NavoyNostos

Koh Lipe vs Koh Phangan

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Koh Lipe edges it, 56 to 55, winning 1 of the 9 factors. Koh Lipe is stronger on getting there & around; Koh Phangan on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 6.7 of 56 points (scores 60/100)Safety: 5.6 of 56 points (scores 51/100)Healthcare: 8.4 of 56 points (scores 76/100)Internet: 6.3 of 56 points (scores 57/100)Visa ease: 6.5 of 56 points (scores 58/100)Getting there & around: 4.7 of 56 points (scores 43/100)Climate: 2.8 of 56 points (scores 25/100)Air quality: 9.4 of 56 points (scores 85/100)Quality of life: 5.5 of 56 points (scores 49/100)56
Koh Lipe
out of 100

Tiny Andaman island near Malaysia with no cars and clear water

Full Koh Lipe profile →Hotels in Thailand →
Cost of living: 6.7 of 55 points (scores 60/100)Safety: 5.6 of 55 points (scores 51/100)Healthcare: 8.4 of 55 points (scores 76/100)Internet: 6.8 of 55 points (scores 61/100)Visa ease: 6.5 of 55 points (scores 58/100)Getting there & around: 3.1 of 55 points (scores 28/100)Climate: 2.8 of 55 points (scores 25/100)Air quality: 9.5 of 55 points (scores 86/100)Quality of life: 5.5 of 55 points (scores 49/100)55
Koh Phangan
out of 100

Jungle island with one of Asia's densest nomad scenes

Full Koh Phangan profile →Where to stay in Koh Phangan →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Cost of living6060
Safety5151
Healthcare7676
Internet5761 ✓
Visa ease5858
Getting there & around43 ✓28
Climate2525
Air quality8586 ✓
Quality of life4949

Cost

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$1,000$1,000
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Homicides per 100k4.44.4
Political stability (0–100)55.855.8
UHC service coverage (0–100)8282
Life expectancy75.3 yrs75.3 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Download18.3 Mbps22.9 Mbps ✓
Upload9.4 Mbps11.3 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Nomad visaDestination Thailand Visa (DTV)Destination Thailand Visa (DTV)
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passport30 days30 days
Entry, EU passport30 days30 days
Entry, UK passport30 days30 days

Getting there and around

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Non-stop airport destinations16 ✓10
Walkability (1–5, editorial)4 ✓2
Transit (1–5, editorial)11

Climate and air

MetricKoh LipeKoh Phangan
Comfortable months per year33
Annual mean PM2.511.8 µg/m³11.5 µg/m³ ✓

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Koh Lipe or Koh Phangan?
Koh Phangan is cheaper: about $1,000 per month versus $1,000 for one person.
Is Koh Lipe or Koh Phangan safer?
Koh Lipe scores higher on safety (51 vs 51), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Koh Lipe or Koh Phangan?
Koh Phangan: a measured median of 22.9 Mbps versus 18.3 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); 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); Official entry rules that changed after the Passport Index snapshot; 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.