New Orleans vs St. Louis
for digital nomads
Under balanced weights the two cities tie at 62. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.
Music, food and a walkable French Quarter
Full New Orleans profile →Plan a trip to New Orleans →Gateway Arch, cheap brick housing and a free zoo in Forest Park
Full St. Louis profile →Plan a trip to St. Louis →Where they differ
- Climate. New Orleans leads on climate, 50 to 42, against St. Louis. Comfortable months: 6 vs 5.
- Internet. St. Louis leads on internet, 79 to 72, against New Orleans. Measured download: 52.4 Mbps vs 76.1 Mbps.
Where they are close. Within five points on air quality, getting there & around, cost of living, safety, healthcare, visa ease, quality of life.
Pick New Orleans if you want
- to spend about $75 less a month
Pick St. Louis if you want
- faster internet (76.1 Mbps measured)
Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | 24 ✓ | 23 |
| Safety | 51 | 51 |
| Healthcare | 85 | 85 |
| Internet | 72 | 79 ✓ |
| Visa ease | 61 | 61 |
| Getting there & around | 27 | 29 ✓ |
| Climate | 50 ✓ | 42 |
| Air quality | 93 ✓ | 90 |
| Quality of life | 96 | 96 |
Cost
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost, one person | $2,778 ✓ | $2,853 |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data |
Safety and health (country-level)
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Homicides per 100k | 5.76 | 5.76 |
| Political stability (0–100) | 60.3 | 60.3 |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 88 | 88 |
| Life expectancy | 78.5 yrs | 78.5 yrs |
Internet (M-Lab measured medians)
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Download | 52.4 Mbps | 76.1 Mbps ✓ |
| Upload | 7.8 Mbps | 11.2 Mbps ✓ |
Visa
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data |
| Entry, US passport | home country | home country |
| Entry, EU passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) |
| Entry, UK passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) |
Getting there and around
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Non-stop airport destinations | 51 | 64 ✓ |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 4 ✓ | 3 |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 3 ✓ |
Climate and air
| Metric | New Orleans | St. Louis |
|---|---|---|
| Comfortable months per year | 6 ✓ | 5 |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 8.2 µg/m³ ✓ | 9.4 µg/m³ |
✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.
Frequently asked
- Which is cheaper, New Orleans or St. Louis?
- New Orleans is cheaper: about $2,778 per month versus $2,853 for one person.
- Is New Orleans or St. Louis safer?
- New Orleans and St. Louis score the same on safety (51), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
- Where is the internet faster, New Orleans or St. Louis?
- St. Louis: a measured median of 76.1 Mbps versus 52.4 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).
More comparisons
- New Orleans vs Sacramento
- New Orleans vs Nashville
- St. Louis vs Pittsburgh
- St. Louis vs Cincinnati
- All 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); 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); Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (all items); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.11.2. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.