NavoyNostos

Galway vs Limerick

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Galway edges it, 67 to 65, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Galway is stronger on nothing outright; Limerick on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 2.1 of 67 points (scores 19/100)Safety: 9.2 of 67 points (scores 83/100)Healthcare: 9.4 of 67 points (scores 85/100)Internet: 8.4 of 67 points (scores 75/100)Visa ease: 8.4 of 67 points (scores 75/100)Getting there & around: 6.4 of 67 points (scores 58/100)Climate: 1.9 of 67 points (scores 17/100)Air quality: 10.5 of 67 points (scores 95/100)Quality of life: 10.7 of 67 points (scores 97/100)67
Galway
out of 100

Ireland's west-coast festival and pub town

Full Galway profile →Where to stay in Galway →
Cost of living: 1.3 of 65 points (scores 12/100)Safety: 9.2 of 65 points (scores 83/100)Healthcare: 9.4 of 65 points (scores 85/100)Internet: 8.5 of 65 points (scores 77/100)Visa ease: 8.4 of 65 points (scores 75/100)Getting there & around: 6.3 of 65 points (scores 56/100)Climate: 0.9 of 65 points (scores 8/100)Air quality: 10.5 of 65 points (scores 95/100)Quality of life: 10.7 of 65 points (scores 97/100)65
Limerick
out of 100

Ireland's third city, a cheaper base on the Shannon

Full Limerick profile →Where to stay in Limerick →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricGalwayLimerick
Cost of living19 ✓12
Safety8383
Healthcare8585
Internet7577 ✓
Visa ease7575
Getting there & around58 ✓56
Climate17 ✓8
Air quality9595
Quality of life9797

Cost

MetricGalwayLimerick
Monthly cost, one person$2,882 ✓$3,433
Central one-bedroom rent$2,121no data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricGalwayLimerick
Homicides per 100k0.70.7
Political stability (0–100)78.778.7
UHC service coverage (0–100)8282
Life expectancy81.6 yrs81.6 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricGalwayLimerick
Download49.1 Mbps53.6 Mbps ✓
Upload22.3 Mbps24.4 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricGalwayLimerick
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passport90 days90 days
Entry, EU passportunlimitedunlimited
Entry, UK passportunlimitedunlimited

Getting there and around

MetricGalwayLimerick
Non-stop airport destinations44 ✓39
Walkability (1–5, editorial)44
Transit (1–5, editorial)22

Climate and air

MetricGalwayLimerick
Comfortable months per year2 ✓1
Annual mean PM2.57.4 µg/m³7.4 µg/m³

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Galway or Limerick?
Galway is cheaper: about $2,882 per month versus $3,433 for one person.
Is Galway or Limerick safer?
Galway scores higher on safety (83 vs 83), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Galway or Limerick?
Limerick: a measured median of 53.6 Mbps versus 49.1 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 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.