Can You Be A Digital Nomad In Iraq?

Being a digital nomad means that I can work from anywhere as long as I have an internet connection.

Most people choose warm, safe and cheap destinations to become a digital nomad in such as Thailand, Morocco or Mexico.

However I’ve always been a person that likes to go to places off the beaten path so when the opportunity came up to travel to Iraq, I jumped at the chance!

I went with some friends but as our schedules didn’t overlap entirely, I would have a few days either side of my travels in which I would have to work. And that meant remote working in Iraq.

Could it be done?

Being a digital nomad in Baghdad?

There are actually a few Coworking spaces in Iraq. I flew into Baghdad and stayed at the Noorland Hotel close to the centre in an upmarket district of the city.

One of the reasons to stay at that hotel was because it is close to TheStation IQ, a Coworking space that is the largest in Iraq.

There is a comfy cafe area that serves hot drinks, sandwiches and snacks that is free to use. There is also a paid for area at the back which has private desks and booths.

If you’re there long term, there is a theatre where they hold events as well.

I only worked at the Coworking space for a few days but everyone was very friendly. One guy introduced himself them offered me a donut or cake from a box he had brought in. As I took one and said thank you, he replied “oh the entire box is for you, welcome to Iraq”. Yes the people genuinely are that friendly.

Not all the staff have great English but you can normally get by and the internet is fast enough for working. I tried reaching out to them via Instagram and email beforehand but never got a response but were more than happy to host me when I turned up.

As a side note, I also found that the internet in my hotel was good enough to do some work as well.

It was easy to get around Baghdad with the Careem app which is similar to Uber. I did walk to the Coworking in the mornings as it was only 20 minutes away but normally got a taxi back in the evening when it was dark.

Working as a digital nomad in Erbil

At the end of my trip I also had a few days to work in Erbil. I worked from my hotel for one of those days but on the second when I had to check out early, I ended up working from The Stations Coworking space in Erbil.

On the 3rd floor of a middle on a main road far from the centre of the city, it isn’t in the most desirable location.

I walked in and nobody seemed to speak English. I sat down and started working as the wifi password was written on the wall. Nobody came to speak to me and there was nobody who I could offer payment to.

This was a much smaller office space compared to the one in Baghdad and I couldn’t even see tea or coffee available to make.

Later that evening I also managed to work from Erbil airport which had decent wifi.

Being a digital nomad elsewhere in Iraq.

The Station have opened up two other Coworking spaces in Mosul and Basra which I didn’t visit.

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There is also a Coworking space in Sulimaniyah called Suli Innovation House although I didn’t get a chance to visit it. Sulimaniyah is one of my favourite cities in Iraq and has a very modern feel to it. It is the one city in Iraq that I wouldn’t mind staying in for a longer period of time.

Internet was available in all other cities but speeds weren’t great so if you were looking to get some serious work done in Iraq as a digital nomad, I would recommend heading to a Coworking space.

Many of the coffee shops in Iraq are the old men smoking variety and not a place to work. The few chain style coffee shops I saw in shopping centres didn’t have wifi from what I recall. But Iraq is changing and modernising fast and may do so in the future.

Is is possible to be a digital nomad in Iraq?

It is definitely possible to be a digital nomad in Iraq however it isn’t the most desirable place to be.

I loved travelling the country and think it is an incredible experience being there at this exciting time where it is finally safe for independent travel. The few days either side of my travels was enough to work though.

Iraq isn’t the place I would want to be a digital nomad for the month of my visa as Baghdad is a polluted city and although Iraq is safe to travel to, there is still bureaucracy related to security risks with many checkpoints across the country. But working for a few days is definitely doable when you travel to Iraq.

Dan

Dan is an avid traveller from London. His first big adventure was in 2010 living in Malaysia for 3 months. He has been on the road almost constantly since 2015 travelling to destinations that aren’t on the mainstream tourist trail and working full time and travelling since 2021.