NavoyNostos

Ella vs Galle

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Galle edges it, 61 to 59, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Ella is stronger on nothing outright; Galle on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 7.9 of 59 points (scores 71/100)Safety: 7.0 of 59 points (scores 63/100)Healthcare: 8.0 of 59 points (scores 72/100)Internet: 4.4 of 59 points (scores 39/100)Visa ease: 7.1 of 59 points (scores 64/100)Getting there & around: 6.1 of 59 points (scores 55/100)Climate: 5.6 of 59 points (scores 50/100)Air quality: 7.3 of 59 points (scores 66/100)Quality of life: 5.8 of 59 points (scores 52/100)59
Ella
out of 100

Hill-country village of tea, trains and viewpoints

Full Ella profile →Where to stay in Ella →
Cost of living: 7.8 of 61 points (scores 70/100)Safety: 7.0 of 61 points (scores 63/100)Healthcare: 8.0 of 61 points (scores 72/100)Internet: 4.8 of 61 points (scores 43/100)Visa ease: 7.1 of 61 points (scores 64/100)Getting there & around: 6.6 of 61 points (scores 60/100)Climate: 5.6 of 61 points (scores 50/100)Air quality: 7.9 of 61 points (scores 71/100)Quality of life: 5.8 of 61 points (scores 52/100)61
Galle
out of 100

Dutch fort town on Sri Lanka's south coast

Full Galle profile →Where to stay in Galle →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricEllaGalle
Cost of living71 ✓70
Safety6363
Healthcare7272
Internet3943 ✓
Visa ease6464
Getting there & around5560 ✓
Climate5050
Air quality6671 ✓
Quality of life5252

Cost

MetricEllaGalle
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$750 ✓$768
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricEllaGalle
Homicides per 100k2.512.51
Political stability (0–100)64.964.9
UHC service coverage (0–100)7272
Life expectancy77.2 yrs77.2 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricEllaGalle
Download7.8 Mbps9 Mbps ✓
Upload2.5 Mbps3.9 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricEllaGalle
Nomad visaDigital nomad visaDigital nomad visa
Minimum income for the visa$2,000/mo$2,000/mo
Entry, US passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival
Entry, EU passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival
Entry, UK passportvisa on arrivalvisa on arrival

Getting there and around

MetricEllaGalle
Non-stop airport destinations5555
Walkability (1–5, editorial)44
Transit (1–5, editorial)12 ✓

Climate and air

MetricEllaGalle
Comfortable months per year66
Annual mean PM2.520.3 µg/m³17.9 µg/m³ ✓

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Ella or Galle?
Ella is cheaper: about $750 per month versus $768 for one person.
Is Ella or Galle safer?
Ella scores higher on safety (63 vs 63), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Ella or Galle?
Galle: a measured median of 9 Mbps versus 7.8 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); 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.