2024 Report Reveals Digital Nomads’ Earnings, Nationality, Dating, And More

The number of digital nomads grew by 50% following the COVID-19 pandemic and is still growing today. Explore the statistics about digital nomads below to gain insight into their way of life.

General Statistics on Digital Nomads

• The latest Digital Nomad Statistics reveal a global count of 35 million nomads, with Americans comprising 17.3% of the total.
• When deciding on a location, digital nomads worldwide prioritize internet speed and the cost of living.
• The majority of digital nomads engage in freelancing, online entrepreneurship, blogging, content creation, or other freelance work. On average, their age is 32.
• Educationally, 90% of digital nomads are well-educated, with 35% employed and 46% self-employed.
• Digital Nomad Statistics indicate a median salary of $85,000 and an average annual salary of $120,512.
• Nearly half of digital nomads experience a reduction in earnings compared to their corporate employment.
• On average, the living cost for a digital nomad is $1,724 per month. Annually, 46% travel with a budget, while 54% face no budget constraints.
• These nomads typically visit 1 to 2 countries annually (73%), with 19% exploring 3 to 4 countries, and 8% venturing to more than 5 countries.
• Approximately 45% of digital nomads prefer working from cafes regularly.
• Among American digital nomads, 48% opt to travel abroad, while 52% stay within national borders.
• A significant 40% of digital nomads often experience feelings of loneliness.
• The combined annual spending by digital nomads, according to Digital Nomad Statistics, totals $787 billion.
• Typically, these travelers relocate to a new country every six months on average.
• Half of digital nomads have been on the road for four years or less.
• While 66% tend to stay in a single location, 80% remain for 3 to 9 months.
• A notable 74% believe that traveling between destinations enhances their work productivity.
• Only 13% of digital nomads are looking for a relationship.

Statistics on Digital Nomads by Gender and Demographics

Men make up 58% of the total number of digital nomads, while women make up 42%. Others included 1% of all.

Earnings

Three-quarters of digital nomads make between $50,000 and $100,000 annually. Moreover, 2 percent of them make more than $1 million a year. Less than $25k and $250k to $1 million (7%), $25k to $50k (17%), and $100k to $250k (33%), are the contributions made by other salary groups.

Nationality

Additionally, a significant portion of digital nomads (48%) are based in the United States of America in terms of nationality. The top two nations with the greatest percentage of digital nomads are the UK and Russia. Only 1% of the contribution comes from other nations.

Top Occupations

The top jobs for men and women were software developers (34%), web developers (29%), and startup founders (28%), while the top jobs for women were marketers (16%), creative (16%), and startup founders (13%). The least common occupations for men and women are finance and blogging, at 7% and 4%, respectively.

Related: Flexjobs Ranks 100 Companies With The Most Remote Jobs In 2024

Living Cost

Monthly expenses for digital nomads differ. The primary expenses are lodging ($821), groceries ($336), and eating out ($285). However, the phone plan ($26) has the lowest cost based on the selection made.

Preferred Activities

According to Digital Nomad Statistics, hiking (52%) is the most popular activity for nomad women, followed by yoga (45%), fitness (40%) and running (29%). For men, the top three activities are: hiking (49%), fitness (47%) and running (29%). Climbing and diving are the activities that men and women like the least.

Age

Age-wise, the distribution of digital nomads shows that 47% of them are in the 30- to 39-year-old age range. 50 to 59 years old (19%), 40 to 49 years old (16%), 20 to 29 years old (14%), 60 to 69% (3%), and 70 years and older (1%).

Countries Granting Visa by Region

According to the Digital Nomad Statistics 2023, 18% of all visas were granted for travel to Europe. Remarkably, the Americas came in second place for the same category of cities visited, with 16% of the total. Furthermore, with 4% of visas granted, Asia and Africa shared a similar percentage.

(Reference: statista.com)

Preferred Work Places

Digital nomads most often choose to work from hotels, cafes, or apartments. Additionally, according to Digital Nomad Statistics, 27% of workers complete their office work through Airbnb, and 19% prefer coworking spaces.

Dating

Among digital nomads, 35% seek friendships, and 32% are on the lookout for travel companions. Meanwhile, 16% are interested in casual dating, whereas 13% aspire to find more serious relationships. Additionally, 5% express an interest in polyamorous dating.

Concerns

For digital nomads, personal safety is the biggest challenge. But juggling work and vacation is the second issue. Travel logistics are the issue that these travelers are least concerned about.

Educational Level

(Reference: statista.com)

Demographics 2023’s Digital Nomad Statistics also show that 90% of them have completed higher education, with 33% and 54% of them holding master’s degrees. Just 10% of digital nomads hold a high school diploma, and only 3% have a PhD.

Reasons behind Digital Nomadism

• 73% expressed a desire for a better work-life balance.
• 68% said they enjoy the lifestyle’s freedom.
• 55% stated they simply enjoy traveling.
• 43% stated they wished to stay away from office politics.
• 37% said they wanted to learn about different cultures.

(Source: twoticketsanywhere.com)

73% of digital nomads cited improved work-life balance as their main motivation for adopting this lifestyle. Of them, 68% claimed that it gives them freedom. While 43% of nomads chose to stay away from office politics, 55% of them did so because they enjoyed traveling. Simultaneously, nearly 40% of nomads desired to experience different cultures.

Popular Cities Visited by Digital Nomads

(Reference: statista.com)

With 2.4%, 1.94%, and 1.65% of trips, London, Bangkok, and New York were the top 3 cities that digital nomads traveled to.