So you’ve secured your remote job! You can live and work from anywhere in the world! How exciting yet, completely overwhelming. With so many options available, how do you choose where you want to be? If you’re like me, and you want to take advantage of your ability to travel the world WHILE you work, you know this feeling. It’s called the paradox of choice and although everyone keeps saying how “lucky” you are, you feel a little stuck deciding where you should set up your remote work station.
The good news is since you are location independent, you aren’t required to stay in any one place for too long if you don’t like it! I’ve been lucky enough to test out living in a variety of cities over the past few years thanks to my remote job and unless you’re absolutely certain about where you want to be, I would recommend you test out multiple places while you can!
If you need help deciding where to base yourself, here’s my list of 5 of the best places to be as a remote worker inspired by my personal experience and the experience of my remote work friends!
Budapest
Budapest is THE BEST! I fell in love with this city while working remotely from different cafes and coworking spaces a few summers ago. There is a growing community of expats and digital nomads working from this beautiful city where you’ll find a Western European lifestyle without Western European prices.
Whether it’s cafes that are comfortable with you sitting at a table for hours at a time to mooch off their Wi-Fi, shared workspaces or simply a quiet corner of a library, Budapest has a wide selection of options for remote workers making it one of the best places to work remotely!
Some of my favorite places to work around Budapest are listed below! And here is a link to a Facebook group for remote workers in Budapest!
Medelliín
The community of digital nomads living in Medellin, Colombia is said to be one of the best. It is one of the most active remote worker communities with frequent events, meetups, parties, networking opportunities, etc! A simple search on Facebook Groups will show you a variety of digital nomad/ex-pat groups you can join!
Medellin is one of the best places for remote workers due to the beautiful weather that averages around 75 degrees all year, affordable cost of living, reliable wifi and a plethora of things to do around the city. Medellin also is a great option if your clients are based in North America because its time zone rotates from Central to Eastern time zones throughout the year!
Unfortunately during my time in Colombia, I only had the chance to visit Cartagena and the Caribbean coast, but I have heard nothing but great things from my friends and fellow remote workers who have set up shop in Medellin!
Here are some of the best places to work there:
Austin
Austin supports a thriving gig economy and was recently named by Indeed.com as the #2 best U.S. city for remote workers. The number of employees working remotely in the Austin area has risen 78 percent in the last 10 years, resulting in a demand for a variety of inspiring coworking spaces and cafes to cater to them!
Austin is a great option for US remote workers who don’t want to go through the trouble of securing a VISA to work long-term from a foreign country. It is also one of my all-time favorite cities because of it’s vibrant nightlife, eclectic bars & restaurants, unique people, the plethora of events & conferences happening year-round, and the warmer weather!
Here are some of my favorite places to work from in Austin, TX:
Lisbon
Whenever I talk to my digital nomad friends, they ALWAYS recommend working in Lisbon for at least a month or two. This city is rapidly becoming one of Europe’s largest startup and remote worker hubs, so you’ll find a strong community when you get there!
Though I haven’t been able to experience the city on my own yet, I trust the rave reviews I’ve received and can’t wait to work from Lisbon someday soon! Here are the best places to work remotely in Lisbon (as recommended by my remote work friends!)
Coworking Spaces:
Cafes
Chang Mai
I can’t write a list of the best places to live as a remote worker without mentioning Chang Mai. People flock from all over the world for the cheap cost of living, fast Internet speeds, world-class food, unique culture, and the active community of people who work remotely. It also boasts an abundance of coffee shops and coworking spaces.
According to many of my friends and coworkers who have relocated to Chiang Mai, it is very easy, as there is a well-established community and it’s easy to find short-term rentals. This city would be a great “first move” if you are just starting your remote work journey.
Here are some great places to work there:
There are plenty of other incredible cities around the world that offer great remote work environments as well. I chose these 5 cities in different areas of the world because each of them offer warm weather, affordability (minus Austin nowadays), their digital nomad communities, cool coworking cafes and spaces, and their access to events & networking opportunities!
Good luck with your new home and if you recommend some other cities for remote workers, please let me know!
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