Jingling, China

This mid-sized Chinese city on the Jianghan Plain still goes by its old name Jingling in local parlance, despite the official 1726 rename to Tianmen. The population bleed here is real – over a quarter million left in the last decade – which tells you something about economic prospects. What remains is a functional but unexciting provincial hub where bureaucracy moves at the speed you'd expect from a place that brags about its 'National Civilized City' plaque.

Living in Jingling means dealing with Hubei's brutal humidity and relying on Wuhan (two hours east) for anything beyond basic services. The shrinking population does keep rents low, but you'll be paying that savings back in time spent navigating paperwork at understaffed government offices. This isn't a place for digital nomads – the expat community is virtually nonexistent outside a handful of English teachers. Retirees who speak Mandarin and want ultra-cheap inland China living might tolerate it, but anyone needing international connections or English-language services will hit walls fast.