NavoyNostos

Cusco vs Salento

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Salento edges it, 53 to 51, winning 5 of the 9 factors. Cusco is stronger on safety; Salento on cost of living, healthcare. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 5.3 of 51 points (scores 47/100)Safety: 4.9 of 51 points (scores 44/100)Healthcare: 6.9 of 51 points (scores 62/100)Internet: 6.8 of 51 points (scores 62/100)Visa ease: 8.4 of 51 points (scores 75/100)Getting there & around: 4.2 of 51 points (scores 38/100)Climate: 0.0 of 51 points (scores 0/100)Air quality: 8.3 of 51 points (scores 75/100)Quality of life: 6.1 of 51 points (scores 55/100)51
Cusco
out of 100

Inca capital at 3,400 metres

Full Cusco profile →Where to stay in Cusco →
Cost of living: 6.7 of 53 points (scores 60/100)Safety: 2.7 of 53 points (scores 25/100)Healthcare: 8.3 of 53 points (scores 74/100)Internet: 6.7 of 53 points (scores 60/100)Visa ease: 8.6 of 53 points (scores 77/100)Getting there & around: 3.8 of 53 points (scores 34/100)Climate: 0.9 of 53 points (scores 8/100)Air quality: 8.9 of 53 points (scores 80/100)Quality of life: 6.0 of 53 points (scores 54/100)53
Salento
out of 100

Coffee-country village at the gate of the Cocora wax palms

Full Salento profile →Where to stay in Salento →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricCuscoSalento
Cost of living4760 ✓
Safety44 ✓25
Healthcare6274 ✓
Internet62 ✓60
Visa ease7577 ✓
Getting there & around38 ✓34
Climate08 ✓
Air quality7580 ✓
Quality of life55 ✓54

Cost

MetricCuscoSalento
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$1,383$1,000 ✓
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricCuscoSalento
Homicides per 100k8.6 ✓24.35
Political stability (0–100)56.9 ✓48.9
UHC service coverage (0–100)6882 ✓
Life expectancy71.7 yrs74.5 yrs ✓

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricCuscoSalento
Download22.6 Mbps ✓20.9 Mbps
Upload13.3 Mbps ✓12.1 Mbps

Visa

MetricCuscoSalento
Nomad visanone listedDigital nomad visitor visa (Visa V) ✓
Minimum income for the visano data$1,605/mo
Entry, US passport180 days ✓90 days
Entry, EU passport90 days90 days
Entry, UK passport180 days ✓90 days

Getting there and around

MetricCuscoSalento
Non-stop airport destinations67 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)44
Transit (1–5, editorial)2 ✓1

Climate and air

MetricCuscoSalento
Comfortable months per year01 ✓
Annual mean PM2.516.4 µg/m³13.9 µg/m³ ✓

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Cusco or Salento?
Salento is cheaper: about $1,000 per month versus $1,383 for one person.
Is Cusco or Salento safer?
Cusco scores higher on safety (44 vs 25), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Cusco or Salento?
Cusco: a measured median of 22.6 Mbps versus 20.9 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); 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); 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.