NavoyNostos

Dhaka vs Islamabad

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Dhaka edges it, 45 to 33, winning 4 of the 9 factors. Dhaka is stronger on safety, quality of life; Islamabad on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 11.1 of 45 points (scores 100/100)Safety: 6.1 of 45 points (scores 55/100)Healthcare: 6.2 of 45 points (scores 55/100)Internet: 4.3 of 45 points (scores 39/100)Visa ease: 3.8 of 45 points (scores 34/100)Getting there & around: 4.7 of 45 points (scores 43/100)Climate: 4.6 of 45 points (scores 42/100)Air quality: 0.0 of 45 points (scores 0/100)Quality of life: 4.3 of 45 points (scores 39/100)45
Dhaka
out of 100

Megacity on the delta with energy and gridlock

Full Dhaka profile →Where to stay in Dhaka →
Safety: 4.1 of 33 points (scores 33/100)Healthcare: 5.8 of 33 points (scores 46/100)Internet: 4.3 of 33 points (scores 34/100)Visa ease: 5.3 of 33 points (scores 42/100)Getting there & around: 5.9 of 33 points (scores 47/100)Climate: 5.2 of 33 points (scores 42/100)Air quality: 0.0 of 33 points (scores 0/100)Quality of life: 2.3 of 33 points (scores 19/100)33
Islamabad
out of 100

Pakistan's planned capital against the Margalla Hills

Full Islamabad profile →Where to stay in Islamabad →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Cost of living100no data
Safety55 ✓33
Healthcare55 ✓46
Internet39 ✓34
Visa ease3442 ✓
Getting there & around4347 ✓
Climate4242
Air quality00
Quality of life39 ✓19

Cost

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$359no data
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Homicides per 100k1.76 ✓4.33
Political stability (0–100)49.1 ✓31.4
UHC service coverage (0–100)5456 ✓
Life expectancy73.1 yrs ✓66 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Download5.5 Mbps ✓4.9 Mbps
Upload8.3 Mbps ✓4.3 Mbps

Visa

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passportvisa on arrivaleTA required (online, before travel) ✓
Entry, EU passportvisa on arrivaleTA required (online, before travel) ✓
Entry, UK passportvisa on arrivaleTA required (online, before travel) ✓

Getting there and around

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Non-stop airport destinations2742 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)22
Transit (1–5, editorial)22

Climate and air

MetricDhakaIslamabad
Comfortable months per year55
Annual mean PM2.589.8 µg/m³85.3 µg/m³ ✓

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Dhaka or Islamabad?
We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.
Is Dhaka or Islamabad safer?
Dhaka scores higher on safety (55 vs 33), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Dhaka or Islamabad?
Dhaka: a measured median of 5.5 Mbps versus 4.9 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); 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); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.