Where to live in the Gambia
We track 2 cities in the Gambia: Banjul and Nema Kunku. Average temperatures run from 26°C to 28°C. We estimate a couple needs €1,862 to €2,048 a month to live centrally. For foreigners, long-term residency is comparatively open.
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- Safety
- 54/100
- country-level estimate
- Healthcare
- 41/100
- country-level estimate
- Democracy
- 5.5/10
- estimated
Estimated from World Bank indicators and calibrated to the scales of our reference tables: safety from the Worldwide Governance Indicators Political Stability and Absence of Violence estimate (GOV_WGI_PV.EST, 2025) and life expectancy at birth (SP.DYN.LE00.IN, 2024), healthcare from the life expectancy at birth (SP.DYN.LE00.IN, 2024) and current health spending per person in US dollars (SH.XPD.CHEX.PC.CD, 2023), cost of living from the price level of GDP relative to the United States, from GDP per person in US dollars and at purchasing power parity (NY.GDP.PCAP.CD/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD, 2025) and democracy score from the Worldwide Governance Indicators Voice and Accountability estimate (GOV_WGI_VA.EST, 2025). Source: The World Bank (World Development Indicators, Worldwide Governance Indicators), CC BY 4.0.
Limited data for Gambia. Figures for safety, healthcare, cost of living and political stability in the Gambia are country-level estimates from World Bank indicators, each named with its year. We have no tax, English, social openness or internet speed figures for the Gambia, so the quiz scores those factors conservatively and this page leaves them out.
The 2 cities we track
| City | Size | Setting | Avg temp | Rain a year | Est. cost a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banjul | mid-sized | coastal | 26°C | 833 mm | €2,048 |
| Nema Kunku | smaller | coastal | 28°C | 828 mm | €1,862 |
Source: City size from GeoNames, temperature from the Open-Meteo archive (2019 to 2023 averages), rainfall from TerraClimate (1991 to 2020 normals), coast distance from Natural Earth. Cost is our model estimate for a couple living centrally, from the World Bank price level.
Residency and visas
Comparatively open. The Gambia grants residence through low-fee administrative permits (Type A residence-only for persons of independent means and retirees, Type B for skilled workers and investors, plus work/business permits), requiring only proof of sufficient means and good character rather than a fixed financial bar.
For short visits, 160 of 198 passports can enter visa-free, 1 can get an e-visa or visa on arrival and 37 need a visa in advance.
Source: OurNextCity residency dataset, hand-reviewed approximations researched against published immigration rules. Not legal advice: check the official source before you apply. Short-stay entry from the passport-index dataset (ilyankou, MIT).