---
title: "Living in Yogyakarta as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/yogyakarta
description: "Java's cultural capital on a student budget"
dataset: 2026.09.4 (2026-09-26)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Yogyakarta scores 46.6/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 269 of 309 cities. Expect about $1,000 per month (country-level estimate), a nomad visa (Visa Rumah Kedua Pekerja Jarak Jauh), and a measured median download speed of 11.4 Mbps.

Yogyakarta is Java's arts and university city with ancient temples nearby and some of the lowest costs in Asia. Pace is slow and English is limited.

Known for: Borobudur and Prambanan, Batik and arts, Very cheap, Quiet nightlife.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 46.6 |
| Cost of living | 67 |
| Safety | 50 |
| Healthcare | 53 |
| Internet | 39 |
| Visa ease | 22 |
| Getting there & around | 15 |
| Climate | 50 |
| Air quality | 78 |
| Quality of life | 45 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $1,000 | 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) | 4.1 | country | 2021 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 55.5 | country | 2024 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 67 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 68.3 | country | 2021 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 11.4 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 5.7 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Nomad visa | Visa Rumah Kedua Pekerja Jarak Jauh (min $4,998/mo) | country | 2026-07 | [^9] |
| Visa-free days US / EU / UK | visa or e-visa required / visa or e-visa required / visa or e-visa required | editorial | 2026-02 | [^10] |
| Non-stop destinations (JOG) | 3 | city | 2026-09 | [^11] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 3 / 2 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^12] |
| Comfortable months | 6 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^13] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 14.7 | city | 2023 | [^14] |
| Human Development Index | 0.728 | country | 2023 | [^15] |
| English proficiency band | low | country | 2024 | [^16] |

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | 26 | 346 | 86 | no |
| Feb | 26.1 | 342 | 87 | no |
| Mar | 26.2 | 222 | 86 | no |
| Apr | 26.5 | 191 | 86 | no |
| May | 26.1 | 148 | 85 | yes |
| Jun | 25.3 | 96 | 84 | yes |
| Jul | 24.6 | 55 | 82 | yes |
| Aug | 24.7 | 31 | 77 | yes |
| Sep | 25.6 | 66 | 75 | yes |
| Oct | 26.4 | 140 | 77 | yes |
| Nov | 26.5 | 231 | 82 | no |
| Dec | 26.1 | 294 | 86 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Adisutjipto Airport | JOG | 3 | 0 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 3, of which 0 international (Wikipedia, 2026-09).

## Similar cities

- [Ubud (Bali)](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/ubud) (50.1) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/ubud-vs-yogyakarta)
- [Canggu (Bali)](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/canggu) (49.4) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/canggu-vs-yogyakarta)
- [Accra](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/accra) (39.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/accra-vs-yogyakarta)
- [Agadir](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/agadir) (50.4) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/agadir-vs-yogyakarta)
- [Davao City](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/davao) (44.1) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/davao-vs-yogyakarta)

## FAQ

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

A single person typically spends about $1,000 per month in Yogyakarta (a country-level estimate for Indonesia). That is a 67/100 cost score, where 100 is the cheapest city in the dataset.

### Is Yogyakarta safe for digital nomads?

Yogyakarta scores 50/100 on safety. Indonesia records 4.1 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2021) and a political-stability score of 55.5/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does Indonesia have a digital nomad visa?

Yes. Indonesia offers the Visa Rumah Kedua Pekerja Jarak Jauh with a minimum income of about $4,998 per month. Verify current rules with the issuing authority before applying.

### How fast is the internet in Yogyakarta?

Measured median download speed in Yogyakarta was 11.4 Mbps (upload 5.7 Mbps) across 179,034 M-Lab tests in 2024. Measured speeds run below advertised plan speeds everywhere, so compare cities rather than reading the number as a plan.

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

Yogyakarta is served by Adisutjipto Airport (JOG) with 3 nonstop destinations, of which 0 are international. 0 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: Wikipedia, 2026-09.

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

The most comfortable months are May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct. Mean temperatures range from 76°F (25°C) in Jul to 80°F (27°C) in Apr (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Yogyakarta or Ubud (Bali): which is better for digital nomads?

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

## 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]: Digital Nomad Visas 2026, WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^10]: 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)
[^11]: 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)
[^12]: Walkability and transit ratings (editorial), Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/methodology (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^13]: NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means), NASA Langley Research Center. Public domain (US Government). https://power.larc.nasa.gov/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^14]: 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 2026-09-26)
[^15]: 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)
[^16]: 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/yogyakarta