These Are the Best African Cities for Remote Work

Nairobi is the closest thing to a consensus

Scouring through the replies, the closest thing to a consensus was Nairobi, Kenya’s capital city. As @mistr_bl puts it, “Nairobi hands down.” The reasons given by those who shared this opinion were great internet speeds and a wide variety of places to work. To the former point, when cable cuts disrupted internet services across multiple East African countries, Kenya’s connectivity remained solid.

“Internet reliability is even better than cities like Berlin or Paris where I faced issues,” @mistr_bl adds. “Nairobi is great for [the] internet and cool cafes,” @katemis wrote. Well over a handful of respondents said that the Kenyan capital doesn’t deal with long power cuts, unlike many African cities, which is undoubtedly a huge positive.

It also helps that its tech scene is arguably the most developed on the continent. “I think Nairobi coz [sic] Kenya is literally the hub of African IT,” @hard_mashona_type says. “[I’m] not even Kenyan but I have been there and they are miles ahead of most on tech.”

For extra points, @felixmakinda says, “A lot to do when bored in the house. From tea farms, hiking trails, and game parks just outside the city.”

Cape Town, Kigali and other eligible cities

As @rac2614y summarily puts it, “Nairobi seems to be the consensus and Cape Town as a backup.” Several replies touted South Africa’s legislative capital as a great location for remote workers, but several commenters shared that it might not be the most seamless experience.

“Tonnes of Cafes with incredible views and you can get your very own mobile mifi and get to work even in the middle of a cruise on the ocean or mountainsides,” @felistas_shoko writes. However, a few people shared concerns over the power situation in the country. “The load shedding will get you fired,” @dorothee_lately says. “After a few days in Cape Town, I already wanted to go back home, because I had never witnessed such planned load shedding my entire life.”

Several other cities were also tipped as viable places to work remotely from, including the Rwandan capital Kigali, which has good internet connectivity and “cool cafes but then nightlife and options to unwind were limited,” according to @laureene_reevesndagire.

In Algiers, the Algerian capital city, @mhamedireda says there’s great internet, “Starbucks on every corner,” and great weather.

@theempirestrikesblaque recommends Senegal’s capital city, Dakar. “[Power] Outages were rare, and probably even less now, [three] years later. High speed [internet] was good quality, though kinda pricey.”

A few non-recommendations

Some countries weren’t exactly lauded as prime remote work recommendations. For example, @international_beeb wrote, “Definitely not Uganda, internet is garbage and power is always off.” @katemis also did not recommend Ghana, because of poor internet speed. “Instagram barely works.”