Prague world’s fifth-best city for teleworking, survey finds

Prague is the fifth-best city in the world for working outside an office. This according to a ranking of 80 cities by WorkMotion, a company specialising in finding jobs for clients looking to work abroad. Topping the rankings were Melbourne, Montreal, and Sydney. 

The ranking took into account 17 categories, in each of which it was possible to obtain up to 100 points. It drew data for each category from existing and available data, including from the World Bank, the European Commission and World Health Organization (WHO).

Prague scored high in terms of availability of rentals, quality transport, public education and gender equality. The Czech capital did poorly when it came to bureaucratic red tape regarding residency, but also in terms of taxation.

“The pandemic accelerated the teleworking trend more than we expected. The technologies necessary for teleworking were of course there before the pandemic. What has changed, however, is the attitude of companies to work from home (...) accepting the possibility that the best the candidate may live in another country,” Carsten Lebtig, co-founder and CEO of WorkMotion, told La Libre.

Many large European capitals and metropolises did not rank highly. Brussels placed 52nd, mainly due to high tax rates. For the same reason, along with housing prices, Paris was ranked 62nd. Faring better were Berlin (11th), London (36th), mainly due to prices and housing affordability.

When choosing a place to live – and therefore also to work from home – people have different priorities. According to the WorkMotion ranking, the most advantageous taxes are in Istanbul, followed by Lisbon.

Digital nomads will find the lowest cost of living in places like Bangalore or Bali. The Danish metropolis of Copenhagen, on the other hand, can offer the happiest people.