Affordable Living and Tech-Friendly Environments

About 14% of Americans now work remotely, more than double the percentage before the pandemic. If you’re one of them, you likely need little more to work than some space and a solid internet connection.

If you can log in from anywhere, why not do it somewhere cheaper? These four towns offer great locales for remote workers, with median home prices 14% to 35% below the national average, and costs of living 4% to 14% lower than the national average. Plus, each has its own perks, from Cajun culture to Appalachian hiking trails.

Lafayette, Louisiana

Two and a half hours west of New Orleans, Lafayette (population: 122,300) sits in the heart of Cajun and Creole country. Downtown is full of galleries, splash pads, and restaurants, and there are tons of local concerts on the calendar. Day trips include Avery Island, where Tabasco is made, and Breaux Bridge, the “Crawfish Capital of the World.”

The city has a municipal broadband network with speeds of 10 gigabits per second or higher. There are plenty of public places (coffee shops, museums, coworking spaces) to get some work done. Trendy Spaces and Downtown WORKSpace, for example, have quiet work stations and large conference rooms. And the public library is a hub of activity—there’s even a dog park.

While Lafayette is car-dependent (with a walk score of 42), the median home price in Lafayette is about $218,200, a third lower than the national median home price of $359,200. One-bedroom apartments in Lafayette rent for an average of $1,003 per month, while two-bedroom units rent for $1,138 per month. Overall, the cost of living in Lafayette is 14% lower than the national average.

Pella, Iowa

Less than an hour from Des Moines, Pella (population: 11,000) is a slice of the Netherlands amid the Iowa cornfields. The town hosts Tulip Time each spring, when residents don traditional Dutch attire, and nearby Lake Red Rock, the state’s largest, offers fishing and boating.

Like Lafayette, Pella has a town-wide network with speeds of at least 10 gigabytes per second. From Smokey Row to The Sanctuary, downtown has great coffee shops, as well as a striking public library.

If you need a break from work, the town is walkable (walk score: 86) and very bikeable (bike score: 70).

The median home price is about $347,300, slightly lower than the national median home price. One-bedroom apartments in Pella rent for a median of $905 per month, while two-bedroom units rent for $995 per month. The cost of living in Pella is 12% lower than the national average.

Chattanooga, Tennessee

Nicknamed “Gig City,” Chattanooga (population: 191,500) was the first city in the Western Hemisphere to offer 1-gigabit internet citywide. It’s also an outdoor playground: the Incline Railway climbs Lookout Mountain, and nearby, you can try hang gliding or zip lining four stories above the Appalachian foothills.

Coworking spaces include Society of Work, DSTATION CreativeSpace, and Common House, a social club. The art-filled, well-stocked library downtown is another option.

While most people will need a car here (walk score: 29, transit score: 18), housing can offer savings. The median home price in Chattanooga is about $314,800, about 14% lower than the national median.

One-bedroom apartments in Chattanooga rent for an average of $1,271 per month, while two-bedroom units rent for $1,525 per month. The cost of living in Chattanooga is 4% lower than the national average.

Fairlawn, Ohio

Fairlawn, Ohio (population: 7,800) is less than 15 minutes from downtown Akron and 35 minutes from Cleveland. Akron—the “Rubber Capital of the World”—has Goodyear-era architecture, Lock 3 Park (festivals in summer, ice skating in winter), and Cuyahoga Valley National Park nearby.

There are great coffee shops to use as workspaces, from Akron Coffee Roasters downtown to Asterisk Coffee Bar in nearby Cuyahoga Falls to Cafe Arnone in Fairlawn. Akron also has a few coworking spaces, including Bounce Innovation Hub, and a modern, light-filled public library. Another option is House Three Thirty in Akron’s most walkable neighborhood, Highland Square. Launched by the LeBron James Family Foundation, it offers shops and community spaces.

The median home price in Fairlawn is about $301,600, about a fifth less than the national median. One-bedroom apartments in Fairlawn rent for an average of $1,096 per month, while two-bedroom units rent for $1,424 per month. The cost of living in Fairlawn is 8% lower than the national average.