---
title: "Papeete vs Townsville for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/papeete-vs-townsville
description: "Under balanced weights Townsville edges it, 69 to 67, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Papeete is stronger on visa ease; Townsville on internet. 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
---

# Papeete vs Townsville for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Townsville edges it, 69 to 67, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Papeete is stronger on visa ease; Townsville on internet. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

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

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | no data | 13 | — |
| Safety | 75 | 82 | Townsville |
| Healthcare | no data | 91 | — |
| Internet | 39 | 68 | Townsville |
| Visa ease | 61 | 42 | Papeete |
| Getting there & around | 51 | 41 | Papeete |
| Climate | 75 | 83 | Townsville |
| Air quality | 100 | 99 | Papeete |
| Quality of life | no data | 98 | — |

## Cost

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | no data | $3,350 | — |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data | — |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | no data | 0.94 | — |
| Political stability (0–100) | 75.7 | 79.3 | Townsville |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | no data | 89 | — |
| Life expectancy | no data | 83.1 yrs | — |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 7.5 Mbps | 38.7 Mbps | Townsville |
| Upload | 2.4 Mbps | 9.1 Mbps | Townsville |

## Visa

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | 90 days | eTA required (online, before travel) | Papeete |
| Entry, EU passport | unlimited | eTA required (online, before travel) | Papeete |
| Entry, UK passport | 90 days | eTA required (online, before travel) | Papeete |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 38 | 14 | Papeete |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 3 | tie |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 2 | tie |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Papeete | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 9 | 10 | Townsville |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 2.9 µg/m³ | 5.6 µg/m³ | Papeete |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Papeete or Townsville?

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

### Is Papeete or Townsville safer?

Townsville scores higher on safety (82 vs 75), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Papeete or Townsville?

Townsville: a measured median of 38.7 Mbps versus 7.5 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Papeete](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/papeete) · [Townsville](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/townsville). 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); 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); Starlink availability map.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/papeete-vs-townsville