩🏫 International school | $7,138 / year |
📱 Mobile data (~10GB) | $4 / month |
🚕 Taxi price (avg trip ~3km/2mi) | $5 / trip |
✅ Affordable to live
✅ Pretty safe
✅ Fast internet
✅ Warm now
✅ Warm all year round
✅ Perfect humidity now
✅ Good air quality on average
✅ Many Nomad List members have been
✅ Spacious and not crowded
✅ Easy to make friends
✅ Very easy to do business
✅ Safe for women
✅ Not many people smoke tobacco
❌ Freedom of speech is weak
❌ Not very democratic
❌ Not much to do
❌ Quality of education is low
❌ Hospitals are bad
❌ Roads are very dangerous
❌ People don't speak English well
❌ Not family friendly
❌ Hostile towards LGBTQ+
Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
Feels | 8228° warm | 8630° warm | 9535° hot | 10440° hot | 10239° hot | 9736° hot | 9937° hot | 9334° hot | 9937° hot | 9334° hot | 9032° hot | 7725° warm |
Real | 7926° warm | 8228° very warm | 9133° hot | 9032° hot | 8831° hot | 8429° very warm | 8429° very warm | 8228° very warm | 8429° very warm | 8228° very warm | 8127° warm | 7725° warm |
Humidity | nice 72% | nice 63% | nice 42% | nice 67% | sweaty 74% | sweaty 87% | sweaty 91% | sweaty 93% | sweaty 91% | sweaty 90% | sweaty 90% | nice 77% |
Most common | ||||||||||||
Rain | dry 15mm | rainy 59mm | dry 20mm | rainy 122mm | rainy 166mm | rainy 303mm | rainy 372mm | rainy 394mm | rainy 378mm | rainy 221mm | rainy 97mm | dry 8mm |
Cloud | pockets 42% | pockets 31% | pockets 30% | cloudy 78% | cloudy 80% | overcast 97% | overcast 97% | overcast 96% | cloudy 87% | cloudy 86% | cloudy 67% | pockets 36% |
Air quality | okay 93 US AQI | bad 134 US AQI | bad 168 US AQI | bad 182 US AQI | okay 94 US AQI | clean 33 US AQI | clean 32 US AQI | clean 31 US AQI | okay 57 US AQI | bad 255 US AQI | okay 57* US AQI | okay 57* US AQI |
Sun | avoid sun 7 UVI | avoid sun 8 UVI | avoid sun 10 UVI | avoid sun 8 UVI | avoid sun 8 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI | avoid sun 6 UVI |
Remote workers | 467 people | 325 people | 300 people | 267 people | 320 people | 280 people | 200 people | 350 people | 200 people | 333 people | 444 people | 400 people |
If you'd like to filter destinations based on their climate, try Nomad List's Climate Finder
Based on Chiang Rai's cost of living, here's selected remote jobs that would cover your costs:
Chiang Mai has had a deep Buddhist influence running over the last 1,000 years and this can be felt in the helpfulness, patience and generosity of the Thai and long-term transplants you come across. The city has an active community scene (nomads, spiritual seekers, hikers, creatives), several mountains with hiking spots and waterfalls surrounding the city, over 20 water bodies inside the city -- many have cafes and walks around, several public parks, and over 13 national parks with campgrounds w
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 27° 81° 26° 79°AQI 78😷✈️12min$1,031 / mo67Mbps×avoid going to the waterfalls with weed (or buying any on the way there) It's a very old trick the cops stop & search bikes on their way back. (while the locals try to sell you stuff on the way there)
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun bad👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 24° 75° 24° 75°AQI 39✈️12min$1,302 / mo27Mbps×I'd skip Vientiane if I was you. It's mostly for Chinese business people. But there's not much to see or do there. We visited the unexploded bomb museum, which was interesting but tiny. There's some French cafes and massage places. But everything is quite basic. I'd just go straight to Laung Prabang if you want to see more of Laos. Or Vang Vieng if you want to party. Vientiane wasn't very remote worker suitable either, just like entire Laos. Internet is slow and if it's not slow it's unstable
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😝 Cheap📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun very bad👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 29° 84° 27° 80°AQI 89😷✈️29min$857 / mo6Mbps×This is where humans shouldn't stay or visit after the 2021 Feb Coup. Until now it's a dictatorship country, so expect everything that can happen in a dictatorship country.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 34° 93° 30° 86°🥵AQI 63😷✈️41min$1,080 / mo9Mbps×People - People are generally friendly - Not too many scams like BKK - Scams are low here because the city doesn't have the same attractions like BKK - Never ran in to a Digital Nomad here like Chiang Mai Language - English level is very low - If they can speak a little bit of English the people are shy to use it - Languages that you can use to get by are Thai, Cambodian and Lao Health - Hospitals have long line ups throughout the day. - Locals go in the morning to take a number, when their t
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety goodTap to open🌥 Feels 27° 81° 26° 78°AQI 104😷✈️48min$1,113 / mo112Mbps×Chiang Mai has had a deep Buddhist influence running over the last 1,000 years and this can be felt in the helpfulness, patience and generosity of the Thai and long-term transplants you come across. The city has an active community scene (nomads, spiritual seekers, hikers, creatives), several mountains with hiking spots and waterfalls surrounding the city, over 20 water bodies inside the city -- many have cafes and walks around, several public parks, and over 13 national parks with campgrounds w
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 27° 81° 26° 79°AQI 78😷✈️12min$1,031 / mo67Mbps×Great for tourism, bad for living. The City has a fascinating contrast of old and new. You will never get bored, it’s easy to meet people and have fun. Infrastructure and food are great. Thai people are friendly and welcoming, even when it not always feels genuine. With that said, it’s not a good city for long term living. It’s too hot and humid. Felt air temperature is between 37°C-45°C almost year round during the day. It’s makes all outdoor activity unpleasant. Getting your daily d
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety goodTap to open🌥 Feels 31° 88° 30° 86°🥵AQI 81😷✈️55min$1,423 / mo81Mbps×Penang is really, really hot and humid. It's pretty affordable but it's relatively small. Personally, I think traveling Penang is great because you have a mix of cultures but I couldn't stay here for a longer time because it is so unbelievable hot.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😝 Cheap📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81°AQI 46✈️2h$986 / mo32Mbps×Hong Kong is a great city with dense urban areas but also nature and hiking routes only 15 minutes away. There are restaurants for every taste and budget, from the best US fast casual chains to high end Michelin star restaurants. It's also extremely safe, despite recent political instability.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🙂 Okay📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open🌥 Feels 22° 72° 22° 72°AQI 101😷✈️2h$2,872 / mo48Mbps×avoid going to the waterfalls with weed (or buying any on the way there) It's a very old trick the cops stop & search bikes on their way back. (while the locals try to sell you stuff on the way there)
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun bad👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 24° 75° 24° 75°AQI 39✈️12min$1,302 / mo27Mbps×I have heard of a friend of a friend that in France it is important to bring sandpaper and to have suitable medical insurance which covers eye reconstruction surgery. “Well worth a visit, would recommend”.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌧 Feels 4° 39° 6° 44°AQI 25✈️12h$5,085 / mo86Mbps×BA is the safest city in the world, just after Tijuana and Caracas! But if you ask the local Porteños, they'll assure you Argentina is THE BEST around the globe, whatever the matter in discussion. :-D With all the slums, poverty and ignorant population, a true 3rd world country, made of rude people, they didn't need to be so ridiculously arrogant. 😅
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety mediocreTap to open☀️ Feels 35° 95° 30° 86°🥵AQI 53😷✈️23h$1,658 / mo78Mbps×I would be a bit careful with Pattaya, because the Police are cracking down on foreign illegal workers, Expessialy from Russia, and that can accidentally put a remote worker like me in the crossfire. That means that a digital nomad can be deported on a misunderstanding, because the police in Pattaya is not so used to deal with a digital nomads like they are in Phuket, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai, they put you in the same basket as illegally working Russians and out with you. Apart from that i would
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌥 Feels 30° 86° 28° 82°AQI 79😷✈️1h$1,407 / mo32Mbps×Chiang Mai has had a deep Buddhist influence running over the last 1,000 years and this can be felt in the helpfulness, patience and generosity of the Thai and long-term transplants you come across. The city has an active community scene (nomads, spiritual seekers, hikers, creatives), several mountains with hiking spots and waterfalls surrounding the city, over 20 water bodies inside the city -- many have cafes and walks around, several public parks, and over 13 national parks with campgrounds w
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 27° 81° 26° 79°AQI 78😷✈️12min$1,031 / mo🌇 Also went here90 people×The most vietnamese city in Vietnam. The Old Quarter and West Lake are the highlights. If you come, try the egg coffee. Be mindful Vietnam has cracked down on visas, and it is not as friendly to foreigners. I was able to relax after I received a 5-year spousal visa.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun bad👮 Safety mediocreTap to open☀️ Feels 28° 82° 27° 80°AQI 191😷✈️52min$1,129 / mo🌇 Also went here50 people×Great for tourism, bad for living. The City has a fascinating contrast of old and new. You will never get bored, it’s easy to meet people and have fun. Infrastructure and food are great. Thai people are friendly and welcoming, even when it not always feels genuine. With that said, it’s not a good city for long term living. It’s too hot and humid. Felt air temperature is between 37°C-45°C almost year round during the day. It’s makes all outdoor activity unpleasant. Getting your daily d
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety goodTap to open🌥 Feels 31° 88° 30° 86°🥵AQI 81😷✈️55min$1,423 / mo🌇 Also went here88 people×The worst place that I've been to in Asia (& I've been to quite a few). Every interaction with a local is a sales pitch for something. Tuk tuk, massage, weed, food, prostitution, you name it. People look at you as a customer and nothing else. This is very different in other countries in South East Asia. I've had plenty of authentic, non-sales-pitchy interactions with locals in Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines or Thailand. None of that here. It feels like this place only exists to extract as much
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌥 Feels 32° 90° 29° 83°AQI 76😷✈️1h$1,200 / mo🌇 Also went here45 people×Stayed here for a month. It reminds me of a less-developed Bangkok. Although there are a lot of high-rise buildings being built at the moment. Very cheap place compared to lots of places in Asia however it's one of the most expensive places in Vietnam. I wouldn't stay here long term, good for a month but was ready to move on. Pros: - Cheap city - Has lots of bars and restaurants - Has some good day trips and activities - Safe - Very cheap Ubers Cons: - Can be extremely hot during the day which
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌧 Feels 36° 97° 30° 86°🥵AQI 6✈️2h$1,063 / mo🌇 Also went here43 people×I've been in Phuket for about a month now. Most of that time I've spent in Ka Ron and Kata beach area, but also have been to Chalong, Pa Tong, Rawai, and Kathu. Karon and Kata beaches are my favorite. Beaches are beautiful, especially Karon. Overall most everything is reasonably priced, but not the bargain I was told it is. I eventually found a hotel I like, where I pay 12-13 euro per night (below 500 baht atm) and that is by far the lowest I found for the quality I expect. Considering the loc
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety goodTap to open🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 80°🥵AQI 17✈️2h$1,876 / mo🌇 Also went here45 people×Very nice city, but as everyone says, a bit boring after awhile. It's comfortable and feels like the suburbs, with conveniences that you don't always find in SE Asian countries. Luxury shopping malls, excellent hospitals, and infrastructure, are all things that are not as common in other SE Asian countries, (although Bangkok, TH, has good malls and hospitals). KLCC is safe, from a solo female traveler, if you're careful. I stayed in the KLCC area and was advised by other KL nomads, to stay ins
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun bad👮 Safety mediocreTap to open🌧 Feels 32° 90° 28° 83°🥵AQI 54😷✈️2h$1,282 / mo🌇 Also went here62 people×So… amazing food. Great public transportation. Very clean. But very conformist. Self expression limited. The irony of seeing an exhibit on graffiti, yet no actual graffiti in the streets. And the causal racism especially if you’re brown. You could be British born but still expect to be sat far away from everyone else at cocktail bars, experience comments and have weird assumptions made.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🧐 Too expensive📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety greatTap to open🌧 Feels 31° 88° 27° 80°🥵AQI 25✈️3h$4,042 / mo🌇 Also went here52 people×Can’t recommend Ubud. It’s just the same overdeveloped and overpriced mentally isolated tourist trap that is Canggu, just a bit worse. If you have never been anywhere else, it might be okay for 2 weeks, but to any seasoned traveller it’s a the type of place you dread.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😙 Affordable📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open🌧 Feels 31° 88° 28° 83°AQI 113😷✈️5h$1,990 / mo🌇 Also went here39 people×Tokyo has so much to offer and so much to do. It is easily overwhelming. Whereas I usually take my first week to explore a place Tokyo’s sights just kept on going. I remember ending up in a hidden cocktail bar, a mexican rooftop party with 1 meter margaritas, spending a whole day going only to French places(?), visiting a store that only imported 2nd hand hiphop apparel, and throughout it all the best michelin star ramen. It just seemed endless, completely unrelated and incredibly fun. Six wee
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🙂 Okay📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety greatTap to open☀️ Feels 18° 64° 18° 65°AQI 16✈️6h$2,951 / mo🌇 Also went here36 people×Stayed for 2 weeks after almost a year n a half in LatAm. Beautiful city; great food options- especially for Asian food lovers. Plenty of authentic Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese options for about 50% of what you would pay in a Western city. Decent hostels will cost $11-$15 weekdays and between $18-$30 on weekends.... Good internet; beautiful architecture and people but it is true Hungarians can be very cold at times. Overall a good stay with many destinations just a quick and cheap flight/tr
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🙂 Okay📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun mediocre👮 Safety goodTap to open🌧 Feels 1° 34° 3° 38°AQI 80😷✈️10h$2,574 / mo🌇 Also went here41 people×I've been hanging out in Berlin on and off for 30 years. It is very safe for women. It is much friendlier than it used to be. There are loads of vegan restaurants now. The nightlife and specially jazz clubs are amazing! I have an excellent apartment to rent out in Wedding - which used to have a boring reputation but now is very cool.
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open🌨 Feels -3° 27° 0° 31°AQI 63😷✈️11h$3,904 / mo🌇 Also went here39 people×I recently visited Amsterdam for the third time (and the first time since 2018). I personally think it's a little overrated, but a cool place to visit nonetheless. The architecture is beautiful, and there are lots of good places to eat. I don't like the main area of the canals in the city centre; it smells of weed and is often packed. However, the outer edges - such as the Jordaan district - are less busy and more interesting in my opinion. One thing that surprised me is how much trash was o
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun good👮 Safety goodTap to open✈️11h$5,646 / mo🌇 Also went here37 people×I find it difficult to understand what people see in this city. The cost to benefit ratio is just so terribly bad! This is by far the most expensive city in Europe (especially in terms of rent), with hardly anything to offer in comparision with other cities like Barcelona, Lisbon or Warsaw. The weather is just average, with cold and windy winters and mediocre summers. It's difficult to come by restaurants that offer anything other than Indian fast food for a decent price - most places are just u
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 😳 Way too expensive📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open☀️ Feels 4° 39° 6° 43°AQI 25✈️12h$5,999 / mo🌇 Also went here41 people×Once you figure out housing (not an easy thing but doable, especially once you stop looking in the touristic areas), Lisbon is a very charming, safe (even though I'll admit this is getting worse in certain areas), and fun city to live in. In most neighbourhoods you have the feeling of living in a small town instead of an urban area. There's aways something to do or see so it's hard to be bored living here. I still find Lisbon (and Portugal in general), to be one of the most attractive places in
⭐️ OverallAll 💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey📡 InternetWiFi 🏎 Fast😀 Fun great👮 Safety goodTap to open🌥 Feels 18° 64° 18° 65°AQI 16✈️14h$3,361 / mo🌇 Also went here36 people×