New Delhi vs Mumbai
for digital nomads
Under balanced weights New Delhi edges it, 46 to 45, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.
India's capital: history, food and smog
Full New Delhi profile →Plan a trip to New Delhi →Where they differ
- Cost of living. New Delhi leads on cost of living, 70 to 63, against Mumbai. Monthly cost, one person: $1,101 vs $1,266.
Where they are close. Within five points on internet, getting there & around, air quality, safety, healthcare, visa ease, climate, quality of life.
Pick New Delhi if you want
- to spend about $165 less a month
- faster internet (34.8 Mbps measured)
Pick Mumbai if you want
- no clear edge over New Delhi in the data
Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | 70 ✓ | 63 |
| Safety | 55 | 55 |
| Healthcare | 63 | 63 |
| Internet | 68 ✓ | 65 |
| Visa ease | 32 | 32 |
| Getting there & around | 42 ✓ | 39 |
| Climate | 42 | 42 |
| Air quality | 0 | 1 ✓ |
| Quality of life | 43 | 43 |
Cost
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost, one person | $1,101 ✓ | $1,266 |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data |
Safety and health (country-level)
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Homicides per 100k | 2.72 | 2.72 |
| Political stability (0–100) | 55 | 55 |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 69 | 69 |
| Life expectancy | 71 yrs | 71 yrs |
Internet (M-Lab measured medians)
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Download | 34.8 Mbps ✓ | 28.9 Mbps |
| Upload | 14.6 Mbps ✓ | 12.3 Mbps |
Visa
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data |
| Entry, US passport | e-visa required | e-visa required |
| Entry, EU passport | e-visa required | e-visa required |
| Entry, UK passport | e-visa required | e-visa required |
Getting there and around
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Non-stop airport destinations | 152 ✓ | 129 |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 2 |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 4 | 4 |
Climate and air
| Metric | New Delhi | Mumbai |
|---|---|---|
| Comfortable months per year | 5 | 5 |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 107 µg/m³ | 49.5 µg/m³ ✓ |
✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.
Frequently asked
- Which is cheaper, New Delhi or Mumbai?
- New Delhi is cheaper: about $1,101 per month versus $1,266 for one person.
- Is New Delhi or Mumbai safer?
- New Delhi and Mumbai score the same on safety (55), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
- Where is the internet faster, New Delhi or Mumbai?
- New Delhi: a measured median of 34.8 Mbps versus 28.9 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); 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); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.11.3. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.