---
title: "Living in Boracay (Malay) as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/boracay
description: "White Beach island with a cap on visitor numbers"
dataset: 2026.10.7 (2026-10-13)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Boracay (Malay), Philippines

Boracay (Malay) scores 51.5/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 848 of 1000 cities. Expect about $1,150 per month (country-level estimate), a nomad visa (Digital nomad visa (DNV)), and a measured median download speed of 13 Mbps.

Boracay is a 7 km island in Malay municipality with a famous 4 km White Beach, kitesurfing on the east side and plenty of cafés since the 2018 clean-up. It is expensive by Philippine standards and the rainy season from June to October brings rough seas.

Known for: White Beach, Kitesurfing at Bulabog, Visitor caps, Pricey for the Philippines.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 51.5 |
| Cost of living | 55 |
| Safety | 47 |
| Healthcare | 54 |
| Internet | 48 |
| Visa ease | 58 |
| Getting there & around | 33 |
| Climate | 25 |
| Air quality | 85 |
| Quality of life | 58 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $1,150 | country | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Central 1-bedroom rent | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Outskirts 1-bedroom rent (basis of the monthly total) | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Homicide rate (per 100k) | 4.31 | country | 2024 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 51 | country | 2025 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 69 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 66.4 | country | 2021 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 13 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 3.6 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Starlink residential service | Available | country | 2026-10 | [^9] |
| Nomad visa | Digital nomad visa (DNV) | country | 2026-10-13 | [^10] |
| Visa guide | [Philippines long-stay visa guide](https://nostos.navoy.io/visas/philippines) | country | 2026-10-13 | [^10] |
| Entry for US / EU / UK passports | 30 days / 30 days / 30 days | country | 2026-02 | [^11] |
| Non-stop destinations (MPH/KLO) | 6 | city | 2026-10 | [^12] |
| Restaurants within 3 km of the centre (OpenStreetMap) | 146 | city | 2026-10 | [^16] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 4 / 1 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^13] |
| Comfortable months | 3 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^14] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 11.6 | city | 2023 | [^15] |
| Human Development Index | 0.72 | country | 2023 | [^17] |
| English proficiency band | high | country | 2024 | [^18] |

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | 26.3 | 82 | 83 | yes |
| Feb | 26.4 | 59 | 81 | yes |
| Mar | 27.2 | 52 | 80 | yes |
| Apr | 28.4 | 57 | 77 | no |
| May | 29 | 225 | 78 | no |
| Jun | 28.4 | 371 | 82 | no |
| Jul | 27.9 | 461 | 84 | no |
| Aug | 27.8 | 388 | 85 | no |
| Sep | 27.7 | 382 | 84 | no |
| Oct | 27.8 | 341 | 83 | no |
| Nov | 27.8 | 208 | 84 | no |
| Dec | 27.1 | 207 | 85 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Godofredo P. Ramos Airport | MPH | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Kalibo International Airport | KLO | 2 | 1 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 6, of which 1 international (Wikipedia, 2026-10).

## Similar cities

- [Iloilo City](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/iloilo) (51.9) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/boracay-vs-iloilo)
- [Davao City](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/davao) (51.9) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/boracay-vs-davao)
- [Puerto Princesa](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/puerto-princesa) (52.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/boracay-vs-puerto-princesa)
- [Bacolod](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/bacolod) (49.2) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/bacolod-vs-boracay)
- [Angeles City (Clark)](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/angeles-city) (51.7) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/angeles-city-vs-boracay)

## FAQ

### How much does it cost to live in Boracay (Malay) as a digital nomad?

A single person typically spends about $1,150 per month in Boracay (Malay) (a country-level estimate for Philippines). That is a 55/100 cost score, where 100 is the cheapest city in the dataset.

### Is Boracay (Malay) safe for digital nomads?

Boracay (Malay) scores 47/100 on safety. Philippines records 4.31 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2024) and a political-stability score of 51/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does Philippines have a digital nomad visa?

Yes. Philippines offers the Digital nomad visa (DNV). Verify current rules with the issuing authority before applying. Full guide: https://nostos.navoy.io/visas/philippines

### How fast is the internet in Boracay (Malay)?

Measured median download speed in Boracay (Malay) was 13 Mbps (upload 3.6 Mbps) across 226,251 M-Lab tests in 2024. Measured speeds run below advertised plan speeds everywhere, so compare cities rather than reading the number as a plan.

### Is Starlink available in Boracay (Malay)?

Yes. Starlink's availability map lists residential service as available in Philippines (checked 2026-10), so a dish can serve as a backup line in Boracay (Malay). Check the exact address on starlink.com before ordering, since capacity varies by area.

### Which airports serve Boracay (Malay) and how many nonstop flights are there?

Boracay (Malay) is served by Godofredo P. Ramos Airport (MPH) with 5 nonstop destinations and Kalibo International Airport (KLO) with 2 nonstop destinations, 6 unique destinations across all of them, of which 1 are international. 0 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: Wikipedia, 2026-10.

### When is the best time of year to be in Boracay (Malay)?

The most comfortable months are Jan, Feb, Mar. Mean temperatures range from 79°F (26°C) in Jan to 84°F (29°C) in May (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Boracay (Malay) or Iloilo City: which is better for digital nomads?

Iloilo City is the city with the closest factor profile to Boracay (Malay) in this dataset. Which one wins depends on your weights; the comparison page puts every factor side by side with the numbers behind them.

## Plan a trip

[Where to stay in Boracay (Malay)](https://navoy.io/hotels/philippines/boracay) on Navoy, the AI travel planner behind Nostos.

## Sources

[^1]: City population (latest census or official estimate), Wikipedia (citing national statistics offices). CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^2]: 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level), WhereNext. CC BY 4.0. https://getwherenext.com/data/cost-of-living-2026 (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^3]: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows), WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^4]: Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, dataUNODC. UNODC data, free to reuse with attribution. https://data.unodc.org/datareport/hom-victim (retrieved 2026-10-12)
[^5]: Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100), World Bank. CC BY 4.0. https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^6]: UHC service coverage index, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/uhc-index-of-service-coverage (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^7]: Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/life-expectancy-at-birth-(years) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^8]: M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024), Measurement Lab. CC0 1.0. https://statistics.measurementlab.net/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^9]: Starlink availability map, SpaceX (Starlink). Factual status cited from starlink.com. https://www.starlink.com/map (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^10]: Nostos long-stay visa guides, Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/visas (retrieved 2026-10-04)
[^11]: Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations), Ilya Ilyankou (compiled from passportindex.org). MIT. https://github.com/ilyankou/passport-index-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^12]: Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables), Wikipedia contributors; countries via Wikidata. CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-24)
[^13]: Walkability and transit ratings (editorial), Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/methodology (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^14]: NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means), NASA Langley Research Center. Public domain (US Government). https://power.larc.nasa.gov/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^15]: SatPM2.5 satellite-derived annual PM2.5 (V6.GL.02.04), Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis. CC BY 4.0. https://sites.wustl.edu/acag/surface-pm2-5/ (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^16]: OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API), OpenStreetMap contributors. ODbL 1.0. https://overpass-api.de/ (retrieved 2026-10-02)
[^17]: Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023), United Nations Development Programme. CC BY 3.0 IGO. https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/documentation-and-downloads (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^18]: EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band), EF Education First. Proprietary; band cited as a fact with attribution. https://www.ef.com/epi/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/boracay