There are many reasons why Paraguay is a great place to live as an expat - here are a selection of them, as well as some of the downsides compared to other countries.
It's worth noting that just like pretty much everywhere else, there are more similarities than differences - the basic functions of life remain the same, it's just delivered in a slightly different way. So for example, you will still do your weekly shopping at a supermarket (probably), just like anywhere else. But the selection of products in the supermarket - and the prices - will likely be different than what you're used to back home.
Developing country vibe
Whilst there is no agreed definition of what "developing country" means, most economists agree that Paraguay is in this group, which also includes most of South America, most of Asia, Eastern Europe, and the more developed countries in Africa. There can be quite a lot of difference between countries in this group - they're not all the same - but they're often characterised by having a lower average income per capital than western Europe and other G7 economies, infrastructure which is somewhat lacking in some ways, and often a large disparity in wealth and education between urban and rural areas.
Paraguay is no exception - and if you come here expecting it to be like Geneva or Melbourne, you are going to be disappointed. But if you come here expecting it to be like Brazil, South Africa, or Indonesia, you will already know what to expect, in some ways. Culturally they are all very different countries, but the general vibe is very similar.
So much space
Whilst Paraguay may look small on a map, that's mainly because it is situated between two truly massive countries, namely Brazil (5th largest in the world) and Argentina (8th largest in the world). Paraguay itself is the 59th largest in the world, out of more than 200 countries.
It is also has one of the lowest populations, at just over 7 million people - ranked 102nd out of more than 200 countries and territories, which places it just above Laos, and just below Hong Kong, in terms of total population.
As a point of comparison, Paraguay is more than three times the size of England, yet the total population is less than half the amount of the London metropolitan area.
The capital Asuncion is more tightly packed than the rural areas (as is the case with any city, particularly a capital) - and half of Paraguay's population lives in the Asuncion metropolitan area (which also includes several surrounding towns and cities). Traffic is only noticeable at rush hour, and even then it's nothing compared to what you will find in many other cities around the world.
Cost of living
Generally speaking, Paraguay is a very inexpensive country. At a time when most countries are seeing huge increases in the cost of electricity, Paraguay remains the largest exporter of electricity, because it produces more than it can use. It's all from hydroelectric dams build along various stretches of river, and therefore clean, renewable, and sustainable. Electricity prices in Paraguay are the cheapest in the world.
The number one food in Paraguay is beef. Due to the very cheap cost of land - and therefore the very cheap cost of growing food for cows, and the very cheap cost of providing land for cows to graze on - the price of beef is exceptionally low, by global standards. Expect to pay somewhere around $8 (USD) per kilo for tenderloin in a supermarket, much less for cheaper cuts, and around $12-$20 for a large (500g to 700g) fillet mignon in one of the more expensive restaurants in Asuncion (i.e. the high-end ones).
Having a barbeque (parilla) is the number one pastime in Paraguay, and many houses and apartments will have a grill - ranging from large, to more massive than you have ever seen in your life - built into the wall (or in some cases, taking up the whole wall of a large house). And filling it up with meat, to feed a large extended family for the whole weekend, is very affordable here. What would be literally hundreds of dollars in other countries, costs tens of dollars here.
Not everything is cheap - and not everything is available for sale here - but for locally-produced products, or even products imported from neighbouring countries (i.e. fantastic wine from Argentine and Chile), it's very inexpensive.
Friendly and open to foreigners
Both the government of Paraguay, and the people of Paraguay, are very welcoming to foreigners from all over the world. Many Paraguayans have at least one ancestor who is not originally Paraguayan, many of them people who came here as expats decades ago. Welcoming foreigners is part of the psyche here, and many Paraguayans are very much in-tune with European and North American cultural influences.
Once you have become an official resident and got your National ID Card (Cedula), you have exactly the same opportunities as any other resident or citizen. You can own land and property, set up any business, or apply for any job, with no restrictions.
Paraguayan people are friendly by nature, and will often offer to help you - even if you're just looking at product labels, confused in a supermarket, expect both staff and other customers to offer help, particularly if they speak one or more foreign languages. In rural areas, if you speak some Spanish, expect to be invited to sit in a garden and offered Terere, even if you only wanted to ask a basic question or get directions to somewhere. If you go out to a pub/bar/club, expect to find it easy to talk to new people - if you can speak some basic Spanish!
Getting residency in Paraguay is open to every nationality - anyone who enters Paraguay legally, is allowed to apply for residency. In some cases, getting a visa is more difficult than becoming a resident...
A young and happy population
Roughly 75% of Paraguay's population are under 40 years old - which is always a sure-fire indicator of future economic growth. A lot of the more senior positions in government and business are occupied by people who are relatively young, compared to what you will find in other countries.
The entertainment and educational sectors of the economy are rapidly growing, with waves of increasingly better-educated young professionals entering the workforce each year, and new businesses being created to help them spend their newly-higher incomes.
When assessed internationally, by the likes of Gallup's Positive Experience Index, Paraguay has consistently ranked as in the top 10 "happiest countries" worldwide over recent years, sometimes taking the number one spot.
If you are coming from a country which culturally has a more hard-work, high-stress kind of vibe, you may occasionally get frustrated with things when you are waiting on other people to do things. But all you need to do is adapt to the local culture. Here in Paraguay, everything will be done in five minutes. You just don't know which five minutes. It could be any five minutes in the next hour, or day, or week. Just relax. Have a beer. Have some steak. Tranquilo. You'll be fine.
Very low taxes
Paraguay is not a tax-free country, but it's close. Some of the headline rates for residents of Paraguay are:
10% income tax on anything you earn inside Paraguay
0% income tax on anything you earn outside Paraguay
1% - 10% tax on profits for a Paraguayan company
In addition, Paraguay has a slightly unusual (by international standards), yet highly attractive, tax rule where any sales taxes you pay are deducted from what you owe in income taxes - and this applies to "family expenses", which includes pretty much everything, for most people. This means that every time you spend money in a supermarket, or a bar, or a restaurant, or a shop etc - the sales tax you pay at the point of purchase (which is lower than in most countries, but still noticeable) counts as you "paying your taxes", and you can then pay less in income taxes, because you've already paid it.
It is entirely possible to pay zero income taxes in Paraguay, just by spending what you earn (and/or earning money outside Paraguay) - and this system actually encourages you (and everyone else) to spend more money here, thereby boosting the economy and helping out local businesses. It's also one of the major reasons why residency in Paraguay is great for digital nomads.
Politically stable
In some countries, when people say "all the political parties are the same", they mean it as a negative, in that there isn't a lot of choice, or they can't effect change. Here, it is meant as a compliment to all parties - because nobody here wants a situation where the country lurches from "extreme left" to "extreme right" and vice versa after almost every election, like several other countries in the Americas (both North and South).
Politics in Paraguay is certainly not perfect (and nor is it in any other country). But it is relatively stable here, and there is no desire to make any wholesale changes to the fundamental way the country operates, from any of the main political parties or candidates.
It is therefore perfectly reasonable to expect Paraguay to continue as a liberal democracy, with a pro-business and generally pro-foreigner attitude, where you can come live, spend and invest your money, own land and property, educate your children in international schools, all without having to deal with local politicians getting the dog-whistle out and blaming you ("the foreigner") for their own failings, like you get in some other countries.
Are you sold yet?
If you are ready to start a new chapter of life in Paraguay, have a look at the checklist for what you need to do to get residency in Paraguay, read the FAQs and Detailed Info sections to answer most (all?) of your questions, and then contact us to get started!