Kermanshah vs Urmia
for digital nomads
Under balanced weights Kermanshah edges it, 40 to 38, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Kermanshah is stronger on climate; Urmia on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.
Kurdish city in the Zagros, beside the rock reliefs of Bisotun
Full Kermanshah profile →Plan a trip to Kermanshah →Multi-ethnic highland city by a shrinking salt lake near Türkiye
Full Urmia profile →Plan a trip to Urmia →Where they differ
- Climate. Kermanshah leads on climate, 50 to 33, against Urmia. Comfortable months: 6 vs 4.
Where they are close. Within five points on air quality, getting there & around, safety, healthcare, internet, visa ease, quality of life.
Pick Kermanshah if you want
- a longer comfortable season (6 months against 4)
Pick Urmia if you want
- no clear edge over Kermanshah in the data
Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | no data | no data |
| Safety | 41 | 41 |
| Healthcare | 80 | 80 |
| Internet | 30 | 30 |
| Visa ease | 15 | 15 |
| Getting there & around | 16 ✓ | 16 |
| Climate | 50 ✓ | 33 |
| Air quality | 32 ✓ | 29 |
| Quality of life | 58 | 58 |
Cost
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city | no data | no data |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data |
Safety and health (country-level)
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Homicides per 100k | 2.9 | 2.9 |
| Political stability (0–100) | 36 | 36 |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 81 | 81 |
| Life expectancy | 77.7 yrs | 77.7 yrs |
Internet (M-Lab measured medians)
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Download | 6.1 Mbps | 6.1 Mbps |
| Upload | 0.6 Mbps | 0.6 Mbps |
Visa
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data |
| Entry, US passport | visa required | visa required |
| Entry, EU passport | visa on arrival | visa on arrival |
| Entry, UK passport | visa required | visa required |
Getting there and around
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Non-stop airport destinations | 6 ✓ | 5 |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 3 |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 2 |
Climate and air
| Metric | Kermanshah | Urmia |
|---|---|---|
| Comfortable months per year | 6 ✓ | 4 |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 35.7 µg/m³ ✓ | 36.8 µg/m³ |
✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.
Frequently asked
- Which is cheaper, Kermanshah or Urmia?
- We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.
- Is Kermanshah or Urmia safer?
- Kermanshah and Urmia score the same on safety (41), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
- Where is the internet faster, Kermanshah or Urmia?
- The same in both: a measured median of 6.1 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); Estimates of rates of homicides per 100 000 population; 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); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.11.2. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.