All destinationsPhilippines
Philippines
Siargao
Surf island, slow living
The Philippines' surf capital: palm-lined, laid-back and beautiful, with island-grade internet as the trade-off.
Golden window: March to May
Best months: March to May
Through the year
- Jan to Feb · Amihan (windy dry). Cooler, breezy and mostly dry; bigger swell.
- Mar to May · Dry season. Calm, sunny and warm, the easiest months on the island.
- Jun to Sep · Habagat (wet). Southwest monsoon brings humid, rainy spells.
- Oct to Dec · Surf & storm season. Peak surf but real typhoon risk.
Workday compatibility
Where a standard 9-to-5 in each of these zones lands in local time here.
- US West (LA)
- 00:00 to 08:00 local13% overlap
- US East (NYC)
- 21:00 to 05:00 local0% overlap
- UK (London)
- 17:00 to 01:00 local25% overlap
- Europe (CET)
- 16:00 to 00:00 local38% overlap
- India (Mumbai)
- 11:30 to 19:30 local94% overlap
- Australia (Sydney)
- 06:00 to 14:00 local88% overlap
What stands out
- Nature: Rich in nature and the outdoors.
- Climate: Inside its golden window in March.
- Cost: Comfortably within budget ($855 to $1615/mo).
Know before choosing Siargao
- Tourist stays are capped at 30 days, you'd have to leave and re-enter.
- Internet can be patchy (~20 Mbps), keep a mobile-data backup for calls.
- Surf & storm season (Oct to Dec), plan around it.
- Few private rooms for calls, check a coworking space before you commit.
Field-tested by Core Nomadic
On the ground 2024 to 2025 · Several months across the dry and wet seasons · Full-time remote with EU/US-hours calls, working from cafés and a coworking space
Siargao rewards a slower pace, but it's an island first and a work base second: plan around the internet and the rhythm of the surf, not the other way round.
- Internet in practice
- Island fibre is improving but still the main constraint. Work from a coworking space or a known café, and keep a local mobile-data SIM (Globe or Smart) as a backup for calls.
- Coworking & cafés
- The reliable spots cluster around General Luna and Cloud 9, and that's where the nomad scene actually meets. A handful of dedicated spaces, not dozens.
- Finding housing
- Monthly rentals are found on the ground and through local Facebook groups, not big booking platforms. Come for a couple of weeks first, then lock in a monthly place once you know the area.
- Getting around
- A rented motorbike is the default, and roughly essential: the good beaches, spots and cafés are spread out.
- Budget reality
- Rent is cheaper than Bali, but imported goods, dining out and the occasional power cut add up. Bring a power bank and don't assume everything takes card.
What stood out
- A genuinely beautiful, laid-back surf island with a small, friendly nomad scene
- Cheaper monthly living than Bali or Canggu
- Easy to build a slow surf-and-work routine
What to plan around
- Island-grade internet, not for heavy calls without a mobile-data backup
- Limited healthcare; anything serious means a flight to Cebu or Manila
- Typhoon risk and rough seas Oct to Jan, and you need a motorbike to get around
One team's first-hand experience, evidence to read, not a factor in the match score.
Read the full guideThe essentials
Work
- Internet
- 20 Mbps · patchycountry avg
- Coworking
- 4 notable spaces
- Private call rooms
- Limited, check ahead
Cost
- Monthly cost
- $900 to $1,700/mo
- Housing
- Monthly rentals: Doable · studio $300 to $700
Life
- Safety
- Good
- Healthcare
- Basiccountry avg
- Community
- Emergingarea est.
- Good for
- Surf, Beach, Nature, Wellness
Stay
- Visa
- 30 days visa-free · No nomad visacountry avg
- Best season
- Mar to May
- Timezone
- UTC+8 · Asia/Manila
Visa rules assume an EU/US/UK passport, differ by nationality, and change often. Always confirm the current rules for your own passport with an official source.
Data quality & sources
Mostly estimated · updated 2026-07Every figure shows its source and confidence. v1 is hand-curated, so treat it as a starting point. Missing data is shown as “No data”, never invented.
- Monthly cost
- Numbeo (cost of living)· Low confidence
- Internet
- country avgSpeedtest Global Index (Ookla)· Medium confidence
- Coworking
- NomadTiming editorial (coworking survey)· Low confidence
- Visa
- country avgOfficial immigration guidance· Medium confidence
- Safety
- Numbeo Safety Index / public travel advisories· Low confidence
- Healthcare
- country avgNumbeo Health Care Index· Low confidence
- Community
- area est.NomadTiming editorial (nomad community)· Low confidence
- Housing
- Numbeo rent index / local rental listings· Low confidence
How the scoring works and where data comes from: read the methodology.
Nearby & similar bases
March · Asia/Manila (UTC+8)