Digital Nomads and Backpackers, What’s the Difference?

Two similar yet different ways of traveling the world

Picture by the author.

Only a handful of years ago, everyone was talking about backpackers, a fascinating group of people who decide to explore the world carrying nothing but a figurative and sometimes literal backpack. In more recent years, another riveting term has appeared to describe a similar-minded group of people who too enjoy discovering the world: digital nomads.

An avid traveler myself, I have lived in a small number of countries and traveled across a larger number. I am convinced that traveling the world is the best way to open one’s mind. I’m not talking about traveling as a tourist, spending one’s days at a hotel, visiting tourist attractions, and only talking to the people you are traveling with. I’m talking about staying long-term, exploring the culture, and interacting with the locals. It’s the best cure for prejudice, it’s the killer of nationalistic ideals, and it’s an excellent method for growing as a person.

Many backpackers and digital nomads that I have talked to share this sentiment in one way or another. Both groups typically want to explore the world, experience new things, and develop as a person. But the way they travel is a bit different. From my own subjective experiences, these are the differences between…