This weekend, as I was doomscrolling (as one does in the August Spanish heat and humidity), several posts and articles about moving to Spain made their way to my feed.
It isn’t unusual for me to see a lot of these. After all, The Algorithm knows me quite well.
What was striking was the pattern.
“The cost of living in Spain is 40% less than the U.S.”
“Spain’s cost of living is 30% less than life in the U.S.”
And while both statements have some kernels of truth in them, they also aren’t entirely fair.
How you choose to live in Spain will determine whether or not it’s more affordable to live here. What do I mean by that?
Income
If you’re moving to Spain and will be earning a Spanish salary, you may be in for a shock. The cost of living in Spain is less, mostly because the average Spanish salary is much lower than the average U.S. salary. In addition, Spanish salaries aren’t rising nearly fast enough in relation to the increasing cost of living in Spain, which means many families struggle to make ends meet even with two incomes.
Moving to Spain with a foreign salary or income source is a unique privilege for American immigrants in large part because of the salary differential between the U.S. and Spain.
Housing
Housing prices are rising here just like they are everywhere else in the world. And it goes without saying, the nicer the place, the higher the price. Want city center? Expect to pay a premium. Larger space? The price goes up. Recently renovated? Not cheap.
There is less competition for housing at the higher price ranges, which can make finding an apartment or house easier for a foreign resident, but it also means you’re laying out more cash than the average Spanish resident.
And let’s not forget the fees that real estate agencies often charge to the tenant in addition to the deposits and rent.
By the time it’s all said and done, to move into your long-term rental in Spain, you could be out €10,000+ before you’ve even received the keys.
Schools
Deciding where and what type of school your kids will attend in Spain is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make. It can also have a heavy financial impact on your new life here.
Public schools in Spain are free to attend, and all children are guaranteed a spot, but that doesn’t look the same as it does in the U.S. Your child’s spot at a public school may be across town, requiring you to get them there via public transit or your own vehicle. And not everything is free at school, just like a U.S. public school. You’ll probably be covering school lunches at a minimum.
Concertados are a hybrid school type, similar to charter schools in the U.S., partially funded by the Spanish government. Some are bilingual. Nearly all of them are Catholic and include religious instruction. (It is possible to opt out of the religious instruction.) For a much smaller monthly fee than a private school, children can receive an education somewhat comparable to a private school. But you’re still paying a monthly fee, and you may be on the hook for uniforms or other fees.
Private and international schools are fully funded by parents—and their fees reflect that reality. Like U.S. private schools, they’re pricey. However, if you’re moving with older kids, this might be the best option, depending on whether or not your children speak Spanish.
Healthcare
Healthcare is a bright spot in the Spanish budget compared to the U.S. budget. Private health insurance is generally very affordable, but if you have pre-existing conditions, you could be on the hook for any treatment of those conditions. Understand what those costs could be before you need that treatment. Our private insurance policy is a fraction of what we paid for an employer-subsidized family policy in the U.S.
Food
It’s no secret that groceries in the U.S. are kind of out of control. When we left the U.S. in August 2024, I was regularly spending $1,500+ per month to feed my family of four. Because my kids are older, I was essentially feeding four adults who were home for the entire summer. And restaurants? It was $50 for a fast food meal at McDonald’s.
Those costs haven’t gone down, and I’m sure if we still lived there, we’d be spending a ridiculous amount of money every month.
In Spain, our grocery bill is reduced, but maybe not as much as you’d expect. Food is the one area we splurge on quite a bit, so while our monthly budget could be lower, I don’t really want it to be. Even though groceries generally cost less in Spain, it still isn’t cheap, and if we were dependent upon Spanish incomes, it could be a struggle.
Taxes
Without a doubt, taxes are high in Spain—on paper. But those taxes also include public healthcare access at no cost and heavily subsidized prescriptions. They include well-maintained infrastructure. And I could go on, but taxes are higher here for a reason, and that should be accounted for in whatever budget you decide you need here.
Location
Just like the U.S., a small city or town will have lower daily living costs than a major city or swanky village. Madrid will never be as affordable as Logroño, nor should it be. Madrid is a major global hub, just like New York City. You can’t move to Madrid from Omaha and expect that those costs will be on par with one another.
The thesis that Spain is 30-40% cheaper than the U.S. is likely based on rent and mortgage numbers. What it doesn’t do is account for the variables that can either make that an accurate number or way off base. If I ran my own numbers against that 30-40% number, it wouldn’t be true, but what is true is that we have a somewhat nicer lifestyle in Spain while spending a similar amount of money.
Source
Forbes: The Best Places to Retire Abroad in 2026
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We’ve been in Spain about six months and the food costs and quality have been the hugest factor. In DC we were spending 300 a week at least, trying to get good quality food. Here for even more food and better quality and local too, we can get out of the store for a weekly shop at 70 euros. It’s the biggest change and the one we are most grateful for.
The food prices are out of control in the US and I don’t know how people are doing it. I went back to the US this summer for a week and the grocery prices made me feel sick to my stomach. Not to mention the lower quality of food.
I agree that it is cheaper when you have US source income but the quality of life factoring in that math is what makes it worth it in my experience this past year.