press rank #33 · ~$900/mo

Can you live unwatched in Cape Verde?

Africa’s quiet democracy: islands, low surveillance, slow internet.

Share on X

The privacy scorecard

State surveillance4/5
Facial recognition5/5
No national ID3/5
Data-protection law3/5
Encryption4/5
VPN freedom5/5
Democracy5/5
Free expression5/5
Cash still works5/5
Financial privacy3/5
Crypto freedom3/5
Easy to stay4/5
Off-grid living5/5
2 cameras / 1,000 people press rank #33 ~$900/mo national average

Childhood vaccines: recommended, never required

No mandate. The islands run the schedule through a health service that reaches nearly everyone.

If you skip them: Nothing.

Exemptions: Not needed.

Source: Georgetown AMP EID, survey of national legislation, 2024

Legal & financial exposure

Facts about the law, not a privacy score: whether each one helps or hurts depends on what you are trying to do.

Does not report your account balances abroad

No extradition treaty with the US

No ID required to buy a SIM card

4 of 7 signals are unverified for this country: not shown, rather than guessed.

11 real places in Cape Verde

Facial recognition, Bitcoin friendliness and cost vary by city even inside the same country.

Praia (Santiago)

~$1,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Mindelo

~$1,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Espargos (Sal)

~$1,200/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Santa Maria (Sal)

~$1,300/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Ribeira Grande (Santo Antão)

~$1,100/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

São Filipe (Fogo)

~$1,150/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Sal Rei (Boa Vista)

~$1,250/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Tarrafal

~$1,150/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Ponta do Sol (Santo Antão)

~$1,150/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Vila Nova de Sintra (Brava)

~$1,100/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Cidade Velha

~$1,150/mo facial recognition unlikely₿ crypto 2/5

Weigh Cape Verde against your own threat model

Surveillance, speech, money: filter thousands of real places across every country and see where Cape Verde actually ranks.

Browse every place

Not just privacy?

Arcadia matches the same real places against how you actually want to live: weather, cost, healthcare, schools, internet.

Find where to live on Arcadia

Country-level estimates for orientation, not legal advice. Surveillance law changes fast: verify anything you would act on.