Best of
Best places to live for remote workers (2026)
A different optimization from the nomad ranking: it assumes you settle for years, so it weights infrastructure, time-zone convenience and tax structure.
Why this list matters
Settling beats nomading for many remote workers — community, schools, tax-residency clarity, friendships. This list optimizes for the multi-year version of the remote-work decision, not the 3-month visa flex.
Time-zone overlap is a real factor (see each city page's overlap table) but doesn't fit into a composite — pair this listicle with the per-city timezone block.
Composite re-weighted for long-term remote-worker settlement: internet 30%, safety 20%, healthcare 20%, tax-affordability 15%, cost-affordability 15%. Distinct from the digital-nomad score which emphasizes raw cost over institutional strength.
| # | City | Remote-settle score | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  TaipeiTaiwan | 89/100 | Taiwan |
| 2 |  SeoulSouth Korea | 87/100 | South Korea |
| 3 |  DubaiUnited Arab Emirates | 86/100 | United Arab Emirates |
| 4 | Abu DhabiUnited Arab Emirates | 86/100 | United Arab Emirates |
| 5 | BusanSouth Korea | 86/100 | South Korea |
| 6 |  TokyoJapan | 85/100 | Japan |
| 7 | OsakaJapan | 85/100 | Japan |
| 8 |  TallinnEstonia | 85/100 | Estonia |
| 9 |  SingaporeSingapore | 84/100 | Singapore |
| 10 |  AmsterdamNetherlands | 82/100 | Netherlands |
| 11 |  ZurichSwitzerland | 81/100 | Switzerland |
| 12 |  BangkokThailand | 81/100 | Thailand |
| 13 |  Hong KongHong Kong | 79/100 | Hong Kong |
| 14 |  ValenciaSpain | 79/100 | Spain |
| 15 | MadridSpain | 79/100 | Spain |
| 16 | BarcelonaSpain | 78/100 | Spain |
| 17 | RotterdamNetherlands | 78/100 | Netherlands |
| 18 |  GothenburgSweden | 78/100 | Sweden |
| 19 |  Cluj-NapocaRomania | 77/100 | Romania |
| 20 |  LyonFrance | 77/100 | France |
| 21 |  BudapestHungary | 76/100 | Hungary |
| 22 |  MunichGermany | 76/100 | Germany |
| 23 |  AustinUnited States | 76/100 | United States |
| 24 | ParisFrance | 76/100 | France |
| 25 |  WarsawPoland | 76/100 | Poland |
| 26 | GenevaSwitzerland | 76/100 | Switzerland |
| 27 |  JeddahSaudi Arabia | 75/100 | Saudi Arabia |
| 28 | BucharestRomania | 75/100 | Romania |
| 29 | RiyadhSaudi Arabia | 75/100 | Saudi Arabia |
| 30 |  PortoPortugal | 75/100 | Portugal |
| 31 | LisbonPortugal | 75/100 | Portugal |
| 32 | SeattleUnited States | 75/100 | United States |
| 33 |  CopenhagenDenmark | 74/100 | Denmark |
| 34 | FrankfurtGermany | 74/100 | Germany |
| 35 |  OsloNorway | 73/100 | Norway |
| 36 | HamburgGermany | 73/100 | Germany |
| 37 | ChicagoUnited States | 73/100 | United States |
| 38 |  Tel AvivIsrael | 73/100 | Israel |
| 39 | MiamiUnited States | 72/100 | United States |
| 40 |  VancouverCanada | 72/100 | Canada |
| 41 | MontrealCanada | 72/100 | Canada |
| 42 | Chiang MaiThailand | 72/100 | Thailand |
| 43 |  Kuala LumpurMalaysia | 72/100 | Malaysia |
| 44 | Los AngelesUnited States | 71/100 | United States |
| 45 | BerlinGermany | 71/100 | Germany |
| 46 | DebrecenHungary | 71/100 | Hungary |
| 47 |  ShanghaiChina | 70/100 | China |
| 48 | BeijingChina | 70/100 | China |
| 49 | New YorkUnited States | 70/100 | United States |
| 50 |  SalzburgAustria | 70/100 | Austria |
| 51 |  EdinburghUnited Kingdom | 70/100 | United Kingdom |
| 52 | StockholmSweden | 69/100 | Sweden |
| 53 | San FranciscoUnited States | 69/100 | United States |
| 54 |  FlorenceItaly | 69/100 | Italy |
| 55 | KrakowPoland | 68/100 | Poland |
| 56 |  PragueCzech Republic | 67/100 | Czech Republic |
| 57 | ManchesterUnited Kingdom | 67/100 | United Kingdom |
| 58 |  SantiagoChile | 67/100 | Chile |
| 59 |  DublinIreland | 67/100 | Ireland |
| 60 | TorontoCanada | 66/100 | Canada |
| 61 | LondonUnited Kingdom | 66/100 | United Kingdom |
| 62 | ValparaisoChile | 66/100 | Chile |
| 63 |  WellingtonNew Zealand | 65/100 | New Zealand |
| 64 | BrnoCzech Republic | 65/100 | Czech Republic |
| 65 | PenangMalaysia | 65/100 | Malaysia |
| 66 | ViennaAustria | 64/100 | Austria |
| 67 | AucklandNew Zealand | 63/100 | New Zealand |
| 68 | RomeItaly | 63/100 | Italy |
| 69 | MilanItaly | 62/100 | Italy |
| 70 |  AntwerpBelgium | 61/100 | Belgium |
| 71 |  BangaloreIndia | 61/100 | India |
| 72 | CorkIreland | 61/100 | Ireland |
| 73 |  MelbourneAustralia | 60/100 | Australia |
| 74 | BrisbaneAustralia | 60/100 | Australia |
| 75 |  MedellinColombia | 59/100 | Colombia |
| 76 | BrusselsBelgium | 58/100 | Belgium |
| 77 |  HanoiVietnam | 58/100 | Vietnam |
| 78 | SydneyAustralia | 58/100 | Australia |
| 79 |  São PauloBrazil | 57/100 | Brazil |
| 80 | Ho Chi Minh CityVietnam | 57/100 | Vietnam |
| 81 |  Mexico CityMexico | 57/100 | Mexico |
| 82 | BogotaColombia | 57/100 | Colombia |
| 83 | Rio de JaneiroBrazil | 57/100 | Brazil |
| 84 |  Buenos AiresArgentina | 56/100 | Argentina |
| 85 |  AthensGreece | 56/100 | Greece |
| 86 |  ArequipaPeru | 55/100 | Peru |
| 87 | GuadalajaraMexico | 55/100 | Mexico |
| 88 | MumbaiIndia | 54/100 | India |
| 89 | CordobaArgentina | 53/100 | Argentina |
| 90 | LimaPeru | 53/100 | Peru |
| 91 |  BaliIndonesia | 53/100 | Indonesia |
| 92 |  MarrakechMorocco | 53/100 | Morocco |
| 93 |  AnkaraTurkey | 52/100 | Turkey |
| 94 | DelhiIndia | 52/100 | India |
| 95 | JakartaIndonesia | 52/100 | Indonesia |
| 96 | ThessalonikiGreece | 51/100 | Greece |
| 97 |  CairoEgypt | 51/100 | Egypt |
| 98 |  CebuPhilippines | 51/100 | Philippines |
| 99 | CasablancaMorocco | 51/100 | Morocco |
| 100 | IstanbulTurkey | 51/100 | Turkey |
| 101 | ManilaPhilippines | 50/100 | Philippines |
| 102 |  Cape TownSouth Africa | 50/100 | South Africa |
| 103 | AlexandriaEgypt | 50/100 | Egypt |
| 104 | JohannesburgSouth Africa | 48/100 | South Africa |
The top three, in context
Dubai's zero personal income tax + modern infrastructure + Virtual Working Programme make the math compelling. Heat is the friction; July-September lifestyle is indoor.
Remote-settle ≠ digital-nomad. If you're not committing 2+ years, the digital-nomad score and visa accessibility are more relevant than the settlement-focused factors here.
Related rankings
Want a different angle? Browse the full /best directory. Or run the numbers for your own city + lifestyle in the salary calculator.