is tainan a good place to live? 2026 honest review from someone who paints walls for a living

so i moved to tainan a year ago. not the kinda move where you research everything, more like the kind where your van breaks down in the wrong part of taiwan and you decide to just stay. now i'm a street artist here, painting murals for coffee shop owners who pay in free lattes and the occasional scooter ride home.

the weather here? imagine someone's been holding a hairdryer pointed at your face for 8 months straight. right now it's october and still sweating like i'm in a sauna with my clothes on. but hey, at least when i'm spray-painting in the alleyways, my paint dries in 30 seconds flat. kaohsiung's about an hour south if you need a bigger city, and chiayi's 45 minutes north if you wanna pretend you're somewhere else.

let's talk numbers. rent ain't cheap but ain't taipei-level insane. a decent place in the old town runs about 13k-15k nt a month for something you can actually fit your art supplies in. job market? if you're in tech or education, you're golden. if you're a street artist like me? you're basically a professional beggar with better marketing skills.

"heard from this old dude at the night market that the mayor's gonna ban all street art next year. something about 'preserving historical integrity' which is code for 'we don't like young people having fun.'"

safety's actually decent here. nowhere near the pickpocket problems of taipei or the sketchy back alleys of kaohsiung. i've walked home at 3am with a backpack full of spray cans and never had a problem. still wouldn't recommend it though because you'll wake up covered in mosquito bites.

the food? oh god. if you're not eating at least three kinds of street food daily, you're basically missing out on life. my current favorite is this place near confucius temple that serves braised pork rice so good it makes you question your life choices. no joke, i've skipped actual meals to go there.

"the art school here? man, it's a joke. they teach you how to paint like it's still 1950. if you wanna learn real street art, you gotta find some old dude in an alley who's probably drunk half the time."

pros:
- cheap rent compared to other taiwan cities
- insane food scene
- actually kinda safe for a big city
- old town is basically a giant museum
- people mind their business unless you're making a scene

cons:
- weather will melt your face off half the year
- not many opportunities for street art
- can feel kinda sleepy if you're used to big city energy
- scooter parking is basically russian roulette

my verdict? tainan's weird. it's like that one cool uncle who tells inappropriate stories at family reunions but buys you beer anyway. not perfect, but real. if you can handle the heat and don't mind making your own fun, it might just be worth it. check out this subreddit if you wanna see what actual locals are complaining about. also this yelp guide has some decent food spots that don't cater to tourists.

pro tip: if you're gonna be a street artist here, make friends with the night market vendors. they'll give you free food in exchange for touching up their signs when they get old. it's basically the unofficial currency of tainan.

"heard the foreigner scene here is full of english teachers who think they're cultural ambassadors. most of 'em can't even order food properly."

anyway, that's my hot, sweaty take. might update this when the summer hits and i'm literally melting into the pavement.

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