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Nara vs Singapore

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Nara edges it, 66 to 65, winning 4 of the 9 factors. Nara is stronger on visa ease, cost of living, internet; Singapore on quality of life, getting there & around. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 2.4 of 66 points (scores 21/100)Safety: 10.5 of 66 points (scores 94/100)Healthcare: 10.2 of 66 points (scores 92/100)Internet: 9.8 of 66 points (scores 88/100)Visa ease: 7.2 of 66 points (scores 65/100)Getting there & around: 7.6 of 66 points (scores 69/100)Climate: 0.0 of 66 points (scores 0/100)Air quality: 10.1 of 66 points (scores 91/100)Quality of life: 8.2 of 66 points (scores 74/100)66
Nara
out of 100

Deer park, giant Buddha and quiet evenings between Osaka and Kyoto

Full Nara profile →Where to stay in Nara →
Cost of living: 0.7 of 65 points (scores 7/100)Safety: 10.6 of 65 points (scores 96/100)Healthcare: 10.2 of 65 points (scores 92/100)Internet: 8.4 of 65 points (scores 76/100)Visa ease: 5.1 of 65 points (scores 46/100)Getting there & around: 9.6 of 65 points (scores 86/100)Climate: 0.0 of 65 points (scores 0/100)Air quality: 9.4 of 65 points (scores 84/100)Quality of life: 10.5 of 65 points (scores 95/100)65
Singapore
out of 100

Orderly, expensive, exceptionally connected

Full Singapore profile →Where to stay in Singapore →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricNaraSingapore
Cost of living21 ✓7
Safety9496 ✓
Healthcare9292 ✓
Internet88 ✓76
Visa ease65 ✓46
Getting there & around6986 ✓
Climate00
Air quality91 ✓84
Quality of life7495 ✓

Cost

MetricNaraSingapore
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$2,700 ✓$3,927
Central one-bedroom rentno data$2,795

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricNaraSingapore
Homicides per 100k0.230.17 ✓
Political stability (0–100)87.789 ✓
UHC service coverage (0–100)8688 ✓
Life expectancy84.5 yrs ✓83.9 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricNaraSingapore
Download82.8 Mbps ✓52.2 Mbps
Upload89.6 Mbps ✓20.4 Mbps

Visa

MetricNaraSingapore
Nomad visaDigital nomad visa (Designated Activities) ✓none listed
Minimum income for the visa$5,285/mono data
Entry, US passport90 days90 days
Entry, EU passport90 days90 days
Entry, UK passport90 days90 days

Getting there and around

MetricNaraSingapore
Non-stop airport destinations80171 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)44
Transit (1–5, editorial)35 ✓

Climate and air

MetricNaraSingapore
Comfortable months per year00
Annual mean PM2.58.9 µg/m³ ✓12 µg/m³

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

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Nara or Singapore?
Nara is cheaper: about $2,700 per month versus $3,927 for one person.
Is Nara or Singapore safer?
Singapore scores higher on safety (96 vs 94), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Nara or Singapore?
Nara: a measured median of 82.8 Mbps versus 52.2 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); 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); 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); Nostos long-stay visa guides; Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.