---
title: "Salzburg vs Vienna for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/salzburg-vs-vienna
description: "Under balanced weights Vienna edges it, 69 to 65, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Salzburg is stronger on nothing outright; Vienna on climate, getting there & around. 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
---

# Salzburg vs Vienna for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Vienna edges it, 69 to 65, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Salzburg is stronger on nothing outright; Vienna on climate, getting there & around. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

## Where they differ

- **Climate.** Vienna leads on climate, 33 to 8, against Salzburg. Comfortable months: 1 vs 4.
- **Getting there & around.** Vienna leads on getting there & around, 93 to 71, against Salzburg. Non-stop airport destinations: 64 vs 204.

Where they are close: within five points on air quality, cost of living, internet, safety, healthcare, visa ease, quality of life.

**Pick Salzburg if you want** nothing in particular over Vienna: it trails on every factor the data covers.

**Pick Vienna if you want** to spend about $99 less a month; a longer comfortable season (4 months against 1); more flights and easier getting around.

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

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | 24 | 26 | Vienna |
| Safety | 78 | 78 | tie |
| Healthcare | 85 | 85 | tie |
| Internet | 67 | 66 | Salzburg |
| Visa ease | 61 | 61 | tie |
| Getting there & around | 71 | 93 | Vienna |
| Climate | 8 | 33 | Vienna |
| Air quality | 94 | 90 | Salzburg |
| Quality of life | 92 | 92 | tie |

## Cost

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $2,506 | $2,407 | Vienna |
| Central one-bedroom rent | $1,318 | $1,261 | Vienna |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | 0.99 | 0.99 | tie |
| Political stability (0–100) | 74.9 | 74.9 | tie |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 84 | 84 | tie |
| Life expectancy | 81 yrs | 81 yrs | tie |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 35.5 Mbps | 33.9 Mbps | Salzburg |
| Upload | 8.8 Mbps | 9.5 Mbps | Vienna |

## Visa

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | 90 days | 90 days | tie |
| Entry, EU passport | unlimited | unlimited | tie |
| Entry, UK passport | 90 days | 90 days | tie |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 64 | 204 | Vienna |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 5 | 5 | tie |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 5 | Vienna |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Salzburg | Vienna | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 1 | 4 | Vienna |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 7.8 µg/m³ | 9.7 µg/m³ | Salzburg |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Salzburg or Vienna?

Vienna is cheaper: about $2,407 per month versus $2,506 for one person.

### Is Salzburg or Vienna safer?

Salzburg scores higher on safety (78 vs 78), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Salzburg or Vienna?

Salzburg: a measured median of 35.5 Mbps versus 33.9 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Salzburg](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/salzburg) · [Vienna](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/vienna). 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); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/salzburg-vs-vienna