---
title: "Fort Lauderdale vs Long Beach for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/fort-lauderdale-vs-long-beach
description: "Under balanced weights the two cities tie at 66. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you."
dataset: 2026.11.2 (2026-11-09)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Fort Lauderdale vs Long Beach for digital nomads

Under balanced weights the two cities tie at 66. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

## Where they differ

- **Air quality.** Fort Lauderdale leads on air quality, 97 to 88, against Long Beach. PM2.5: 6.2 µg/m³ vs 10.5 µg/m³.
- **Getting there & around.** Long Beach leads on getting there & around, 45 to 40, against Fort Lauderdale. Non-stop airport destinations: 141 vs 177.

Where they are close: within five points on internet, cost of living, safety, healthcare, visa ease, climate, quality of life.

**Pick Fort Lauderdale if you want** no clear edge over Long Beach in the data.

**Pick Long Beach if you want** to spend about $18 less a month.

## Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | 14 | 15 | Long Beach |
| Safety | 51 | 51 | tie |
| Healthcare | 85 | 85 | tie |
| Internet | 83 | 85 | Long Beach |
| Visa ease | 61 | 61 | tie |
| Getting there & around | 40 | 45 | Long Beach |
| Climate | 67 | 67 | tie |
| Air quality | 97 | 88 | Fort Lauderdale |
| Quality of life | 96 | 96 | tie |

## Cost

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $3,425 | $3,407 | Long Beach |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data | — |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | 5.76 | 5.76 | tie |
| Political stability (0–100) | 60.3 | 60.3 | tie |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 88 | 88 | tie |
| Life expectancy | 78.5 yrs | 78.5 yrs | tie |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 85 Mbps | 97.7 Mbps | Long Beach |
| Upload | 18.1 Mbps | 20.4 Mbps | Long Beach |

## Visa

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | home country | home country | tie |
| Entry, EU passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) | tie |
| Entry, UK passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) | tie |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 141 | 177 | Long Beach |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 3 | tie |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 3 | tie |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Long Beach | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 8 | 8 | tie |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 6.2 µg/m³ | 10.5 µg/m³ | Fort Lauderdale |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Fort Lauderdale or Long Beach?

Long Beach is cheaper: about $3,407 per month versus $3,425 for one person.

### Is Fort Lauderdale or Long Beach safer?

Fort Lauderdale and Long Beach score the same on safety (51), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Fort Lauderdale or Long Beach?

Long Beach: a measured median of 97.7 Mbps versus 85 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Fort Lauderdale](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/fort-lauderdale) · [Long Beach](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/long-beach). 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); Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (all items); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/fort-lauderdale-vs-long-beach