NavoyNostos

Lusaka vs Moshi

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Moshi edges it, 50 to 47, winning 5 of the 9 factors. Lusaka is stronger on visa ease; Moshi on climate, getting there & around. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Safety: 6.7 of 47 points (scores 54/100)Healthcare: 5.3 of 47 points (scores 42/100)Internet: 4.3 of 47 points (scores 35/100)Visa ease: 5.8 of 47 points (scores 46/100)Getting there & around: 3.6 of 47 points (scores 29/100)Climate: 10.4 of 47 points (scores 83/100)Air quality: 8.5 of 47 points (scores 68/100)Quality of life: 2.8 of 47 points (scores 22/100)47
Lusaka
out of 100

Zambia's fast-growing capital and gateway to the Zambezi

Full Lusaka profile →Where to stay in Lusaka →
Safety: 6.9 of 50 points (scores 55/100)Healthcare: 5.4 of 50 points (scores 43/100)Internet: 5.2 of 50 points (scores 42/100)Visa ease: 4.3 of 50 points (scores 34/100)Getting there & around: 5.2 of 50 points (scores 41/100)Climate: 12.5 of 50 points (scores 100/100)Air quality: 8.4 of 50 points (scores 67/100)Quality of life: 2.5 of 50 points (scores 20/100)50
Moshi
out of 100

Kilimanjaro's base town, cooler and calmer than Arusha

Full Moshi profile →Where to stay in Moshi →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricLusakaMoshi
Cost of livingno datano data
Safety5455 ✓
Healthcare4243 ✓
Internet3542 ✓
Visa ease46 ✓34
Getting there & around2941 ✓
Climate83100 ✓
Air quality68 ✓67
Quality of life22 ✓20

Cost

MetricLusakaMoshi
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one cityno datano data
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricLusakaMoshi
Homicides per 100k5.93.3 ✓
Political stability (0–100)64.6 ✓57.3
UHC service coverage (0–100)62 ✓49
Life expectancy61 yrs66.8 yrs ✓

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricLusakaMoshi
Download6.2 Mbps8.6 Mbps ✓
Upload1.8 Mbps3.1 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricLusakaMoshi
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passport90 days ✓visa on arrival
Entry, EU passport90 days ✓visa on arrival
Entry, UK passport90 days ✓visa on arrival

Getting there and around

MetricLusakaMoshi
Non-stop airport destinations19 ✓14
Walkability (1–5, editorial)13 ✓
Transit (1–5, editorial)12 ✓

Climate and air

MetricLusakaMoshi
Comfortable months per year1012 ✓
Annual mean PM2.519.5 µg/m³ ✓19.8 µg/m³

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Lusaka or Moshi?
We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.
Is Lusaka or Moshi safer?
Moshi scores higher on safety (55 vs 54), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Lusaka or Moshi?
Moshi: a measured median of 8.6 Mbps versus 6.2 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; 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); 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 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.