Cabo Verde

Economy & income

Currency

• Cape Verdean escudo (CVE, $/Esc)
• ~96.5 per USD (Jul 2026)
• pegged to EUR at fixed 110.265 CVE = 1 EUR

GDP per capita

• ~$5,270 nominal (2024, World Bank; globalstats/IMF ~$5,190)
• ~$11,200 PPP (2024)

Average salary

• ~$380-395 net/mo (~CVE 38,000; Numbeo/remotepeople, 2026)
• gross ~$480/mo (wage.is, 2026) — figures vary, urban Praia/Mindelo pay more

Median salary

• n/a — no official median published by INE Cabo Verde
• Numbeo sample for CV is thin/unreliable

Minimum wage

• CVE 17,000/mo private sector (~$176; effective 1 Jan 2025)
• public administration CVE 19,000 (~$197)
• apprentices CVE 13,600

Cost of living

• Low-Medium — ~34% below US, rent ~79% below US
• single person ~€754/mo excl. rent (Numbeo, 2026)
• Numbeo sample thin
• island imports keep groceries/fuel pricey

Digital landscape

Population

0.53 million (526K, Jan 2025, DataReportal; ~611K UN 2024 est.)

Internet users

73.5% (~387K users, Jan 2025)

Social media users

49.9% (~262K social-media identities, Jan 2025)

Mobile connections

604K cellular connections = 115% of population (91% broadband 3G/4G/5G), Jan 2025

Devices

desktop ~58% / mobile ~40% / tablet ~1.5% (StatCounter, Jun 2026) — unusual desktop lead reflects small measured sample

Ad spend

• n/a — no published CV digital ad-spend figure (DataReportal/local sources omit it)
• market <0.6M pop so budgets are small and often routed via Portugal/Meta

Top social platforms

Facebook ~262K / 49.9%

Messenger ~215K / 40.8%

Instagram ~127K / 24.1%

TikTok ~119K adults / 32% of 18+

LinkedIn ~88K / 16.7%

X/Twitter ~16K / 3%

Messengers

• WhatsApp (dominant everyday messenger, Lusophone norm — DataReportal gives no CV reach figure)
• Facebook Messenger (~215K reach)
• Instagram Direct
• Telegram (minor)

Payments & behaviour

Payment methods

• Cash (dominant — retail, transport, informal trade; the backbone of COD)
• Vinti4 debit cards & Vinti4 network (national rails run by SISP — ATM, POS, Vinti4net online gateway)
• Visa / Mastercard (issued via local banks; hotels, larger stores, cross-border online)
• Bank transfers (salaries, bills)
• Mobile/USSD & app banking (TeleVinti4, bank apps)

E-wallets

• No dominant local e-wallet or telco mobile-money (no M-Pesa-style scheme in CV)
• Apple Pay / Google Pay (usable in some urban spots)
• Wise / Revolut / Monzo (diaspora & travellers)
• PayPal (limited acceptance)

Cash on delivery

• High — cash-on-delivery / cash-in-hand is the default for what little domestic e-commerce exists
• low card-not-present trust

E-commerce

• Low — thin domestic e-commerce
• cross-border shopping (Portugal/EU) and diaspora remittances dominate online money flows

Notes

• Diaspora remittances (Portugal, US, Netherlands, France) are a major flow (double-digit % of GDP) and shape spending power
• Vinti4 (SISP) is the interbank backbone — a Vinti4/gateway integration is essential for local checkout

Audience & culture

Languages

• Cape Verdean Creole / Kriolu (~national — spoken by nearly all; informal & social-media language)
• Portuguese (official — government, formal media, written ads)

Religion

Roman Catholic ~77%, none ~16%, Protestant/Evangelical ~4% (Adventist, Nazarene), other Christian ~3%, Muslim ~1% (2021 census)

Median age

~29.3 years (2025 est., CIA World Factbook; DataReportal ~29.0)

Key seasons

• Carnival (Feb/Mar — Mindelo/São Vicente, huge)
• Kriol Jazz Festival (Apr, Praia)
• Baía das Gatas music festival (Aug, São Vicente)
• Municipal saints' & flag festivals (summer)
• 2026 FIFA World Cup (Jun-Jul — unprecedented national fervor)
• Christmas & year-end (diaspora returns, spending peak)

Cultural notes

• Music-centric, tight-knit society ('morabeza' hospitality)
• The diaspora (more Cape Verdeans live abroad than on the islands) drives trends, remittances and content consumption
• Creole-language content dramatically out-engages Portuguese among youth
• Mobile-first social use
• football and music are unifying passions

Where to find creators

• Instagram
• TikTok
• Facebook
• YouTube (music)
• Favikon / StarNgage rankings

Media landscape

Creators & public figures

Top creators

Soraia Ramos ~1M Instagram

InstagramAfro-pop/kizomba singer — biggest current CV pop star, brand-friendly

Mayra Andrade ~340K Instagram

InstagramMorna/world-music icon, international touring — premium & cultural brands

N

Nelson Freitas n/a exact — large pan-Lusophone/diaspora following

InstagramGhetto-zouk/R&B superstar — wide reach across CV & diaspora

Dino d'Santiago n/a exact — sizable EU/PT following

InstagramPortuguese-Cape Verdean kizomba/electronic artist & activist — premium/EU brands

E

Elji Beatzkilla ~130K Instagram

InstagramProducer/singer, modern kriolu afro-pop — youth appeal

D

Djodje n/a exact — strong youth following

InstagramR&B/afrobeats singer-songwriter — youth & diaspora

S

Suzanna Lubrano ~62K Instagram

InstagramVeteran zouk/coladeira star — nostalgia & diaspora audience

N

Neyna Dary n/a exact (Favikon #1 CV music influencer 2025)

InstagramMusic/lifestyle creator — top-ranked local influence

Celebrities

Vozinha (Márcio Rosa) ~14M Instagram (surged from ~46K after the Spain game, Jun 2026)

National-team goalkeeper; viral 2026 World Cup hero (7 saves in 0-0 vs Spain), most-followed CV athlete

Ryan Mendes n/a exact — grew sharply during 2026 WC

Football captain — CV all-time top scorer (22 goals, 100+ caps); led the maiden World Cup run

Edy Tavares ~157K Instagram

Basketball — Real Madrid & EuroLeague center (7ft3), national team; ex-NBA

Garry Rodrigues n/a exact

Footballer/winger — ex-Galatasaray, 2026 World Cup squad

Jovane Cabral n/a exact

Footballer/forward — ex-Sporting CP, 2026 World Cup squad

Cesária Évora posthumous icon — official/foundation pages only

Grammy-winning 'Barefoot Diva', morna legend (d. 2011) — the global face of Cape Verde

Affiliate & traffic

Hot verticals

• Sports betting & iGaming (turbocharged by 2026 World Cup)
• Nutra (weight-loss, joint/male-enhancement, beauty COD)
• Finance (forex/crypto; grey-area loans)
• Sweepstakes / prize-draw (mobile)
• Dating (Lusophone & diaspora)
• Mobile apps/utilities & VAS
• Travel/tourism (Sal & Boa Vista — eSIM, forex, bookings)

Active networks

• No local CV networks — global/Lusophone-facing CPA nets serve the market
• Betting/iGaming: 1xBet Partners, Mostbet Partners, Melbet, Betway/Betsson affiliates
• Mainstream CPA: Mobidea, Adcombo, Golden Goose
• Nutra: Dr.Cash, Everad, Leadbit
• Traffic/ad nets: PropellerAds, Adsterra, Kadam

Payouts

• Tier-3 low payouts: betting CPA ~$10-30 per FTD (spikes during WC)
• nutra COD AOV modest
• CPL/CPI cents-to-low-dollars. Test small
• blend with diaspora GEOs (PT/US/NL) for scale

Competition

• Low advertiser competition due to tiny population — cheap CPMs, but small absolute volumes cap scale
• Usually bundled into 'Lusophone Africa'/PALOP or Portugal-diaspora campaigns

Seasonality

• 2026 World Cup (Jun-Jul) = peak betting & attention
• Carnival (Feb/Mar)
• summer music festivals (Baía das Gatas, Aug)
• year-end diaspora-return spending
• month-end payday effects

Traffic sources

• Facebook & Instagram Ads
• TikTok
• Google / YouTube
• Push & pop (PropellerAds/Adsterra)
• In-app
• Influencer/creator shout-outs (Creole content)

Good to know

Capital

Praia (Santiago island)

Major cities

• Praia (~160K)
• Mindelo (São Vicente, ~70K)
• Santa Maria (Sal — tourism hub)
• Assomada (Santiago)
• Espargos (Sal)
• São Filipe (Fogo)

Time zones

Single time zone — Cape Verde Time (CVT), UTC−1, no daylight saving (offset −60 min)

Android vs iOS

65% 35%

Android 65% iOS 35%

Phone brands

• Samsung (~35%)
• Apple (~35% — high for Tier-3, reflects diaspora/remittance iPhones)
• Xiaomi (~10%)
• Google (~5%)
• Motorola (~2%)

Top e-commerce

• Cross-border: AliExpress, Amazon (via forwarders), Shein
• Local: Facebook/Instagram shops & classifieds
• Retail/grocery chains slowly moving online

Peak activity

Evenings ~19:00-23:00 local (UTC−1) and lunch ~12:00-14:00; weekends strong. Diaspora overlap (Europe UTC+0/+1, US East) extends evening reach

Creative taboos

• Catholic conservatism — avoid explicit sexual content and disrespect to religion
• colorism sensitivities
• Don't conflate with mainland Africa — island Kriolu identity is distinct and a point of pride

Also worth knowing

1. The 2026 World Cup run (smallest nation ever in the knockouts; GK Vozinha gained ~14M IG followers overnight) is once-in-a-generation attention & betting interest.
2. The diaspora outnumbers the domestic population — also target Cape Verdeans in Portugal, US, Netherlands & France.
3. Tourism (Sal, Boa Vista) brings EU visitors (UK, German, Portuguese) — travel/forex/eSIM offers convert