Back to the ranking tool

Asia · Arabia

🇸🇾 Syria

#199 of 203 overall~$710/mo (single)

Syria is an ancient Levantine cradle that was a traveller favourite before 2011 — Damascus and Aleppo among the world's oldest cities, plus Palmyra and Crusader castles. After more than a decade of civil war, the Assad regime fell in December 2024, and the country is now in a fragile, uncertain transition with damaged infrastructure, reconstruction underway and continuing do-not-travel advisories. Its heritage is extraordinary (though some is war-damaged); it's not a viable travel or nomad destination for now, but the situation is evolving — spring and autumn are the historically mild seasons.

Nomad quick facts

Cost (single)

$710/mo

Cost (couple)

$1140/mo

Internet speed

Safety

3.184 (#184 of 190)

Public transit

Limited

Best months

Apr–May, Sep–Oct

Digital nomad visa

Not available

Nomad score

31.6 / 100

Score breakdown

95Cost
15Internet
13Safety
25Tourism
10Visa

Cost of living

95/ 100 score

Syria offers low baseline living costs for foreign currency holders across food, housing, and basic services. Remote workers keep daily burn rates minimal by securing mid-term residential apartments and utilizing local municipal markets.

Estimated monthly cost

Single

$710/mo

Couple

$1,140/mo

Local spending breakdown

Housing & utilities

$10/mo

Food & groceries

$11/mo

Dining & hotels

$1/mo

Score is based off objective cost-of-living data with World Bank and C2ER Cost of Living Index. The limitation of this data is that it tracks spending of locals, which will be far less than travelers. We applied a nomad-realistic monthly cost estimate to make the amount more accurate. Prices displayed in USD.

World Bank figures reflect national average consumption, which can run high in countries with large wealth gaps (e.g. the US) — the nomad estimate aims to correct for this. Likewise, lower CoL countries will have very low local spending figures, and will not reflect the spending patterns of travelers or nomads.

Sources: C2ER Cost of Living Index · World Bank ICP 2021 · Independent nomad cost estimates

Internet

15/ 100 score

Syria is lacking official internet performance data, and repeated outages caused by damaged infrastructure and power problems make connectivity unreliable; a backup connection is essential for remote work.

Blends download speed (Ookla Speedtest Global Index) with upload speed and latency (Cloudflare Radar). Speeds are scored between 10 Mbps (0) and 200 Mbps (100); latency counts the opposite way — lower is better. A missing metric doesn't penalize a country, it's scored on whatever data is available.

A national average — city and neighbourhood speeds vary, especially outside major hubs.

Sources: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · Cloudflare Radar

Safety

13/ 100 score

Syria is in a genuinely transitional period since the Assad government fell in December 2024, with tourism cautiously restarting in Damascus, Aleppo and historic sites, but periodic bombings and targeted violence, particularly affecting religious minorities, mean the security situation remains fragile and can shift quickly; this is a case worth monitoring closely rather than treating as settled either way.

Global safety rank

#184 of 190

Peace Index score

3.18 (lower = safer)

Blends three published safety indices: the Global Peace Index, the WJP Rule of Law Index (Order & Security factor), and the Gallup Global Law and Order Index. Each is rescaled 0-100 and combined with weights favoring GPI and Gallup slightly over WJP. Not every country is tracked by all three — the blend adjusts to whichever are available (weights are renormalized) rather than penalizing a country for a missing source, though a country tracked by fewer sources carries lower confidence.

As this is national average data, be aware that safety varies significantly by city and region within a country.

Sources: Global Peace Index (Institute for Economics & Peace) · WJP Rule of Law Index (World Justice Project) · Gallup Global Law and Order Index

Tourism & infrastructure

25/ 100 score

Damascus and Aleppo rank among the world's oldest cities, and Syria was a genuine traveler favorite before 2011. Since the Assad regime fell in December 2024, the country has entered a fragile, uncertain transition, and this isn't currently a viable travel or nomad destination, though the situation continues to evolve.

English Proficiency Index

456.0

Within-city transit

Limited

Between-city transit

Limited

Climate

Mediterranean coast, arid interior; hot, dry summers and mild-to-cold winters.

Best months: Apr–May, Sep–Oct

Transit

Syria's transit, battered by years of war, relies on 'servees' microbuses, buses and shared taxis in Damascus, Aleppo and other cities, cheap but crowded and informal. The railway network is largely halted, and intercity travel uses buses and shared vehicles subject to checkpoints and fuel shortages. City centres and old souqs are dense and walkable, but reconstruction and security shape all movement.

A weighted blend of published indices: the World Economic Forum's Tourism Development Index (weighted highest — the strongest predictor of appeal), Numbeo's Quality of Life Index, the World Happiness Report, Gallup's day-to-day enjoyment data, the EF English Proficiency Index, and a public transit assessment covering both within-city and between-city transport. Not every country is scored on all six — the blend adjusts to whichever are available rather than penalizing a country for a missing one.

Sources: WEF Tourism Development Index · Numbeo Quality of Life Index · World Happiness Report · Gallup · EF English Proficiency Index · Public transit assessment

Visa & entry

Tourist entry — USA passport

Visa required — 15 days

Digital nomad visa

Visa and immigration laws are rapidly changing, always double-check official sources. Tax figures are estimated only — actual liability depends on your residency status, income structure, and tax treaties. Consult a tax professional prior to travel.

Top cities for nomads in Syria

DamascusCapital

Capital & largest; among the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities: the ancient walled Old City & Umayyad Mosque; battered but intact.

AleppoPopular

The historic northern second city of legendary souqs & a great citadel; heavily war-damaged and slowly rebuilding.

LatakiaPopular

The main Mediterranean coastal city & port, relatively spared, with nearby beaches.

Krak des ChevaliersHidden Gem

One of the world's best-preserved Crusader castles, commanding a hilltop near Homs; UNESCO-listed.

Book your stay early to save

Similar countries