NavoyNostos

Aswan vs Marsa Alam

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Marsa Alam edges it, 47 to 45, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Aswan is stronger on air quality; Marsa Alam on climate, getting there & around. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 8.2 of 45 points (scores 74/100)Safety: 5.2 of 45 points (scores 47/100)Healthcare: 6.6 of 45 points (scores 60/100)Internet: 4.2 of 45 points (scores 37/100)Visa ease: 3.8 of 45 points (scores 34/100)Getting there & around: 2.4 of 45 points (scores 22/100)Climate: 5.6 of 45 points (scores 50/100)Air quality: 4.0 of 45 points (scores 36/100)Quality of life: 5.4 of 45 points (scores 49/100)45
Aswan
out of 100

Nubian Nile city with winter sun, feluccas and the gateway to Abu Simbel

Full Aswan profile →Where to stay in Aswan →
Cost of living: 8.2 of 47 points (scores 74/100)Safety: 5.2 of 47 points (scores 47/100)Healthcare: 6.6 of 47 points (scores 60/100)Internet: 4.9 of 47 points (scores 44/100)Visa ease: 3.8 of 47 points (scores 34/100)Getting there & around: 3.5 of 47 points (scores 32/100)Climate: 7.4 of 47 points (scores 67/100)Air quality: 1.8 of 47 points (scores 16/100)Quality of life: 5.4 of 47 points (scores 49/100)47
Marsa Alam
out of 100

Remote southern Red Sea diving village with an international airport and little else

Full Marsa Alam profile →Where to stay in Marsa Alam →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Cost of living7474
Safety4747
Healthcare6060
Internet3744 ✓
Visa ease3434
Getting there & around2232 ✓
Climate5067 ✓
Air quality36 ✓16
Quality of life4949

Cost

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$700$700
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Homicides per 100k4.24.2
Political stability (0–100)5050
UHC service coverage (0–100)7171
Life expectancy69.1 yrs69.1 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Download7.9 Mbps12.1 Mbps ✓
Upload1.4 Mbps1.6 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival
Entry, EU passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival
Entry, UK passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival

Getting there and around

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Non-stop airport destinations225 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)3 ✓1
Transit (1–5, editorial)2 ✓1

Climate and air

MetricAswanMarsa Alam
Comfortable months per year68 ✓
Annual mean PM2.533.7 µg/m³ ✓42.7 µg/m³

✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Aswan or Marsa Alam?
Marsa Alam is cheaper: about $700 per month versus $700 for one person.
Is Aswan or Marsa Alam safer?
Aswan scores higher on safety (47 vs 47), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Aswan or Marsa Alam?
Marsa Alam: a measured median of 12.1 Mbps versus 7.9 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

More comparisons

Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Digital Nomad Visas 2026; Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Estimates of rates of homicides per 100 000 population; UHC service coverage index; Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes; M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024); Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables); NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means); SatPM2.5 satellite-derived annual PM2.5 (V6.GL.02.04); Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023); EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band); Walkability and transit ratings (editorial); Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.