---
title: "Montego Bay vs Placencia for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/montego-bay-vs-placencia
description: "Under balanced weights Placencia edges it, 60 to 57, winning 5 of the 9 factors. Montego Bay is stronger on nothing outright; Placencia on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you."
dataset: 2026.10.7 (2026-10-13)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Montego Bay vs Placencia for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Placencia edges it, 60 to 57, winning 5 of the 9 factors. Montego Bay is stronger on nothing outright; Placencia on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

## Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | 41 | no data | — |
| Safety | 37 | 46 | Placencia |
| Healthcare | 63 | 65 | Placencia |
| Internet | 64 | 64 | tie |
| Visa ease | 61 | 61 | tie |
| Getting there & around | 49 | 49 | Placencia |
| Climate | 50 | 42 | Montego Bay |
| Air quality | 80 | 89 | Placencia |
| Quality of life | 64 | 64 | Placencia |

## Cost

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $1,639 | no data | — |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data | — |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | 40.36 | 28.06 | Placencia |
| Political stability (0–100) | 75.1 | 79.8 | Placencia |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 74 | 70 | Montego Bay |
| Life expectancy | 70.1 yrs | 73.3 yrs | Placencia |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 26.8 Mbps | 26.8 Mbps | tie |
| Upload | 14 Mbps | 14 Mbps | tie |

## Visa

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | 180 days | 180 days | tie |
| Entry, EU passport | 90 days | 90 days | tie |
| Entry, UK passport | 90 days | 90 days | tie |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 49 | 31 | Montego Bay |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 4 | Placencia |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 1 | Montego Bay |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Montego Bay | Placencia | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 6 | 5 | Montego Bay |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 13.8 µg/m³ | 10 µg/m³ | Placencia |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Montego Bay or Placencia?

We lack a monthly cost figure for one of the two cities.

### Is Montego Bay or Placencia safer?

Placencia scores higher on safety (46 vs 37), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Montego Bay or Placencia?

Montego Bay: a measured median of 26.8 Mbps versus 26.8 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Montego Bay](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/montego-bay) · [Placencia](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/placencia). 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); 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); WhereNext city cost estimates 2026 (city pages); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/montego-bay-vs-placencia