Living the Dream: My 5 Favorite Cities around the World for Living an Entrepreneurial Lifestyle on $30k per Year
Living the Dream: My 5 Favorite Cities around the World for Living an Entrepreneurial Lifestyle on $30k per Year or Less
Like many of you, I started my professional career in New York City after graduating college. It was the only place where I could fool myself into believing that all of my hard work and sacrifices were leading to something great. And it did. Sort of… During those first few years in NYC, I worked long days at increasingly unfulfilling jobs while supporting an expensive lifestyle full of luxuries like $15 cocktails and personal trainers… But once the initial adrenaline rush of living so intensely wore off, not even the finest merlot or protein powder could help me re-discover that initial spark that had lured me there in the first place…. So at age 22, after almost 3 years in NYC, I decided to take a 14-month break from the rat race (career and personal) to travel around the world.
Seeing the World Changed Everything
My trip completely transformed my life! It was more than just a break from work; it was about giving me time to get back in touch with what really mattered. I re-discovered why I had gone to college, how little I actually needed, and that there were so many more interesting people outside of New York City.
The Lesson: Life Is About What You Do, Not Where You Do It
After returning “home,” I also knew that while NYC still had its benefits for someone with drive and discipline, it wasn’t one of them… So instead of continuing down that beaten path in pursuit of the perfect career, I took control of my own destiny by starting my own company (my first one failed miserably) and landed a remote job with the perfect company to support me.
Living an Entrepreneurial Lifestyle on $30k per Year
Like many entrepreneurs that I know, once the bills started to get paid, I needed some extra money to fund my expensive travel habits… So instead of settling down in NYC or San Francisco for more than 1-2 years at a time like most people do, I made it a long-term goal to live anywhere else but home so that I could experience as much as possible while working remotely.
My personal rules are simple:
Return home only when it’s financially necessary plus there’s no visa available to make me feel like I’m really living overseas (my U.S. passport limits my international employment options).
My 5 Favorite Cities for Living an Entrepreneurial Lifestyle on $30k per Year or Less… (In no particular order)
1 – Medellin, Colombia
Medellin is home to the most beautiful women in all of South America, great weather year-round, affordable prices by Western standards, and one of the best lifestyle & startup scenes in Latin America. It’s not quite as popular as other choices on this list yet because it’s much more expensive than cities like Chiang Mai or Saigon. But it’s well worth the price if you have a taste! I’ve only been a couple of times but I’m going again next month.
Medellin has one of the best startup scenes in all of Latin America
2 – Chiang Mai, Thailand
Another great choice if you want to live an entrepreneurial lifestyle on $30k per year is Chiang Mai, Thailand. It’s much cheaper than Western cities like San Francisco or New York City and offers everything one need for early-stage success… A growing community of entrepreneurs, endless co working spaces, affordable food options (for Asia), inexpensive housing options, good weather, nice people, and much more. Plus with super cheap flights all over Asia thanks to Air Asia, it’s easy to fly for under $100 roundtrip from home country.
3 – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
It only costs around $400 per month to live a very comfortable lifestyle in Saigon. And since you can fly anywhere else for under $100 any time you want, it’s almost as free as living in Chiang Mai or Medellin… Plus there are some of the best nightlife and co working options here on the planet! I love this city for those reasons.
4 – Istanbul, Turkey
Istanbul is always a favorite with the entrepreneurs that I know because it’s so different from what you find throughout the rest of Europe and Asia (not to mention most places in North America). It has its own unique culture and history like nowhere else on earth and offers up some really interesting opportunities if you actually want to live a life that matters… A life not dictated by what you can or cannot do.
Istanbul has a culture and history unlike anywhere else on earth
5 – Berlin, Germany
Berlin is one of those cities where I’d love to live but so far it hasn’t been possible (since my visas always had an expiration date of only 90 days). Though I am still planning on spending some time here over the next year or two, as long as you speak German or another European language fluently you’ll be able to find some interesting opportunities in this rapidly growing startup scene. The cost of living isn’t truly low like other places on this list (or most other places for that matter), but there are enough options to make it worth living on a budget… And I hear the nightlife is some of the best in Europe.
Conclusion:
If you want to live an entrepreneurial lifestyle on $30k per year, the first thing you’ll need is a solid income or a comfortable savings account… It’s impossible to go from broke and homeless to making a comfortable living on your own without having some cash saved up first. From there I suggest going on a quick trip to each of these five cities so that you can see which places feel the most like home. You don’t have to move just because everyone else does.