---
title: "Bulawayo vs Nosy Be for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/bulawayo-vs-nosy-be
description: "Under balanced weights Bulawayo edges it, 44 to 43, winning 4 of the 9 factors. Bulawayo is stronger on climate, quality of life, healthcare; Nosy Be on air quality, internet. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you."
dataset: 2026.11.2 (2026-11-09)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Bulawayo vs Nosy Be for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Bulawayo edges it, 44 to 43, winning 4 of the 9 factors. Bulawayo is stronger on climate, quality of life, healthcare; Nosy Be on air quality, internet. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

## Where they differ

- **Air quality.** Nosy Be leads on air quality, 100 to 79, against Bulawayo. PM2.5: 14.5 µg/m³ vs 5.1 µg/m³.
- **Climate.** Bulawayo leads on climate, 83 to 67, against Nosy Be. Comfortable months: 10 vs 8.
- **Quality of life.** Bulawayo leads on quality of life, 30 to 17, against Nosy Be.

Where they are close: within five points on getting there & around, visa ease.

**Pick Bulawayo if you want** stronger healthcare; a longer comfortable season (10 months against 8).

**Pick Nosy Be if you want** faster internet (9 Mbps measured); the safer country figures; cleaner air.

## Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | no data | no data | — |
| Safety | 42 | 47 | Nosy Be |
| Healthcare | 43 | 33 | Bulawayo |
| Internet | 33 | 44 | Nosy Be |
| Visa ease | 34 | 34 | tie |
| Getting there & around | 11 | 6 | Bulawayo |
| Climate | 83 | 67 | Bulawayo |
| Air quality | 79 | 100 | Nosy Be |
| Quality of life | 30 | 17 | Bulawayo |

## Cost

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | no data | no data | — |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data | — |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | 6.76 | 6.1 | Nosy Be |
| Political stability (0–100) | 50.3 | 56.4 | Nosy Be |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 59 | 33 | Bulawayo |
| Life expectancy | 60.4 yrs | 64.4 yrs | Nosy Be |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 5.3 Mbps | 9 Mbps | Nosy Be |
| Upload | 2.3 Mbps | 4.9 Mbps | Nosy Be |

## Visa

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | visa on arrival | visa on arrival | tie |
| Entry, EU passport | visa on arrival | visa on arrival | tie |
| Entry, UK passport | visa on arrival | visa on arrival | tie |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 5 | 7 | Nosy Be |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 2 | Bulawayo |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 1 | 1 | tie |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Bulawayo | Nosy Be | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 10 | 8 | Bulawayo |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 14.5 µg/m³ | 5.1 µg/m³ | Nosy Be |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Bulawayo or Nosy Be?

We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.

### Is Bulawayo or Nosy Be safer?

Nosy Be scores higher on safety (47 vs 42), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Bulawayo or Nosy Be?

Nosy Be: a measured median of 9 Mbps versus 5.3 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Bulawayo](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/bulawayo) · [Nosy Be](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/nosy-be). 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; Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year); 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.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/bulawayo-vs-nosy-be