Nomad List| 🏆 Nomad Score™ | 172 reviews |
| 💵 Cost | |
| 📡 Internet | |
| 😝 Fun | |
| ⛅️ Temperature (now) | |
| 💦 Humidity (now) | |
| 💨 Air quality (now) | |
| 👌 Safety | |
| 👍 Quality of life | |
| 🚶 Walkability | |
| ✌️ Peace | |
| 🚦 Traffic safety | |
| 🏥 Hospitals | |
| 😄 Happiness | |
| 🍸 Nightlife | |
| 📶 Free WiFi in city | |
| 🖥 Places to work from | |
| ❄️ A/C or heating | |
| 😁 Friendly to foreigners | |
| 🙊 English speaking | |
| 🗯 Freedom of speech | |
| 🤚🏿🤚🏻 Racial tolerance | |
| 👩 Female friendly | |
| 🌈 LGBT friendly | |
| 🎅 Startup Score |
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| 🌍 Region | Asia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🚩 Country | China | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ⏱ Average trip duration | 4 days | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 📡 Internet speed (avg) | 2 Mbps | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ⛅️ Weather | 🌧 17°C 63°F + 💦 Humid (100%) + 💨 9km/h = Feels like 17°C 63°F | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💨 Air quality (now) | 👍 25 µg/m3 equal to 🚬 / day | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💨 Air quality (annual avg) | 👎 82 µg/m3 equal to 🚬 🚬 🚬 🚬 / day | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🔌 Power | 230V50Hz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🚕 Best taxi app | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 📱 Best wireless carrier | China Mobile | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💸 10 CNY in USD | USD 1.41 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🏧 Suggested ATM take out: CNY 1,000 | USD 141 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💸 Tipping | No | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💳 Cashless society | 💵 No, cash only (esp. for foreigners because WeChat is very hard to set up) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💻 Best coworking space | Regus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ☕️ Best coffee place | Starbucks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🚰 Safe tap water | 🚫 No, not drinkable | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ♻️ Return rate | 0% of visitors return | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 👨👩👧👦 Population | 3,300,000 people | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 👫 Gender ratio | 👨 56% 👱♀️ 44% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ⛪️ Religious government | Non-religious | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 🏠 Apartment listings | Ganji | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ✈️ Best short-haul air carrier | Hainan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ✈️ Best int'l air carrier | China Southern Airlines | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| outdoorsfoodcultureno-beachairportmildmild nowclean airgood air qualityslow internetcheap cost of livinglow crimehigh humiditymany menfriendly people | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 💵 Nomad Cost™ | $1,387 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for expat | $1,086 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for family | $2,568 / month |
| 💵 Cost of living for local | $734 / month |
| 🏠 1br studio rent in center | $451 / month |
| 🏢 Coworking | $70 / month |
| 🏨 Hotel | $478 / month |
| 🏨 Hotel | $22 / night |
| 🏠 Airbnb (300 listings) | $1,655 / month |
| 🏠 Airbnb | $54 / night |
| 🍝 Dinner | $3 |
| 🍹 Coca-Cola (0.3L) | $1 |
| 🍺 Beer (0.5L) | $3 |
| ☕️ Coffee | $4 |
Based on Kunming's cost of living, here's selected remote jobs that would cover your costs:
I lived in Hanoi for 3 full months and I really loved it. Hanoi has a big foreigner district called 'Tay Ho'. If what you are looking for is somewhat foreigner(English) friendly, the spot is yours. However I preferred to stay in the Japanese area that was full of good sushi. The charm of the city comes from the people. Vietnamese are aggressively kind and way too friendly. I even rented a piano from a local shop, placed it at home and played it. Took private Muythai lesson from a local gym where the instructor speak no single word of English. Had beautifully tasted egg coffee from a local coffee shop and delicious bun-cha, pho and bahn mi. Went to a local market to buy fruits and veggies. Had beers and hookah in the old quarter. Made a best friend with piano teacher and my bf's barber(!). Hanoi is the city that wonderful things happen :)
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌦 Feels 38° 100° 30° 86°🥵😷AQI 93✈️44min$1,025 / mo8MbpsI lived and worked (at a law firm) in Chengdu for about 3 months. I absolutely loved the city! It's so different from east coast China, especially given the Tibetan influences in many areas. I had a company arrange my apartment and registrations, but was a seamless process. I am a white, American male who speaks a decent bit of Mandarin, and I found the locals to be incredibly hospitable. China is general is extremely affordable for a Westerner, and Chengdu offers the luxuries of any large, Western city/metro area.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 26° 79° 24° 75°AQI 15✈️51min$945 / mo2MbpsDon't believe the prices on here for an apartment. 686 usd/month refers to an apartment in a high class condo, right in the city centre and seconds away from the BTS(train station). Just remember this, people working at supermarkets make 2 usd/per hour. If you want to live like a local, then you can save a lot of money. If you don't mind a 5-10 minute walk from the BTS, then you can easily get a one bedroom apartment for 300 USD per month, in a high class condo, plus with free golf cart service to the BTS station. I have literally gone to a restaurant to pay 8 USD for a meal, when the exact dish was available on the street for only 1 USD and tastes much better. I ate out everyday and went partying a couple of times a week, and my total monthly expenses was still under 1000 usd. TIPS -Gyms are fucking expensive in Thailand. Expect to pay at least 60 USD/month for the gym, which is crazy when you consider the average wage in Thailand is 15 usd/per day. -Vitamins and supplements cost double the price than what you would get at home. Thais do not take supplements. Maybe only foreigners and really rich Thais. People spending 1500 USD per month must be eating steak daily and hanging out at places meant for foreigners.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 49° 120° 35° 94°🥵😷AQI 67✈️2h$1,539 / mo24MbpsShanghai is a giant city and your experience really depends on a few factors like: 1) where you live in the city 2) do you speak basic Mandarin 3) do you make nice money 4) do you have to use the internet If you can afford to live in Jing'an or the French Concession, you can live a fashionable metropolitan lifestyle like you would in New York City. There's amazing food (Asian, Western and fusion). You'll be surrounded by entrepreneurs, artists, fashion designers and models. Many of whom do speak English. It gets better if you speak basic Mandarin though. You don't need to care about the characters. Just learn to speak, that's important enough. The nice thing about Mandarin is China is so big everyone has an accent, so for Chinese it really doesn't matter so much that you have one too. Depending on how and what kind of money you make, your experience also changes. Like most places in Asia, English teachers are the lowest rank in the hierarchy of foreigners here. Chinese know. But if you're an entrepreneur, even (or especially) an online one, that's high regarded. The problem with working online here is obviously the firewall which can make it very difficult. I've heard good stories about Shadowsocks which seems to work better than regular VPNs. The recent China vs. America tensions are in fact making people slightly more hostile against Western foreigners. But remember this is Shanghai, it's a metropolitan city, they're usually much less xenophobic than out in the country. Mostly Shanghainese are happy to embrace foreigners, become friends with them, as long as they speak English. And as long as you invest a lot of time. Just popping in and out like a nomad isn't necessarily going to work so well with Chinese. Relationships are long-term.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 25° 77° 22° 72°AQI 40✈️3h$1,928 / mo2MbpsI lived and worked (at a law firm) in Chengdu for about 3 months. I absolutely loved the city! It's so different from east coast China, especially given the Tibetan influences in many areas. I had a company arrange my apartment and registrations, but was a seamless process. I am a white, American male who speaks a decent bit of Mandarin, and I found the locals to be incredibly hospitable. China is general is extremely affordable for a Westerner, and Chengdu offers the luxuries of any large, Western city/metro area.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 26° 79° 24° 75°AQI 15✈️51min$945 / mo2MbpsReally friendly and social people, laid back, easy to get around, food is good, 4g is great. Heavy clouds for the 4 days I was here in December, which was depressing as hell.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 26° 79° 24° 76°😷AQI 55✈️3h$1,906 / mo20MbpsI lived in Hanoi for 3 full months and I really loved it. Hanoi has a big foreigner district called 'Tay Ho'. If what you are looking for is somewhat foreigner(English) friendly, the spot is yours. However I preferred to stay in the Japanese area that was full of good sushi. The charm of the city comes from the people. Vietnamese are aggressively kind and way too friendly. I even rented a piano from a local shop, placed it at home and played it. Took private Muythai lesson from a local gym where the instructor speak no single word of English. Had beautifully tasted egg coffee from a local coffee shop and delicious bun-cha, pho and bahn mi. Went to a local market to buy fruits and veggies. Had beers and hookah in the old quarter. Made a best friend with piano teacher and my bf's barber(!). Hanoi is the city that wonderful things happen :)
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌦 Feels 38° 100° 30° 86°🥵😷AQI 93✈️44min$1,025 / mo🌇 Also went here8 peopleI lived and worked (at a law firm) in Chengdu for about 3 months. I absolutely loved the city! It's so different from east coast China, especially given the Tibetan influences in many areas. I had a company arrange my apartment and registrations, but was a seamless process. I am a white, American male who speaks a decent bit of Mandarin, and I found the locals to be incredibly hospitable. China is general is extremely affordable for a Westerner, and Chengdu offers the luxuries of any large, Western city/metro area.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 26° 79° 24° 75°AQI 15✈️51min$945 / mo🌇 Also went here8 peopleI have been told it's the vanilla of digital nomads : easy, cheap, risk free. I loved it so much I want to move there ! Great food, great places to see and awesomely polite and nice people.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 46° 115° 33° 91°🥵AQI 40✈️1h$1,171 / mo🌇 Also went here10 peopleDon't believe the prices on here for an apartment. 686 usd/month refers to an apartment in a high class condo, right in the city centre and seconds away from the BTS(train station). Just remember this, people working at supermarkets make 2 usd/per hour. If you want to live like a local, then you can save a lot of money. If you don't mind a 5-10 minute walk from the BTS, then you can easily get a one bedroom apartment for 300 USD per month, in a high class condo, plus with free golf cart service to the BTS station. I have literally gone to a restaurant to pay 8 USD for a meal, when the exact dish was available on the street for only 1 USD and tastes much better. I ate out everyday and went partying a couple of times a week, and my total monthly expenses was still under 1000 usd. TIPS -Gyms are fucking expensive in Thailand. Expect to pay at least 60 USD/month for the gym, which is crazy when you consider the average wage in Thailand is 15 usd/per day. -Vitamins and supplements cost double the price than what you would get at home. Thais do not take supplements. Maybe only foreigners and really rich Thais. People spending 1500 USD per month must be eating steak daily and hanging out at places meant for foreigners.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 49° 120° 35° 94°🥵😷AQI 67✈️2h$1,539 / mo🌇 Also went here13 peopleHo Chi Minh City is clearly the place to be right now. What I like most is the diversity : there are quiet places, busy places, cheap places, fancy places. Above all, the most important thing for a digital nomad is the Internet and it's almost perfect (there are some breakdowns a few seconds here and there) but overall it's pretty fast. You can feel a great vibe, there is just the right balance between chaos and comfort. Highly recommend.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 49° 120° 34° 93°🥵😷AQI 52✈️2h$1,024 / mo🌇 Also went here10 peopleShanghai is a giant city and your experience really depends on a few factors like: 1) where you live in the city 2) do you speak basic Mandarin 3) do you make nice money 4) do you have to use the internet If you can afford to live in Jing'an or the French Concession, you can live a fashionable metropolitan lifestyle like you would in New York City. There's amazing food (Asian, Western and fusion). You'll be surrounded by entrepreneurs, artists, fashion designers and models. Many of whom do speak English. It gets better if you speak basic Mandarin though. You don't need to care about the characters. Just learn to speak, that's important enough. The nice thing about Mandarin is China is so big everyone has an accent, so for Chinese it really doesn't matter so much that you have one too. Depending on how and what kind of money you make, your experience also changes. Like most places in Asia, English teachers are the lowest rank in the hierarchy of foreigners here. Chinese know. But if you're an entrepreneur, even (or especially) an online one, that's high regarded. The problem with working online here is obviously the firewall which can make it very difficult. I've heard good stories about Shadowsocks which seems to work better than regular VPNs. The recent China vs. America tensions are in fact making people slightly more hostile against Western foreigners. But remember this is Shanghai, it's a metropolitan city, they're usually much less xenophobic than out in the country. Mostly Shanghainese are happy to embrace foreigners, become friends with them, as long as they speak English. And as long as you invest a lot of time. Just popping in and out like a nomad isn't necessarily going to work so well with Chinese. Relationships are long-term.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 25° 77° 22° 72°AQI 40✈️3h$1,928 / mo🌇 Also went here14 peopleDefinitely an underrated place for nomads - Huge city with a small town feel. Lots of different neighborhoods to appeal to different types of people: some commercial, some hipstery, some historical, some modern. Food and rent is cheap (and the food is damn good). People are very friendly as compared to other big Asian cities. You can also get easy work as a tutor and make good extra cash. I survived for five months tutoring and doing other English related work for max 12 hrs a week (leaving me lots of time to work on other projects). You could also easily get a full time teaching gig but that defeats the whole nomad idea i guess. My favorite area is Gulou, or the Drum Tower. Old, local style with ancient buildings and some great cafes.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌤 Feels 20° 68° 19° 66°AQI 49✈️3h$2,168 / mo🌇 Also went here13 peopleI think KL will be the next hub for nomads. It's affordable, safe, convenient, has decent Internet and has decent weather. (Yes it's hot during the summer but it gives you a good reason to be inside and get your work done) Mostly it's quite chill, not as hectic and messy as other major SEA cities like Bangkok, Hanoi and Jakarta. There's not that much to do, but Malaysia has wonderful nature and getaway places, accessible with cheap AirAsia tickets from KL.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 49° 120° 34° 93°🥵✈️3h$1,284 / mo🌇 Also went here10 peopleThe Diet Coke of Asia. Zero crime, English spoken everywhere. Reliable public transport. Some nice spots for off-the-beaten-path walking and hiking. But also clinical, authoritarian, money-minded and very costly. Companies and shopkeepers will always do what's good for them (or makes their own life easier); not what's good for the customer. People avoid eye contact and are generally overworked and miserable. After a while, crossing over to Malaysia's neighboring Johor will, warts and all, feel like a breath of fresh air ("Yes! Space! I can move! I can breathe!").
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 44° 111° 33° 91°🥵AQI 31✈️4h$2,864 / mo🌇 Also went here12 peopleSpend a few hours and learn the Korean alphabet (not that hard) and Google some names of Korean dishes + it's spelling in Korean. It will help a lot as most restaurants only have Korean menu's and often without pictures. As mentioned previously on the reviews, it's a little hard to eat alone, but Gimbab Chonguk (김밥천국) is everywhere and 24/7 - no one will bat an eye. Also look for places that "specialises" in dumplings, They are usually "alone-eating" friendly. And so are ramen places as well as Korean "chinese" restaurants - Jajangmyeon (자장면) is very good and super addictive. Bibimbab restaurant places are fine too. Actually, it's not that hard to eat alone in Korea. The "group" meals are generally quite obvious and will be things like BBQ. You'll figure it out. Do Get used to kimchi and spicy food otherwise you'll end up eating the same thing all the time. Be adventurous. Challenge yourself and eat an octopus alive (산낙지). If you're really brave try 보신탕 before authorities close them all - I haven't but a lot of Weagukins (foreigners) secret do. Cafe's generally have really good wifi, as you would expect from one of the most connected countries in the world. Expect to pay $4-6 for a latte and maybe even more at Starbucks. Best cafe's are usually around Hipster areas and Universities. Indie owned cafe's are awesome. Nightlife is great, probably amongst the best in Asia. Can get very expensive especially at night clubs in Gangnam where it would could be like $10 for a beer - in that case you can still get drunk for $2 with soju just outside at 7Eleven. Winters are stupidly cold and summers can be brutally hot & humid. Go between April and June or September to October. They have cherry blossoms in spring which is beautiful and so are the autumn leaves. Lived here for many years. It's a cool place and vastly underrated. Seoul is continuously becoming more expensive and cost of living will soon be comparable with places like Tokyo.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 20° 68° 20° 68°AQI 37✈️4h$2,374 / mo🌇 Also went here9 peopleUbud is great for older nomads over 35 who are over the party scene. It has great amenities like coworking spaces (HUBUD and Outpost), a dope-ass gym (Titi Batu) and some of the best yoga studios in the world (Yoga Barn and Radiantly Alive). And that's not even mentioning the food, which is incredible. Cons: no Uber or metered taxis so getting around is a total pain and the wild dogs at night can be treacherous. Overall, I don't understand why it's slipped in the rankings bc it really is awesome.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 44° 111° 33° 92°🥵AQI 21✈️5h$1,636 / mo🌇 Also went here9 peopleI lived between Budapest and Szeged for a year. The public transportation and city vibes kept me alive while the winter weather almost killed me in winter. Definitely get out before it gets cold. Spring to Fall you can visit Lake Balaton and their wine country for some nature, Szeged or Pecs for a college town vibe, heaps of cafes and outdoor restaurants. The pastries and food markets. The thermal baths are great and not too expensive, great parks to visit, nightlife options, and music festivals. Cost of living is great when you're making US level wages, my roommates and I lived like kings and queens. Many locals are hostile towards foreigners, especially NGO expats (the wage gap is large between locals and expats). However, most are polite and some even cordial. The younger generation can speak English, the older generation cannot - based on my experience. The Hungarian language is a beautiful queer thing that I could never tire of. I loved it and would have stayed longer given the chance. Honestly - cannot wait to go visit and return to Hungary when I get a chance.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌥 Feels 25° 77° 23° 74°AQI 43✈️10h$1,532 / mo🌇 Also went here8 peopleI have been living in London for over 2 years as a student. It's ridiculously expensive. However, there are options. What I like about the city is you can find many events anytime you want. It's active all year 24/7. There are so many foreigners and tourists which make the living more vibrant and less racist. London has sub-communities which I think is a good thing. Those communities bring their cultures, ethics and foods. Public transportation and restaurants are great. I used to spend 3-4 hours in Costa or Nero cafe without interruptions. Though if it's raining or summer season it could be hard to stay long. On the negative side, the UK suffers from slow and old bureaucracies making life difficult sometimes. It's not easy to open a bank account or to rent. The government systems are slow. Also, you will feel depressed in winter when the sunset is before 4pm and the temperature is 0c. All in all, everything is great about the city except the affordability and the winter.
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 16° 61° 16° 61°AQI 38✈️12h$4,113 / mo🌇 Also went here9 peopleBest city in the world! You can certainly live the Nomad life in NYC for a lot less than 5k a month! I've been doing it since December 2018 for around $2500/mo. AirBnB is the way to go!
🎒 Nomad 💵 Cost 📡 Internet 😀 Fun 👮 Safety 🌧 Feels 24° 75° 21° 69°🥵AQI 43✈️17h$5,394 / mo🌇 Also went here11 people✅ Affordable to live
✅ Very safe
✅ Warm in the spring
✅ Good air quality today
✅ Spacious and not crowded
✅ Easy to do business
✅ High quality of education
✅ Safe for women
❌ Very slow internet
❌ Pretty slow internet
❌ Not much to do
❌ Very humid now
❌ Bad air quality usually
❌ Not many nomads go here
❌ Difficult to make friends
❌ Hospitals are pretty bad
❌ Roads can be dangerous
❌ Freedom of speech is weak
❌ Not very democratic
❌ People don't speak English well
❌ Hostile towards LGBT
❌ People smoking tobacco a lot
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