Digital Nomads Statistics and Figures in 2024

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We found the key digital nomad statistics that highlight emerging trends in the modern workforce, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. More and more people seek fully remote or hybrid jobs, and some sectors already stand out for their sizable share of remote employees.

This article discusses the jobs and sectors with the most remote opportunities, plus other key telework and digital nomad statistics. We dive into the average nomad income, the best and most popular remote working locations, as well as into the unique benefits and challenges of remote work.

Let’s get started.

Key Digital Nomads Statistics to Know In 2024

An Overview of The Latest Teleworking Statistics

Although telework and digital nomadism aren’t the same, they both imply working remotely. A closer look at telework trends can tell us more about potential digital nomad statistics.

It’s likely that the wider adoption of remote arrangements could lead to more digital nomads thanks to the increase in teleworking jobs across industries, now available to employees from all over the world.

Remote Work Adoption Increased Since The Pandemic

While the concept of teleworking has been around since the 1970s, we’ve only seen a drastic shift in remote work statistics in the past few years. The COVID-19 restrictions fueled the adoption of remote and hybrid work across the board.

In the US alone, the share of home-based workers more than tripled throughout 2019–2021, going from 5.7% to 17.9% of the country’s working population as per data from the US Census Bureau.

This shift from on-site to remote work in the US has been going down since 2021, though. According to a recent online survey, the share of US respondents working remotely went from a peak of 70% in 2020 to under 30% in Q2 2022, likely because of more companies pushing for a return to the office.

However, the percentage of remote workers stabilized at levels much higher than prior to the pandemic (27% in 2024 vs 8% in 2019). The share of people working hybrid jobs also hit an all-time high of 54% in 2024. Note, this was a smaller scale online survey.

According to recent data from Euronews, new remote and hybrid LinkedIn openings in the US made up less than 25% of jobs offered on the platform at the end of 2023.

In comparison, hybrid jobs made up over 30% of openings in France and Germany, and over 40% of those in the UK. With LinkedIn being among the biggest job search platforms worldwide, this finding tells us quite a bit about the regional job markets and the local adoption of remote work.

The Latest Global Stats on Remote Work

Throughout 2015–2023, the percentage of people working remotely went from 7% to 28%. These estimates come from a 2023 survey of 980 employers, but the trend is true across multiple surveys and reports.

The sharpest increase occurred between 2019–2022, with things seemingly leveling off in 2023. Prior to 2019, the share of remote workers grew at a modest rate of 1% per year.

An earlier 2022 survey of 1,200 chief information officers further supports this finding. The survey found that only 15% of global companies’ workforce worked remotely before COVID. That percentage rose to over 70% at the peak of the pandemic, but quickly went down to 45% in 2022.

Interestingly, a little over a third of the companies’ workers are expected to keep working in a hybrid model permanently, as of 2022. So, while the share of remote workers has been going down since the pandemic peak, it will likely remain higher than before 2020.

Of course, these figures are just averages, and the share of remote workers varies considerably across industries.

Remote Work Across Industries

Based on the same survey of 980 employers, the tech industry has the highest percentage of fully or mostly remote workers globally, followed by agencies and consultancies, finance and insurance, and engineering and science.

In 2023, nearly 68% of the workforce in tech worked remotely. At the opposite end, less than 15% of those in the healthcare, food, and hospitality industries partook in remote work.

Although not impossible to cook from home, you need a Health Department-approved kitchen to serve others, so remote work in the catering industry is understandably more challenging.

Previous data from the 2021 Business Response Survey had similar findings in the US, where information, financial activities, professional and business services, and education services had the largest share of jobs involving full-time or hybrid teleworking arrangements.

Other sectors like construction, manufacturing, retail trade, accommodations, and transportation aren’t compatible with remote work, so their lower shares are to be expected.

How Employees View Remote Work

The perception of remote work seems primarily positive. A 2021 survey of 3,900 employees worldwide found that 80% or more of respondents believe remote work is the future.

A vast majority of respondents also reported being able to accomplish all their tasks remotely, and 8 in 10 would recommend remote work to a friend.

Although down by 10% since 2020, over half of respondents would still consider leaving their current company for a remote role.

A subsequent worldwide 2022 survey of 3,000 respondents also showed the majority of remote employees prefer to keep working remotely.

Over 70% of respondents said they’d like to be fully remote, and 20% preferred hybrid, remote-first work arrangements.

Also, 71% of respondents said their company was planning on permanently allowing some amount of remote work in the future.

As we highlight below, the increasing number of employees and businesses favoring remote work is likely because of telework’s compelling benefits. Some of these include lower operational costs for employers, and more freedom, flexibility for workers.

Employers’ Attitudes Towards Remote Work

Although many employees have returned to the office since 2023, we can see the long-lasting impact, with more employers and employees considering telework as a viable alternative to onsite work.

It seems some companies are already recognizing some of the benefits of remote work. Among the surveyed global employers who adopted remote work in 2023, 41% cited access to a broadened talent pool as the main reason.

Other frequently cited reasons included benefits for attracting and retaining talent, increased productivity, and reduced costs.

Surprisingly, 54% of employers surveyed in 2023 said they trusted the productivity of remote employees overall. Only 15% of employers were unsure or untrusting of their remote workers’ performance.

Another smaller-scale 2023 survey on 281 IT professionals found productivity decreasing was a consideration for 28% of organization leaders.

Although productivity was among the main concerns of hybrid work, the top priorities were organizational culture and effective collaboration, along with being able to tell when employees are demotivated.

As for employers who introduced return-to-office mandates in 2023, only 6% cited increasing productivity as a reason. Company culture or connection was the largest motivation for return-to-office mandates worldwide, followed by facilitating cooperation.

Crucially, these return to office decisions weren’t based on employees’ preferences.

Digital Nomadism Is Slowly Picking Up

Overall, it seems more employees worldwide enjoy fully-remote job opportunities today, particularly in the tech, consulting, finance, and professional services sectors.

Given that flexibility to choose where to live and work ranked among the top five benefits of remote work for global respondents in 2022, it’s likely that a sizable share of the new teleworking workforce could favor digital nomadism.

While we don’t know how many digital nomads there are, a WYSETC report estimated the number at over 40 million in 2023, with a projected growth to roughly 60 million by 2030.

Right now, most digital nomads come from the US. According to 2023 estimates, the number of digital nomads and aspiring digital nomads in the US has been going up year on year throughout 2019–2023.

Based on these figures, the US already has the most digital nomads in the world, although this positive trend likely stands for other countries where remote work is becoming more accessible.

According to Google search trends, global interest in ‘digital nomad’ and other related queries has been going up since 2019. Interest hit an all-time peak beginning in Q2 2022, and has since remained higher than pre-pandemic.

In 2024, North America, Western Europe, and parts of the APAC show the highest interest based on search volume.

Remote vs Onsite Work – How Do They Compare?

Remote work brings many benefits to employees; many of them have to do with a better work-life balance or increased freedom and flexibility. Here are some of the perks of remote work, in practice:

Remote work could also benefit businesses, as it generally encourages tech adoption (like EoR, CRM, and project management software), it enables access to a wider pool of local and international talent, and it reduces maintenance and turnover costs.

However, remote work also has unique challenges, particularly for workers.

According to 2022 data from Statista, some of remote workers’ leading struggles include loneliness, inability to unplug, and being in a different timezone than their coworkers.

Other problems cited that are unique to remote work include staying home too often and encountering distractions at home.

Additionally, 15% of survey respondents mentioned challenges in career advancement or growth, which could become even more of a concern in the future.

Since 2023, more employers have also been considering pay cuts for remote workers. A recent survey of 937 UK managers also suggested that remote workers are less likely to get promoted or receive a pay raise, compared to their onsite counterparts.

Other reports show remote workers have fewer opportunities for mentoring, connection, and feedback than their onsite colleagues, which could further limit their career path, especially as new employees.

Even after the introduction of stringent return-to-office policies, remote workers, and digital nomads in particular, are still more likely to be highly satisfied with their job.

In 2023, for example, 80% of the surveyed digital nomads reported high job satisfaction, compared to 59% of non-nomads.

A Closer Look at Digital Nomads Demographics

Nomad List is one of the most popular online communities for digital nomads. Their periodic user surveys give us the most comprehensive data on nomad demographics, including digital nomads’ age, nationalities, income, and more. Let’s see their recent findings.

Which Countries Have The Most Digital Nomads?

A recent analysis of Digital Nomad List’s members shows us how many nomads in the USA and other countries use the platform, and which nationalities make up the largest share.

According to their findings, most digital nomads come from the US. Americans made up 46% of the respondents, surpassing all the other nationalities by a large margin.

Based on these numbers, Nomad List estimates the total number of US nomads at over 37 million, considerably higher than other sources.

The other top nationalities for digital nomads were British (7% of Nomad List members), Russian (5%), Canadian (5%), and German (4%).

Other countries in Europe and the APAC were even less represented, despite also providing remote or hybrid work opportunities at rates comparable to the US or higher.

Age and Gender of Digital Nomads

Digital nomads are more likely to be men. Another 2024 Nomad List survey shows men outnumber women on the site, as they made up 61% of the survey respondents.

The majority of digital nomads are also under 40 years old. As per a 2023 analysis on 1,200 respondents, 52.6% of digital nomads are aged 30–39, followed by those aged 18–29 at 22.4%.

These numbers suggest most US digital nomads are Millennials. In fact, Millennials make up 37% of the US digital nomad population, followed by Gen Xers (27%) and Gen Zers (21%).

Millennials also make up the largest share of the global workforce, so it seems like digital nomad age demographics reflect the wider market distribution of workers. This indicates a meaningful long-term trend forming.

Education, Income, and Occupation of Digital Nomads

Over 90% digital nomads have a higher education, with 54% of those having a Bachelor’s. The share of college-educated digital nomads goes hand in hand with their annual income and top career choices.

As per 2024 data from Nomad List, 35% of digital nomads on the site earn $100k–$250k/year. Another 34% make $50–$100k/year, which is equal or higher than the average US salary.

As for the most popular careers, 2023 data on US digital nomads shows 19% are working in IT, followed by 14% in creative services. Other popular professional fields included education and training, sales and marketing, finance, and consulting.

There’s some overlap among the leading digital nomad occupations for men and women, although male digital nomads are the most likely to work as software devs, web devs, and startup founders.

On the other hand, nomad women are more likely to work in creative and community fields, blogging, or coaching.

It’s worth noting the women’s sample size was over three times smaller, so it would be interesting to see if a larger sample or a sample from a different community would alter these findings.

Finally, over a third of digital nomads also work as freelancers, although another 31.5% are full-time employees. Entrepreneurship was the third most popular type of employment, reported by 13.6% of survey respondents.

So, it seems the average digital nomad is likely to be young, male, and have a higher education. Most digital nomads also work in IT and creative fields, often as freelancers or full-time employees.

The Most Popular Destinations for Digital Nomads

Europe also offers the most digital nomad visas, which further contributes to its popularity among digital nomads in 2024.

As of 2024, 18 European countries let nomads apply for visas, including the Czech Republic, Italy, and Spain. The Americas are close behind offering 16 visas, many throughout Latin America.

Regarding the most popular countries, the latest digital nomad statistics from Nomad List show most nomads travel to or within the US.

In march 2024, 14% of digital nomads’ trips were in the US, though it’s unclear how many of these nomads were foreign visitors and how many were US citizens relocating periodically.

Mexico was the second most popular destination in the Americas, accounting for 4% of trips reported by nomads in the survey. Most other top visited countries were in Europe, with Spain being the first choice and accounting for 5% of all trips.

The UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Portugal were also within the top 10 destinations. In Asia, the countries with the largest share of nomad visitors were Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, and Vietnam.

According to the same data, London is the most visited city, accounting for 2.3% of all reported trips. With a sample size of 322,140 trips, that means digital nomads have visited London 7,400+ times as of March 2024.

Other top cities with over 4,000 visits included Bangkok, New York, Berlin, Lisbon, Paris, Barcelona, and Amsterdam.

Some other remote work hubs have grown rapidly in the past five years, with Tbilisi, Madrid, Budapest, and Warsaw taking the lead.

It also seems most nomads change their location frequently. While the average time spent was 2 months per city and 6 months per country, the largest share of respondents in the same Nomad List survey said they spent less than a week in one city and 70–30 days in one country.

This could be due to legal requirements or reporting bias, as many countries have legal requirements for travelers to register with the local authorities if staying in the country for more than three months.

Prolonged stays also mean nomads will have to pay taxes, although the degree of legal enforcement varies from country to country.

Key Trends Influencing Digital Nomadism

The same factors that influenced remote work thus far will continue to fuel digital nomadism in the future. We can also expect new technological developments that will make it easier for companies and employees to effectively adopt hybrid or remote work arrangements.

Here are some key ongoing and future trends influencing digital nomadism:

Work Policy Changes

The increased adoption of hybrid and remote policies by companies worldwide is a major factor that could encourage the growth of digital nomadism. And with over 80% of workers globally preferring offsite work, the demand for policy changes is pretty clear.

An increasing number of companies are already adopting remote or hybrid arrangements to cut costs, so it seems company culture is slowly shifting globally (particularly in the IT sector).

Thanks to this, more employees will have the opportunity to work from anywhere, even while traveling.

More Digital Nomad Visas

The logistics of working while traveling used to be quite complicated before the introduction of digital nomad visas. Digital nomads are usually not eligible for work visas, and tourist visas could be too short for slow travelers relocating every few months.

Enter digital nomad visas – a flexible, affordable option allowing digital nomads to live and work legally in their destination country. With more countries introducing such visas in the past few years, being a digital nomad is becoming a lot easier.

Implementation of Business and Collaboration Software

Advancements in business and collaboration software are critical for the adoption of remote work policies, as hybrid and remote work environments face unique challenges relating to HR processes, company culture, and technology.

Some of the most commonly-cited hurdles include employee training, management procedures, onboarding, and collaboration.

However, the wide scale implementation of collaboration tools and business software (like EoR, project management, payroll, and onboarding solutions) will facilitate the switch to remote work by enabling seamless communication and collaboration regardless of location.

As these technologies continue to evolve and improve, they will make remote work more efficient and accessible for both companies and remote employees.

Digital Nomads and Remote Work Statistics Are Here to Stay

Based on the most recent digital nomad statistics, nomadism is on the rise. Although they still make up a very small share of the global population, we can see a sustained increase in the number of digital nomads over the past few years, particularly since the pandemic.

Telework and digital nomad statistics show a slowdown since the pandemic, but the number of remote or hybrid job openings and the interest for digital nomadism stabilized at a new high since 2022.

Moving forward, a combination of evolving remote work policies, the proliferation of digital nomad visas, and the ongoing development of business and collaboration tools creates a supportive environment for the digital nomad lifestyle, sustaining its recent and future growth.

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