Cost of Living in East Timor
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Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). East Timor: $3,891/capita.
Cities in East Timor
Income Category
GDP per Capita
Population
Child Education
Public-schooling rules are not sourced for East Timor yet. Country-level enrollment, instruction-language, and homeschool notes will appear here once verified.
Childcare & Domestic Help
Nanny, housekeeper, and driver pricing is not yet sourced for East Timor. We publish this section only when we can tie it to verified local samples or a clearly marked country fallback.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in East Timor.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
LimitedLow out-of-pocket burden help, but coverage looks thinner and doctor staffing is lighter.
Public care
MixedStrong public funding and relatively low patient cost-sharing help, but public coverage looks thinner and country-level outcomes are weaker.
Private care
MixedA clearly private facility base help, but self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse.
UHC coverage
48/100
2023
Physicians
0.75/1k
2020
Hospital beds
0.38/1k
2023
Out of pocket
7%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
67.9 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
192/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
21.6/1k
2024
International patient readiness
MixedA visible private hospital base and there is visible specialty depth help, but price transparency is still sparse and headline outcomes are less reassuring.
Pricing transparency
LimitedPublished self-pay prices are scarce and few facilities expose web pages we can verify weigh on this rating.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in East Timor yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI · Updated 2026-06-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Administrative & Support Services | — |
| Agriculture & Farming | — |
| Arts, Entertainment & Recreation | — |
| Construction | — |
| Education | — |
| Finance & Insurance | — |
| Healthcare & Social Work | — |
| Hospitality & Food Service | — |
| Information & Technology | — |
| Manufacturing | — |
| Mining & Quarrying | — |
| Other Services | — |
| Professional & Scientific Services | — |
| Public Administration & Defence | — |
| Retail & Wholesale Trade | — |
| Transport & Logistics | — |
| Utilities | — |
2021 annual wages in East Timor · Source: ILO ILOSTAT
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders can obtain a visa on arrival.
About East Timor
East Timor presents a cost-of-living proposition significantly below the regional average, making it one of Asia's most budget-friendly destinations, with daily expenses estimated between $15-25. The tropical climate features hot, humid conditions and a distinct rainy season from November to April. While Dili, the capital, offers basic healthcare and a developing infrastructure, services outside the city are considerably more limited, and internet speeds typically range from 4-10 Mbps, often proving unreliable. Portuguese and Tetum are the official languages, with English spoken less commonly. Relocators should note the restricted visa options, currently limited to 30-day tourist visas, which may necessitate frequent border runs or careful planning for longer stays.
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Common questions about East Timor
Sourced from SortaRich's public-data ranking engine — every figure links to its institutional source.
How far does $1 go in East Timor?
$1 goes about 3.3x further in East Timor than in the baseline market — your home-country income stretches that much more (current PPP ratio: 3.32). The figure adjusts every year as exchange rates and local prices shift. SortaRich uses World Bank ICP 2021 as the anchor and Penn World Tables 11.0 for cross-validation.
Sources: World Bank ICP 2021, Penn World Tables 11.0
What visa do I need to move to East Timor?
To move to East Timor you have these visa options: Tourist entry: visa_on_arrival. Visa rules change frequently — confirm the current terms with the official immigration authority before booking flights.
Source: SortaRich Visa Database
What are the best cities to live in East Timor?
The best cities to live in East Timor are Dili — those are the most-searched options among the 1 cities profiled in the SortaRich database. Each city page includes a personalized PPP comparison versus your home city plus subnational price data where available.
Source: SortaRich City Index