Country research
Cambodia
Prices overall are about 0.34 of United States prices at market exchange rates, and EF ranks English proficiency 123rd of 123 (2025: 390). Retirees can renew an ordinary visa with a retirement extension, 1 to 12 months at a time, but we found no route to permanent residence and no dedicated visa for remote workers. [C1] [F1] [K1] [R1]
The Fernshore Index
How it grades, factor by factor.
Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.
Cost of living
89 of 100Strong
Price level 0.336 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), Cambodia. Checked 15 October 2026.
Climate
0 of 100Weak
Phnom Penh, the main city: no month has an average daily high of 30 °C or less (the coolest, December, is 30.2 °C), so 0 comfortable months.
Source: Climate statistics, Phnom Penh. Checked 16 October 2026.
Safety
35 of 100Mixed
Global Peace Index 2026: 96th of 163.
Source: Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank. Checked 15 October 2026.
Healthcare
11 of 100Weak
WHO UHC service coverage index 62 (2023).
Source: UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1). Checked 15 October 2026.
Schools
Unknown
Our research doesn't cover schools yet.
Community
Unknown
Not covered by Expat Insider 2026
Lifestyle
Unknown
Not covered by Expat Insider 2026
Work and career
15 of 100Weak
Weak: we found no residence route for remote workers (the business extension covers freelancers but needs a work permit for longer renewals, and a dedicated visa is only a business group's proposal), and fixed broadband is 4.1 per 100 people (2024), under the 30 line.
Source: Handbook on Investing in Cambodia, 2023 edition (Visa rules, page 69); Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Cambodia; Cambodian hoteliers miss targets as EuroCham demands visa reform. Checked 16 October 2026.
Retirement
50 of 100Mixed
Mixed: the retirement extension (ER) of the ordinary visa can be renewed indefinitely, 1, 3, 6 or 12 months at a time, but a private guide says it is open only from age 55, and no path to permanent residence is described.
Source: Handbook on Investing in Cambodia, 2023 edition (Visa rules, page 69); Cambodia immigration guide (visa types and extensions). Checked 16 October 2026.
Internet
8 of 100Weak
4.15 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people (2024).
Source: Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Cambodia. Checked 15 October 2026.
English
0 of 100Weak
EF EPI 2025 score 390, last of 123; the line gives about -40, held at 0.
Source: EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Cambodia. Checked 16 October 2026.
Visa, United States passport
Unknown
Research for United States passports is being checked
Visa, Canada passport
Unknown
Research for Canada passports is being checked
Visa, Australia passport
Unknown
Research for Australia passports is being checked
Visa, New Zealand passport
Unknown
Research for New Zealand passports is being checked
Cities
Cities in Cambodia.
Each city page shows which figures are its own and which are the country's.
Topics
The detail on Cambodia.
Guides
Cambodia, by passport.
Each guide is written for citizens of one country.
Questions about Cambodia.
Do I need a visa to visit Cambodia?
Yes. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' exemption list (25 September 2026) does not include the US, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. A tourist or ordinary visa gives 30 days from entry; since 3 October 2026 visas are electronic, with no sticker. An adviser reports e-visa fees of US$30 (tourist) and US$35 (ordinary).
Can I stay longer than 30 days in Cambodia?
Yes. The Ministry says the tourist visa extends once; the ordinary (E) visa extends inside Cambodia as business (EB), job-seeker (EG), retirement (ER) or student (ES) extensions of 1 to 12 months. A guide reports US$45 (1 month) to US$285 (12); the Immigration Department's own fees were not found.
Is there a retirement, remote-work or digital nomad visa in Cambodia?
The Ministry lists a retirement extension (ER) of the ordinary visa: generally ages 55 or over, not employed, with proof of retirement and sufficient funds (no amount). We found no remote-worker visa; a 3-to-6-month nomad option is only a business chamber's proposal. We found no route to permanent residence.
How do prices in Cambodia compare with the United States?
Prices overall are about 0.34 of United States prices at market exchange rates (World Bank price level index, 2025). That is an economy-wide average, not a budget. A private guide says rent, food and services in Phnom Penh are priced in US dollars, though the official currency is the riel.
How hot and rainy is Cambodia?
In Phnom Penh average daily highs run from 30.2 °C in December to 34.9 °C in April, and rain averages 3.3 mm in February but 252.9 mm in September. Canada says the rainy season runs from May to November and floods can reach parts of Phnom Penh. The weather feed covers 1982 to 2024.
How safe is Cambodia, and what is healthcare like?
The Global Peace Index 2026 ranks Cambodia 96th of 163, a national score; WHO's coverage index is 62 of 100 (2023). Canada urges a high degree of caution over petty crime, calls medical facilities poor outside some foreign hospitals in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, and says avoid all travel within 50 km of the Thai border.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [C1] Price level index (GDP), Cambodia, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 33.62 (United States = 100), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [F1] EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Cambodia, EF Education First (private test-taker index). Checked 16 October 2026. Score 390, rank 123 of 123 countries and regions (last), 18 points down on the previous score; the 2026 edition was not yet published on 16 October 2026.
- [K1] Handbook on Investing in Cambodia, 2023 edition (Visa rules, page 69), Council for the Development of Cambodia (government investment body), with the Australian government. Checked 16 October 2026. July 2023 edition, so about three years old. Says a foreigner enters on an E-class (ordinary) visa with a 30-day stay that can be extended after entry at the Immigration Department, and that extensions of more than 30 days become multiple-entry. The business extension (EB) is for foreigners working or starting a business in Cambodia, freelancers, and their spouse and children, and those wishing to work must also get a work permit and foreign employment card. 'EB (Business), ER (retirement), ES (student) can be renewed indefinitely (1, 3, 6 or 12 months' option) but the renewal of a business visa for a long period is subject to having a work permit.' States no age, income or deposit figure for the retirement extension (ER) and describes no route to permanent residence or for remote workers. A footnote (citing a private guide) says that during the first six months or year the EB visa can be obtained without a work permit.
- [R1] Cambodia immigration guide (visa types and extensions), Acclime (corporate-services firm, private guide, not official). Checked 16 October 2026. Page text mentions 2026 and gives 'updated 24 July 2025' near its end. Says the retirement extension (ER) 'is only available to foreigners aged 55 or above who can financially support themselves' and has proof of retirement such as a pension or social security, issued for one, three, six or 12 months; the EB extension covers workers, people starting a business and freelancers, and does not by itself allow work (a work permit and foreign employment card are also needed).
- [G3] General Population Census of the Kingdom of Cambodia 2019: national report on final census results, National Institute of Statistics, Ministry of Planning, Cambodia. Checked 16 October 2026. Provincial totals, 2019 final results (Table 2.1.1, PDF page 43): Phnom Penh 2,281,951 people (14.7% of 15,552,211), the largest of the 25 provinces and the capital municipality. Supports the 'city' setting (500,000 people or more). Krong Kampot district (PDF page 195, Table P-07) had 32,053 people, a small town by size; supports the 'small_town' setting.
- [G5] Rural population (% of total population), World Bank, World Development Indicators. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 58.9% of the population is rural (national definitions).
- [G6] Agricultural land (% of land area), World Bank, World Development Indicators. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 34.7% of land area.
- [G7] The World Factbook: Cambodia (Geography; People and Society), Central Intelligence Agency (text read from the factbook.json mirror on GitHub; cia.gov refused automated access). Checked 15 October 2026. Coastline 443 km; highest point Phnum Aoral 1,810 m; mostly low, flat plains, with mountains in the southwest and north; tropical, with a rainy season from May to November and a dry season from December to April and little variation in temperature through the year; urban areas (2023): Phnom Penh 2.281 million. The mirror's text was not checked against cia.gov.
- [W1] Climate statistics, Phnom Penh, World Meteorological Organization (World Weather Information Service), with data from the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology, Cambodia. Checked 16 October 2026. Phnom Penh (Pochentong station), the main city for Cambodia's climate grade: mean daily highs 30.2 to 34.9 °C (January 31.2, February 32.7, March 34.5, April 34.9, May 34.3, June 33.1, July 32.4, August 32.2, September 31.7, October 30.8, November 30.4, December 30.2); rainfall in mm: 20.2, 3.3, 63.0, 54.3, 116.6, 138.4, 148.6, 153.4, 252.9, 242.1, 93.7, 29.2. No month has a high of 30 °C or under, so 0 comfortable months. The WMO feed behind the page gives its data period as 1982 to 2024, not 1991 to 2020, and does not say whether the figures are official 30-year normals.
- [W2] Climate statistics, Siem Reap, World Meteorological Organization (World Weather Information Service), with data from the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology, Cambodia. Checked 16 October 2026. Siem Reap station: mean daily highs 30.7 to 35.3 °C (January 30.9, February 32.3, March 34.6, April 34.8, May 35.3, June 32.7, July 32.8, August 31.8, September 31.9, October 31.3, November 31.6, December 30.7); rainfall in mm: 4.3, 3.8, 41.3, 47.5, 143.0, 194.9, 169.9, 169.7, 305.2, 227.0, 61.8, 7.4. No month has a high of 30 °C or under, so 0 comfortable months. Data period given by the WMO feed: 1982 to 2024.
- [W3] Climate statistics, Kampot, World Meteorological Organization (World Weather Information Service), with data from the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology, Cambodia. Checked 16 October 2026. Kampot station: mean daily highs 30.0 to 33.5 °C (January 31.0, February 31.6, March 31.9, April 33.0, May 33.5, June 32.7, July 32.1, August 30.7, September 30.9, October 30.6, November 30.6, December 30.0); rainfall in mm: 23.5, 20.8, 83.4, 123.9, 196.4, 201.4, 247.0, 380.7, 219.5, 242.8, 127.6, 28.5. Only December passes both tests (high 30.0 °C, which is on the 30 °C line, and 28.5 mm), so 1 comfortable month. Data period given by the WMO feed: 1982 to 2024.
- [S1] Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank, Institute for Economics and Peace. Checked 15 October 2026. Cambodia ranks 96th of 163 countries.
- [H1] UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1), World Health Organization. Checked 15 October 2026. Cambodia: 62 out of 100 (2023).
- [K2] Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Cambodia, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 4.15 per 100 people, read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [K3] Cambodian hoteliers miss targets as EuroCham demands visa reform, Cambodge Mag (news site), reporting the European Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia's White Book 2027. Checked 16 October 2026. Page dated 'Aug 6' (year not shown; it refers to the White Book 2027, published 19 May). Reports EuroCham recommending 'an accessible 3-to-6-month entry option for digital nomads and remote professionals' and a low-friction route to the standard Type E visa and work permit for long stays. This is a business group's proposal, not government policy.