---
title: "Living in Nosy Be as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/nosy-be
description: "Madagascar's resort island of ylang-ylang, lemurs and Italian tourism"
dataset: 2026.10.7 (2026-10-13)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Nosy Be, Madagascar

Nosy Be scores 44.3/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 953 of 1000 cities. There is no open cost-of-living figure yet; expect no dedicated nomad visa, and a measured median download speed of 9 Mbps.

Nosy Be is a volcanic island off Madagascar's northwest coast and its main beach destination, with lemur reserves, diving off Nosy Tanikely and Italian-run resorts around Ambatoloaka. It is one of the few places in Madagascar with direct flights from Europe and decent hotel Wi-Fi, but it is pricey by Malagasy standards, far from the mainland parks, and the December to April rains bring cyclones.

Known for: Lemur reserves (Lokobe, Nosy Komba), Diving and whale sharks, Ylang-ylang plantations, Direct flights from Europe.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 44.3 |
| Cost of living | — |
| Safety | 47 |
| Healthcare | 28 |
| Internet | 44 |
| Visa ease | 34 |
| Getting there & around | 24 |
| Climate | 67 |
| Air quality | 100 |
| Quality of life | 11 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | — | 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) | 6.1 | country | 2021 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 56.4 | country | 2025 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 33 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 62.9 | country | 2021 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 9 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 4.9 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Starlink residential service | Available | country | 2026-10 | [^9] |
| Nomad visa | none listed | country | 2026-07 | [^10] |
| Entry for US / EU / UK passports | visa on arrival / visa on arrival / visa on arrival | country | 2026-02 | [^11] |
| Non-stop destinations (NOS) | 7 | city | 2026-08 | [^12] |
| Restaurants within 3 km of the centre (OpenStreetMap) | 0 | city | 2026-10 | [^16] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 2 / 1 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^13] |
| Comfortable months | 8 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^14] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 5.1 | city | 2023 | [^15] |
| Human Development Index | 0.487 | country | 2023 | [^17] |
| English proficiency band | low | country | 2024 | [^18] |

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | 27 | 309 | 83 | no |
| Feb | 27.1 | 247 | 83 | no |
| Mar | 27.3 | 235 | 82 | no |
| Apr | 27.5 | 83 | 77 | yes |
| May | 27 | 31 | 73 | yes |
| Jun | 25.7 | 13 | 69 | yes |
| Jul | 24.8 | 10 | 69 | yes |
| Aug | 24.9 | 8 | 69 | yes |
| Sep | 25.5 | 13 | 70 | yes |
| Oct | 26.4 | 27 | 72 | yes |
| Nov | 27.1 | 101 | 75 | yes |
| Dec | 27.2 | 237 | 80 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nosy Be Airport | NOS | 7 | 6 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 7, of which 6 international (Wikipedia, 2026-08).

## Similar cities

- [Tofo](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/tofo) (48.1) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/nosy-be-vs-tofo)
- [Lilongwe](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/lilongwe) (43.8) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/lilongwe-vs-nosy-be)
- [Maputo](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/maputo) (46) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/maputo-vs-nosy-be)
- [Harare](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/harare) (41.9) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/harare-vs-nosy-be)
- [Dar es Salaam](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/dar-es-salaam) (48.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/dar-es-salaam-vs-nosy-be)

## FAQ

### How much does it cost to live in Nosy Be as a digital nomad?

We do not have a reliable monthly cost figure for Nosy Be yet.

### Is Nosy Be safe for digital nomads?

Nosy Be scores 47/100 on safety. Madagascar records 6.1 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2021) and a political-stability score of 56.4/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does Madagascar have a digital nomad visa?

No dedicated digital nomad visa was listed for Madagascar as of 2026-07. Visitors from the US get a visa on arrival.

### How fast is the internet in Nosy Be?

Measured median download speed in Nosy Be was 9 Mbps (upload 4.9 Mbps) across 44,323 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 Nosy Be?

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

### Which airports serve Nosy Be and how many nonstop flights are there?

Nosy Be is served by Nosy Be Airport (NOS) with 7 nonstop destinations, of which 6 are international. 0 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: Wikipedia, 2026-08.

### When is the best time of year to be in Nosy Be?

The most comfortable months are Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov. Mean temperatures range from 77°F (25°C) in Jul to 82°F (28°C) in Apr (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Nosy Be or Tofo: which is better for digital nomads?

Tofo is the city with the closest factor profile to Nosy Be 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 Nosy Be](https://navoy.io/hotels/madagascar/nosy-be) 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]: Estimates of rates of homicides per 100 000 population, 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/estimates-of-rates-of-homicides-per-100-000-population (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^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]: Digital Nomad Visas 2026, WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^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/nosy-be