What does moving to Kenya really look like for a Black American with a budget and a plan? In a 2025 film on the YouTube channel Webnation, Jay Hilton, an African American who relocated from the United States to Nairobi, walks viewers through his new life on about $2,500 a month. It is a warm, candid look at the freedom he found and the lessons he paid for, and it is the latest stop in BCN’s Black Abroad series.

We have followed Black Americans building lives in Thailand and Vietnam. Kenya adds something different: a move that is about money and lifestyle, but also about living in a majority Black country on the continent.

What Jay Hilton Shows About Moving to Kenya

The video, titled “Escaping America: My New Life in Nairobi, Kenya on $2,500/Month,” is not a highlight reel. According to Webnation’s description of the film, Jay covers:

• His home: an $850 all-inclusive apartment in Nairobi.
• His budget: a breakdown of groceries, transportation and lifestyle costs, and how far $2,500 stretches.
• The hard parts: navigating what he describes as a $10,000 work visa process, losing 200,000 Kenyan shillings to a scam, culture shock, colorism and the expectations placed on Americans abroad.
• The payoff: why Nairobi feels freer to him than life in the U.S., and how Kenyans and fellow expats became his community.

His bottom line for anyone thinking about following him: do not come broke. His personal rule is at least $10,000 in savings and $5,000 a month coming in.

Webnation is the diaspora-focused media brand started in Ghana in 2017 by creator Hayford Budu-Darko, who says he launched it to correct misinformation about Africa in Western media. You can find more of its relocation stories on the Webnation YouTube channel.

What It Costs to Live in Nairobi

Jay’s numbers are one person’s experience. For a wider view, the crowd-sourced cost tracker Numbeo, updated in September 2026, estimates:

• About $584 a month in living costs for a single person, not counting rent.
• About 55,600 shillings (roughly $430) for a one-bedroom apartment in the city center.
• About 28,100 shillings (roughly $217) for a one-bedroom outside the center.

Jay’s $850 all-inclusive place sits well above those averages, a reminder that neighborhood, furnishings and what is included in the rent change the math a lot. Numbeo’s data comes from user submissions, so treat it as a starting point, not a quote.

Visas and Residency Basics for Moving to Kenya

Visiting first

Kenya replaced its visitor visa with an Electronic Travel Authorization in January 2024. The Directorate of Immigration Services says visitors who need one, including infants, must have an approved eTA before the trip, and that includes U.S. citizens. Applications go through the official portal at etakenya.go.ke, and are usually processed in about three working days. Applying early leaves room for any delays.

The State Department’s Kenya page adds that your passport needs at least six months of validity and two blank pages. Proof of yellow fever vaccination is required if you arrive from a country where the disease is endemic.

Staying longer

If you work remotely for a company outside Kenya, look at the Class N digital nomad permit. When Kenya introduced it on October 1, 2024, the regulations required assured income of $55,000 from sources outside Kenya and barred holders from working for Kenyan employers, according to the law firm CMS. Rules and fees can change, so confirm current requirements with Kenya’s immigration directorate before you apply. If you plan to work locally or start a business, budget time and money for a work permit, as Jay’s story makes clear.

Finding Community in Nairobi

You will not be the first. Travel Noire has written about the established African American expat community in Nairobi and the city’s mild highland climate, which stays comfortable year round at more than 5,000 feet above sea level. Online, the Black Expats in Kenya Facebook group is a place to ask about neighborhoods, schools and landlords before you land.

A scouting trip helps too. BCN’s guide to planning a roots trip covers how to build a visit around heritage and connection.

Staying Safe

The State Department renewed Kenya’s advisory at Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution, in July 2026. It lists Nairobi’s Eastleigh and Kibera neighborhoods as do not travel areas, along with several northeastern and border counties. It also urges travelers to avoid demonstrations and stay alert in tourist areas.

Jay’s scam story is the other safety lesson. Before you send money for an apartment, a car or a business deal, see it in person, get paperwork, and ask people in your community who have done it before. Enroll in the State Department’s free Smart Traveler Enrollment Program so the embassy can reach you.

Before You Go: A Short Checklist

• Renew your passport if it has less than six months left or fewer than two blank pages.
• Apply for your eTA well before your flight, and only through the official government portal.
• Build Jay’s cushion: savings you can live on for several months, plus income that does not depend on a Kenyan job.
• Book short-term housing for your first weeks so you can visit neighborhoods before signing a lease.
• Join an expat group and ask real people about landlords, drivers and doctors before you need them.

Is Moving to Kenya Right for You?

Jay’s story is not a promise that life abroad is cheap or easy. It is proof that with savings, steady income and patience, a Black American can build a full life in Nairobi and feel at home doing it.

Watch Jay’s film, subscribe to Webnation for more diaspora stories, and if Kenya is calling, start with a visit. Share this with the friend who keeps saying they are ready to go.