NavoyNostos

Hobart vs Nelson

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Hobart edges it, 62 to 61, winning 5 of the 9 factors. Hobart is stronger on nothing outright; Nelson on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 1.4 of 62 points (scores 13/100)Safety: 9.1 of 62 points (scores 82/100)Healthcare: 10.1 of 62 points (scores 91/100)Internet: 7.7 of 62 points (scores 69/100)Visa ease: 4.7 of 62 points (scores 42/100)Getting there & around: 4.1 of 62 points (scores 37/100)Climate: 2.8 of 62 points (scores 25/100)Air quality: 11.1 of 62 points (scores 100/100)Quality of life: 10.9 of 62 points (scores 98/100)62
Hobart
out of 100

Small island capital with wilderness close by

Full Hobart profile →Where to stay in Hobart →
Cost of living: 2.0 of 61 points (scores 18/100)Safety: 9.3 of 61 points (scores 84/100)Healthcare: 10.0 of 61 points (scores 90/100)Internet: 8.7 of 61 points (scores 79/100)Visa ease: 4.7 of 61 points (scores 42/100)Getting there & around: 4.0 of 61 points (scores 36/100)Climate: 1.9 of 61 points (scores 17/100)Air quality: 10.1 of 61 points (scores 91/100)Quality of life: 10.6 of 61 points (scores 95/100)61
Nelson
out of 100

Sunny arts town between three national parks

Full Nelson profile →Where to stay in Nelson →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricHobartNelson
Cost of living1318 ✓
Safety8284 ✓
Healthcare91 ✓90
Internet6979 ✓
Visa ease4242
Getting there & around37 ✓36
Climate25 ✓17
Air quality100 ✓91
Quality of life98 ✓95

Cost

MetricHobartNelson
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$3,350$2,950 ✓
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricHobartNelson
Homicides per 100k0.94 ✓1.46
Political stability (0–100)79.386.3 ✓
UHC service coverage (0–100)8989
Life expectancy83.1 yrs ✓82.2 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricHobartNelson
Download38.9 Mbps52 Mbps ✓
Upload10.7 Mbps45.7 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricHobartNelson
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passporteTA required (online, before travel)eTA required (online, before travel)
Entry, EU passporteTA required (online, before travel)eTA required (online, before travel)
Entry, UK passporteTA required (online, before travel)eTA required (online, before travel)

Getting there and around

MetricHobartNelson
Non-stop airport destinations9 ✓8
Walkability (1–5, editorial)34 ✓
Transit (1–5, editorial)2 ✓1

Climate and air

MetricHobartNelson
Comfortable months per year3 ✓2
Annual mean PM2.54.9 µg/m³ ✓9 µg/m³

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Hobart or Nelson?
Nelson is cheaper: about $2,950 per month versus $3,350 for one person.
Is Hobart or Nelson safer?
Nelson scores higher on safety (84 vs 82), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Hobart or Nelson?
Nelson: a measured median of 52 Mbps versus 38.9 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); 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); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.