NavoyNostos

Dushanbe vs Varanasi

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Varanasi edges it, 44 to 38, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Dushanbe is stronger on safety; Varanasi on internet. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Safety: 8.5 of 38 points (scores 68/100)Healthcare: 8.0 of 38 points (scores 64/100)Internet: 1.4 of 38 points (scores 11/100)Visa ease: 4.2 of 38 points (scores 34/100)Getting there & around: 6.5 of 38 points (scores 52/100)Climate: 5.2 of 38 points (scores 42/100)Air quality: 0.0 of 38 points (scores 0/100)Quality of life: 4.2 of 38 points (scores 34/100)38
Dushanbe
out of 100

Tajikistan's quiet capital at the foot of the Pamirs

Full Dushanbe profile →Where to stay in Dushanbe →
Cost of living: 7.9 of 44 points (scores 71/100)Safety: 6.1 of 44 points (scores 55/100)Healthcare: 6.2 of 44 points (scores 56/100)Internet: 5.1 of 44 points (scores 46/100)Visa ease: 3.6 of 44 points (scores 32/100)Getting there & around: 4.7 of 44 points (scores 43/100)Climate: 5.6 of 44 points (scores 50/100)Air quality: 0.0 of 44 points (scores 0/100)Quality of life: 4.3 of 44 points (scores 39/100)44
Varanasi
out of 100

Ganges ghats and the oldest living city in India

Full Varanasi profile →Where to stay in Varanasi →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Cost of livingno data71
Safety68 ✓55
Healthcare64 ✓56
Internet1146 ✓
Visa ease34 ✓32
Getting there & around52 ✓43
Climate4250 ✓
Air quality00
Quality of life3439 ✓

Cost

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one cityno data$750
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Homicides per 100k0.89 ✓2.72
Political stability (0–100)60.4 ✓55
UHC service coverage (0–100)72 ✓69
Life expectancy71.8 yrs ✓67.3 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Download1.4 Mbps11.5 Mbps ✓
Upload1.4 Mbps3 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passport30 days ✓e-visa required
Entry, EU passport30 days ✓e-visa required
Entry, UK passportvisa on arrival ✓e-visa required

Getting there and around

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Non-stop airport destinations41 ✓16
Walkability (1–5, editorial)33
Transit (1–5, editorial)22

Climate and air

MetricDushanbeVaranasi
Comfortable months per year56 ✓
Annual mean PM2.551 µg/m³ ✓60 µg/m³

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Dushanbe or Varanasi?
We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.
Is Dushanbe or Varanasi safer?
Dushanbe scores higher on safety (68 vs 55), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Dushanbe or Varanasi?
Varanasi: a measured median of 11.5 Mbps versus 1.4 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); 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. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.