This article is in partnership with Day Translations.

When reading first-person accounts from digital nomads you might come across two extremes: on the one hand, you have the glowing reports about the quality of life and independence that being a digital nomad affords; on the other hand, humbling summaries of many unexpected incidents, of loneliness and of unpredictable income.

So, the question is: are digital nomads “having it all”? Is the digital nomad lifestyle still as aspirational as it was only a few years ago?

Personal Blogs Tell Different Stories

First-person accounts of digital nomad lifestyles often cover what have now become cliches of being a digital nomad: the freedom to work and travel anywhere while being in charge of your own schedule and making the most of a favourable exchange rate in a different country.

Part of the cliches is being in an exotic location where you don’t need to work in an office but you can bring your laptop to the beach.

Have you ever tried taking your laptop to the beach, by the way? The glare from the sun practically makes it impossible to see what’s on your screen. Then you have to be careful not to get water or sand on your keyboard or to get your laptop overheating, not forgetting that the WiFi signal could also become unavailable without notice.

One benefit of being a digital nomad is that you get many opportunities to immerse yourself in the local culture, sampling different food and getting familiar with different traditions.

On the flipside, one disadvantage of the digital nomad lifestyle is the constant balancing act between wanting to travel and explore versus the constraints and obligations of having to work around the needs of your clients or remote employer.

Some digital nomads decide that the constant travelling lifestyle is not sustainable for them in the long term so they either move back to their country of origin or settle in another country permanently.

The lure of a stable income working for an employer or freelancing from one fixed location can also become irresistible after years on the road.

For others, becoming a digital nomad was the right decision that shaped their career and work/life balance in a positive way. For example, Insider interviewed an American digital nomad who created their own job and who took the opportunity to visit several countries in Europe while working as a freelancer. As uncertainty and instability are constant issues that we deal with, having the flexibility of working remotely may just be the right solution.

Some Stats About Digital Nomads

A BBVA report (available in Spanish) estimated that there are 40 million digital nomads around the world in 2025. Digital nomads are normally under 40 years old and the majority works in IT as salaries are usually around $50,000 a year.

The report looks at popular international destinations (mainly for Spanish speaking remote workers) that attract digital nomads, quoting Brazil, Colombia and Argentina at the top of the list, with Spain, Portugal and Croatia at the top of European destinations.

Spain is embracing the digital revolution at different speeds, with stark differences across regions. Places like Valencia and Málaga are better equipped to welcome digital nomads and offer both services and the infrastructure required to support them, while other more rural areas are still lagging behind.

Meanwhile, Portugal and Croatia moved quickly to embrace new technologies and provide digital nomads with anything they need to make a smooth transition to these countries.

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