Top 10 best countries for working remotely safely and efficiently

Denmark tops the 2023 Global Remote Work Index of the best countries for remote working. Image: Shutterstock

While returning to the office is a cause of frustration for some workers, others continue to work remotely and can even carry out their professional activity from anywhere in the world. For those looking for their next destination, a new ranking compiles the best countries for remote working.

Cybersecurity firm NordLayer recently shared the second edition of its Global Remote Work Index (GRWI), which reveals the best and worst countries for working remotely. Following last year's edition, this 2023 update was compiled by comparing the 108 destinations on the basis of four criteria: online security, economics, digital and physical infrastructure, and social safety.

This methodology puts Denmark at the top of the list as the best country for teleworking. The Scandinavian country scores well in all the criteria taken into account to draw up this index, except when it comes to online security. Here, it is ranked 13th, well behind Slovakia, Estonia and Lithuania, which make up the top three in this particular category.

Overall, the Netherlands and Germany rank second and third respectively in the GRWI. They are closely followed by Spain—one of the preferred destinations for digital nomads—and Sweden. Surprisingly, the Scandinavian nation does not shine when it comes to social safety, ie, human rights, inclusion and crime. It ranks 15th in this category, where Switzerland (1st), the Netherlands (2nd) and Iceland (3rd) lead the way.

Also read: Solving the problem of remote work

For its part, France ranks 15th overall, five places lower than in 2022. While France may not be the country most conducive to remote working, it remains a destination to keep in mind when it comes to setting down your suitcases and your laptop, thanks to the quality of its digital and physical infrastructure (4th place) and its social safety (6th place). Note, however, that teleworkers may encounter difficulties in France if they don't speak the language. Indeed, English is not as widely spoken there as in other countries in the ranking, including the Nordic and Scandinavian countries.

While European countries dominated the top 10, Canada came in 14th place and the US in 16th.

NordLayer's list of top 10 best countries for remote work:

1. Denmark
2. Netherlands
3. Germany
4. Spain
5. Sweden
6. Portugal
7. Estonia
8. Lithuania
9. Ireland
10. Slovakia