Home » Smart Home

Best US Cities for Digital Nomads

What are the best cities for working remotely as a digital nomad?

By Brianne Sandorf

Staff Writer, Home Security & Smart Home

July 01, 2022

3 min read

Work remotely? Itching to become a digital nomad? We know exactly where you should go.

What is a digital nomad?

A digital nomad is someone who puts the remote in remote work. Instead of working from one location, they use their flexible lifestyle to travel from city to city (and sometimes even country to country).

Image source: Reviews.org

10. Denver

Enjoy some local chilaquiles and the Colorado Rockies while working out of Denver! You’ll especially love this haunt if you’re into the great outdoors because Colorado has a ton of spots for outside recreation.

Image source: Reviews.org

9. Philadelphia

Get a dose of brotherly love with your digital nomadism in Philly. On average, this city has the most affordable rentals out of our recommendations. And if you’re a history buff, you can go all National Treasure and visit the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

Image source: Reviews.org

8. New York City

A digital nomad lifestyle allows you to live short term in the hustle and bustle of this expensive city. If you don’t like crowds, this one isn’t for you, but you’ll love it if you’re into good food, art, and culture.

Image source: Reviews.org

7. San Francisco

Pizza! The Golden Gate Bridge! Ghirardelli Square! You can experience all this and more working remotely in San Francisco. Like NYC, San Fran is über expensive, so a temporary stay is a great way to experience the Bay Area life without putting down costly roots.

Image source: Reviews.org

6. Washington, DC

Now’s your chance to work out of the nation’s capital while seeing the sights. But don’t come just for the White House—Washington, DC also has the fastest internet speed out of all our recommendations.

Image source: Reviews.org

What do digital nomads need to work remotely?

At the very least, most digital nomads need Wi-Fi or a hotspot and a mobile phone with good cross-country coverage.

5. San Jose

Like San Francisco, San Jose is a good choice if you want that temperate Cali weather. You’ll be right in the heart of Silicon Valley while you tour the parks, gardens, and museums (including the wild Winchester Mystery House).

Image source: Reviews.org

4. Atlanta

Craving a little Southern hospitality? Veer down to Atlanta to enjoy some peaches and barbecue, music, and sports. There’s a major airport right in the city, so it should be easy to find an affordable flight down.

Image source: Reviews.org

3. Chicago

Cross Chicago off your bucket list by working from the Windy City for a while. Admire the architecture and get yourself a deep-dish pizza while you’re at it.

Image source: Reviews.org

2. Portland

Hipster haven Portland is a must-see on your digital nomad travels. It’s perfect for hikers and bikers and boasts quirky attractions like a hat museum and the smallest park in the world. And if you have a dietary restriction (organic, gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan), you might be refreshingly surprised by the Portland food scene.

Image source: Reviews.org

1. Seattle

We know tons of people who’ve opted to work remotely in Seattle, and we don’t blame them. For one thing, it’s easy to stay connected there—out of all our recommendations, Seattle has the most free public hotspots. For another, it’s big on coffee (a must-have for many remote workers).

Image source: Reviews.org

Recap

To summarize, here are Reviews.org’s top ten cities for digital nomads to work remotely in the US:

Denver
Philadelphia
New York City
San Francisco
Washington, DC
San Jose
Atlanta
Chicago
Portland
Seattle

But these aren’t the only cities we researched. We actually determined the top 100 best cities for digital nomads.

The best US cities for digital nomads

Rank	Metro	Speed test mean	Count of Wi-Fi spots	Average AirBnB cost/night	Distance from airport (major)	Distance to closest national park	Name of closest national park	Avg. annual temp (°F)	Number of state rec areas	Score
1	Seattle, WA	111	164	$191	11 mi.	44 mi.	Mount Rainier National Park	54°	289	82
2	Portland, OR	106	153	$168	6 mi.	93 mi.	Mount Rainier National Park	57°	234	80
3	Chicago, IL	104	143	$198	7 mi.	42 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	53°	140	77
4	Atlanta, GA	114	138	$185	8 mi.	146 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	65°	115	77
5	San Jose, CA	111	63	$186	3 mi.	32 mi.	Pinnacles National Park	71°	294	75
6	Washington, DC	127	85	$186	3 mi.	84 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	58°	3	75
7	San Francisco, CA	124	119	$262	11 mi.	108 mi.	Pinnacles National Park	59°	294	72
8	New York City, NY	124	107	$167	9 mi.	284 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	57°	333	71
9	Philadelphia, PA	126	68	$160	7 mi.	188 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	58°	173	70
10	Denver, CO	105	99	$196	19 mi.	76 mi.	Rocky Mountain National Park	66°	74	70
11	Tucson, AZ	92	76	$180	7 mi.	76 mi.	Saguaro National Park	72°	83	69
12	Dallas, TX	117	96	$193	5 mi.	253 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	68°	123	68
13	Sacramento, CA	112	40	$168	9 mi.	105 mi.	Yosemite National Park	62°	294	68
14	Charlotte, NC	111	47	$182	6 mi.	96 mi.	Congaree National Park	63°	84	67
15	Pittsburgh, PA	114	34	$152	13 mi.	105 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	53°	173	66
16	Los Angeles, CA	111	83	$281	12 mi.	71 mi.	Channel Islands National Park	63°	294	65
17	Houston, TX	116	105	$186	10 mi.	355 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	73°	123	65
18	Raleigh, NC	108	61	$160	11 mi.	190 mi.	Congaree National Park	62°	84	65
19	St. Louis, MO	92	35	$179	13 mi.	11 mi.	Gateway Arch National Park	59°	225	64
20	El Paso, TX	99	13	$164	7 mi.	47 mi.	Guadalupe Mountains National Park	67°	123	64
21	Indianapolis, IN	101	70	$186	8 mi.	139 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	55°	79	64
22	Baltimore, MD	120	46	$226	9 mi.	111 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	59°	75	64
23	Las Vegas, NV	116	65	$280	7 mi.	101 mi.	Death Valley National Park	72°	52	64
24	Phoenix, AZ	96	114	$321	4 mi.	112 mi.	Saguaro National Park	76°	83	64
25	Cleveland, OH	76	45	$156	10 mi.	22 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	53°	184	63
26	Fresno, CA	85	15	$177	4 mi.	59 mi.	Sequoia National Park	67°	294	62
27	Miami, FL	113	23	$290	6 mi.	40 mi.	Biscayne National Park	78°	215	62
28	Louisville, KY	96	63	$238	6 mi.	81 mi.	Mammoth Cave National Park	60°	76	62
29	Boston, MA	121	48	$229	3 mi.	190 mi.	Acadia National Park	54°	129	62
30	Minneapolis, MN	95	67	$198	7 mi.	236 mi.	Voyageurs National Park	49°	682	62
31	Salt Lake City, UT	96	52	$200	5 mi.	131 mi.	Great Basin National Park	56°	94	61
32	Greenville, SC	101	13	$165	10 mi.	93 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	62°	70	61
33	Colorado Springs, CO	106	41	$215	7 mi.	90 mi.	Great Sand Dunes National Park	48°	74	61
34	Milwaukee, WI	94	42	$200	6 mi.	96 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	51°	208	61
35	Columbus, OH	81	46	$169	6 mi.	111 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	55°	184	61
36	Columbia, SC	79	30	$192	7 mi.	25 mi.	Congaree National Park	65°	70	61
37	Chattanooga, TN	106	15	$201	6 mi.	112 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	63°	87	60
38	Riverside, CA	112	17	$286	14 mi.	53 mi.	Joshua Tree National Park	80°	294	60
39	Oklahoma City, OK	102	41	$145	7 mi.	261 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	61°	71	60
40	Albuquerque, NM	71	66	$161	4 mi.	162 mi.	White Sands National Park	59°	81	60
41	Detroit, MI	98	23	$171	6 mi.	133 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	53°	140	60
42	Spokane, WA	85	35	$150	6 mi.	168 mi.	North Cascades National Park	51°	289	60
43	San Antonio, TX	117	61	$237	8 mi.	280 mi.	Big Bend National Park	70°	123	59
44	Cincinatti, OH	94	43	$183	10 mi.	159 mi.	Mammoth Cave National Park	56°	184	59
45	Nashville, TN	115	55	$337	7 mi.	79 mi.	Mammoth Cave National Park	62°	87	58
46	North Port, FL	104	2	$192	17 mi.	166 mi.	Everglades National Park	83°	215	58
47	Austin, TX	104	134	$311	7 mi.	344 mi.	Big Bend National Park	71°	123	58
48	Reno, NV	85	28	$201	3 mi.	94 mi.	Lassen Volcanic National Park	56°	52	57
49	Greensboro, NC	89	25	$176	8 mi.	158 mi.	New River Gorge National Park	60°	84	57
50	Provo-Orem, UT	91	15	$211	4 mi.	121 mi.	Great Basin National Park	66°	94	57
51	Kansas City, KS	101	8	$137	14 mi.	231 mi.	Gateway Arch National Park	64°	103	57
52	Little Rock, AR	59	22	$190	4 mi.	41 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	73°	85	57
53	Huntsville, AL	114	26	$237	13 mi.	169 mi.	Mammoth Cave National Park	62°	63	56
54	Palm Bay, FL	88	5	$192	6 mi.	186 mi.	Biscayne National Park	82°	215	56
55	Knoxville, TN	65	37	$196	11 mi.	44 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	60°	87	56
56	Virginia Beach, VA	113	24	$260	13 mi.	158 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	70°	83	56
57	Memphis, TN	84	29	$174	9 mi.	184 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	64°	87	56
58	Tulsa, OK	88	53	$210	7 mi.	214 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	62°	71	56
59	Jacksonville, FL	111	44	$259	11 mi.	251 mi.	Congaree National Park	70°	215	55
60	Omaha, NE	95	65	$169	4 mi.	359 mi.	Gateway Arch National Park	54°	102	55
61	Harrisburg, PA	100	12	$228	9 mi.	143 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	57°	173	54
62	Lexington, KY	77	40	$217	8 mi.	111 mi.	Mammoth Cave National Park	56°	76	54
63	Wichita, KS	95	21	$137	6 mi.	319 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	59°	103	54
64	Buffalo, NY	80	25	$181	8 mi.	189 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	52°	333	54
65	Birmingham, AL	85	26	$175	4 mi.	241 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	65°	63	54
66	Baton Rouge, LA	94	25	$195	6 mi.	297 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	79°	67	54
67	Ogden-Clearfield, UT	105	5	$235	3 mi.	185 mi.	Grand Teton National Park	62°	94	54
68	Asheville, NC	81	22	$240	11 mi.	48 mi.	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	58°	84	54
69	Augusta, GA	92	16	$282	7 mi.	73 mi.	Congaree National Park	66°	115	53
70	Grand Rapids, MI	83	33	$242	9 mi.	116 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	51°	140	52
71	Fayetteville, NC	86	11	$248	4 mi.	142 mi.	Congaree National Park	73°	84	52
72	Orlando, FL	95	43	$295	9 mi.	207 mi.	Biscayne National Park	75°	215	52
73	Lancaster, PA	86	9	$228	6 mi.	153 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	63°	173	52
74	Rochester, NY	69	39	$193	4 mi.	245 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	58°	333	52
75	Bakersfield, CA	91	30	$177	74 mi.	75 mi.	Sequoia National Park	77°	294	51
76	Dayton, OH	81	19	$221	10 mi.	168 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	61°	184	51
77	Jackson, MO	80	1	$171	12 mi.	218 mi.	Gateway Arch National Park	68°	225	51
78	Madison, WI	78	64	$301	6 mi.	163 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	49°	208	50
79	Hartford, CT	91	11	$160	12 mi.	286 mi.	Acadia National Park	53°	103	50
80	Fort Wayne, IN	69	30	$233	11 mi.	102 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	53°	79	50
81	Savannah, GA	98	12	$326	7 mi.	119 mi.	Congaree National Park	68°	115	49
82	Cape Coral, FL	87	8	$323	12 mi.	108 mi.	Everglades National Park	85°	215	49
83	South Bend, IN	90	16	$330	4 mi.	49 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	53°	79	49
84	Lafayette, LA	76	16	$195	2 mi.	319 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	79°	67	49
85	Allentown, PA	85	10	$228	4 mi.	221 mi.	Shenandoah National Park	55°	173	48
86	Urban Honolulu, HI	78	32	$323	4 mi.	141 mi.	Haleakalā National Park	80°	24	48
87	Boise, ID	57	39	$163	4 mi.	274 mi.	Grand Teton National Park	55°	74	48
88	Myrtle Beach, SC	59	16	$253	3 mi.	125 mi.	Acadia National Park	73°	70	48
89	Syracuse, NY	92	16	$234	5 mi.	301 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	52°	333	48
90	Des Moines, IA	72	23	$185	5 mi.	278 mi.	Gateway Arch National Park	53°	143	47
91	Lansing, MI	67	13	$242	4 mi.	152 mi.	Indiana Dunes National Park	57°	140	47
92	Toledo, OH	58	19	$221	14 mi.	105 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	54°	184	47
93	Springfield, MA	107	7	$273	12 mi.	261 mi.	Acadia National Park	61°	129	47
94	Charleston, SC	93	18	$407	11 mi.	69 mi.	Congaree National Park	67°	70	44
95	Youngstown, OH	70	1	$221	43 mi.	59 mi.	Cuyahoga Valley National Park	58°	184	44
96	Charleston, WV	33	8	$248	3 mi.	35 mi.	New River Gorge National Park	57°	60	43
97	New Orleans, LA	88	35	$293	11 mi.	357 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	72°	67	42
98	Portland, ME	61	16	$326	3 mi.	120 mi.	Acadia National Park	49°	49	40
99	Albany, NY	83	26	$335	7 mi.	307 mi.	Acadia National Park	51°	333	39
100	Mobile, AL	80	18	$341	12 mi.	373 mi.	Hot Springs National Park	67°	63	33

Methodology

To rank the best cities for digital nomads, we used HighSpeedInternet.com’s list of the top 100 US metros with the fastest internet speeds.

We ranked each metro on seven different factors to find which ones would be the best for digital nomads. Each measurement was normalized on a 0–1 scale (with 1 corresponding to the measurement that would most positively affect the final score and 0 corresponding to the measurement that would most negatively affect the final score).

These adjusted measurements were then added together and weighted to get a score of 100.

Each metro was ranked based on the factors below:

Average Download Speed Mean (20%): a faster speed positively impacts the score
Number of Free Wi-Fi hotspots (20%): more available hotspots positively impact the score
Average Airbnb cost per night (20%): lower cost positively impacts the score
Miles from Nearest Airport (15%): closer airports positively impact the score
Miles from Nearest National Park (15%): closer national parks positively impact the score
Average Annual Temperature (5%): higher annual temperatures positively impact the score
Number of State Recreation Areas (5%): more state recreation areas positively impact the score

Sources

Air DNA. Accessed June 15, 2022.
Closest Airport. Accessed June 15, 2022.
Current Results, “Average Annual Temperature for Large US Cities." Accessed June 15, 2022.
National Park Trips, “US National Parks by State.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
NOAA, “Climate at a Glance.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
Stacker, “Closest National Parks to Charleston, West Virginia.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
State Parks, “America’s Parks.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
Trevor Wheelwright and Peter Holslin, HighSpeedInternet.com, “The Top 10 Fastest and Slowest Metros for Internet.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
Trust for Public Land, “ParkServe® Data Downloads.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
“US Census American Community Survey - Population Data (2019).” Accessed June 15, 2022.
S. Climate Data, “Climate Lancaster - Pennsylvania.” Accessed June 15, 2022.
Wi-Fi Free Spot. Accessed May 31, 2022.

Written by

Brianne Sandorf

Brianne has a degree in English and creative writing from Westminster College and has spent 6+ years writing professional, research-based content. Before joining Reviews.org, she wrote safety and security content for ASecureLife.com. Her pieces and quotes are published across the web, including on MSN.com, Social Catfish, and Parents.com. Hobbies include wearing a seatbelt, wearing a life jacket, and keeping her arms and legs inside the ride at all times. Contact her at brianne@reviews.org.