NavoyNostos

Coimbra vs Setúbal

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Setúbal edges it, 75 to 72, winning 4 of the 9 factors. Coimbra is stronger on nothing outright; Setúbal on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 3.6 of 72 points (scores 32/100)Safety: 9.2 of 72 points (scores 83/100)Healthcare: 9.4 of 72 points (scores 85/100)Internet: 8.5 of 72 points (scores 76/100)Visa ease: 8.3 of 72 points (scores 75/100)Getting there & around: 7.6 of 72 points (scores 68/100)Climate: 5.6 of 72 points (scores 50/100)Air quality: 10.5 of 72 points (scores 94/100)Quality of life: 9.6 of 72 points (scores 87/100)72
Coimbra
out of 100

Historic university city on the Mondego with low rents

Full Coimbra profile →Where to stay in Coimbra →
Cost of living: 3.7 of 75 points (scores 33/100)Safety: 9.2 of 75 points (scores 83/100)Healthcare: 9.4 of 75 points (scores 85/100)Internet: 8.4 of 75 points (scores 75/100)Visa ease: 8.3 of 75 points (scores 75/100)Getting there & around: 8.3 of 75 points (scores 75/100)Climate: 6.5 of 75 points (scores 58/100)Air quality: 11.1 of 75 points (scores 100/100)Quality of life: 9.6 of 75 points (scores 87/100)75
Setúbal
out of 100

Port city south of Lisbon with the Arrábida hills and Troia's beaches at hand

Full Setúbal profile →Hotels in Portugal →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Cost of living3233 ✓
Safety8383
Healthcare8585
Internet76 ✓75
Visa ease7575
Getting there & around6875 ✓
Climate5058 ✓
Air quality94100 ✓
Quality of life8787

Cost

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$2,049$2,000 ✓
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Homicides per 100k0.710.71
Political stability (0–100)77.977.9
UHC service coverage (0–100)8383
Life expectancy81.2 yrs81.2 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Download48.8 Mbps51.1 Mbps ✓
Upload29.7 Mbps ✓19.4 Mbps

Visa

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Nomad visaDigital nomad residence visa (D8)Digital nomad residence visa (D8)
Minimum income for the visa$4,131/mo$4,131/mo
Entry, US passport90 days90 days
Entry, EU passportunlimitedunlimited
Entry, UK passport90 days90 days

Getting there and around

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Non-stop airport destinations129153 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)34 ✓
Transit (1–5, editorial)33

Climate and air

MetricCoimbraSetúbal
Comfortable months per year67 ✓
Annual mean PM2.57.6 µg/m³5 µg/m³ ✓

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Coimbra or Setúbal?
Setúbal is cheaper: about $2,000 per month versus $2,049 for one person.
Is Coimbra or Setúbal safer?
Coimbra scores higher on safety (83 vs 83), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Coimbra or Setúbal?
Setúbal: a measured median of 51.1 Mbps versus 48.8 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

More comparisons

Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); 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); WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8); 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); WhereNext city cost estimates 2026 (city pages); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Nostos long-stay visa guides; Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.