Cost of Living in Spain 2026: Rent and Monthly Budgets by City

Living in one of Spain’s five big cities costs a single person roughly €1,660 to €2,310 a month and a couple roughly €2,770 to €3,690, if you rent a 60 m² flat (single) or an 80 m² flat (couple) at today’s asking prices and spend like the average resident. Rent is the swing factor: it ranges from €13.9 to €23.4 per m² a month between the cheapest and dearest of the five cities, while everyday spending moves much less.

Every number below comes from two sources. Rent is idealista’s September 2026 asking rent per m² per month. Everyday spending is the INE’s Household Budget Survey (Encuesta de Presupuestos Familiares) for 2025, average spending per person in each region, with housing costs removed. How the figures were put together is explained at the end.

What rent costs in the five cities

Asking rent is what landlords ask for homes currently listed. It describes new listings, not what existing tenants pay, so treat it as the price you will face when you search, not as the average for all rented homes.

City	Asking rent, €/m² a month	60 m² flat	80 m² flat
Madrid	€23.4	€1,404	€1,872
Barcelona	€20.1	€1,206	€1,608
Málaga	€16.5	€990	€1,320
Valencia	€16.3	€978	€1,304
Alicante	€13.9	€834	€1,112
Spain, national figure	€15.1	€906	€1,208

Each flat price is the €/m² figure multiplied by the size, for example Madrid: 60 × €23.4 = €1,404. Madrid is about 55% above the national figure (€23.4 against €15.1) and Alicante is about 8% below it.

What everyday life costs

The INE reports spending per person across all households in a region, so it blends singles, families, children and retirees. We removed housing (actual rent, imputed rent for owners, maintenance) and kept water, electricity and gas as a separate line. “Leisure” here is recreation and culture plus restaurants and accommodation. “Other” covers clothing, health, communications, education, insurance, personal care and similar items.

Per person, a year	Madrid	Barcelona	Valencia and Alicante*	Málaga**	Spain
Food (groceries)	€2,212	€2,339	€2,245	€2,149	€2,255
Transport	€1,684	€1,700	€1,671	€1,418	€1,611
Utilities (water, power, gas)	€652	€678	€582	€551	€622
Leisure and eating out	€2,382	€1,923	€1,985	€1,741	€2,025
Other	€3,994	€3,784	€3,444	€3,021	€3,501
Total	€10,924	€10,424	€9,927	€8,880	€10,014
Per month	€910	€869	€827	€740	€834

*Both use the Comunitat Valenciana figure. **Málaga uses the Andalucía figure. The INE publishes this survey by region, not by city, so a regional average stands in for the city.

Sample monthly budgets

The single person rents 60 m² and spends one person’s average. The couple rents 80 m² and spends twice one person’s average. Utilities shrink per head when two people share a home, so the couple column is slightly generous.

Monthly	Madrid	Barcelona	Málaga	Valencia	Alicante	Spain
Single: rent	€1,404	€1,206	€990	€978	€834	€906
Single: everyday spending	€910	€869	€740	€827	€827	€834
Single: total	€2,314	€2,075	€1,730	€1,805	€1,661	€1,740
Couple: rent	€1,872	€1,608	€1,320	€1,304	€1,112	€1,208
Couple: everyday spending	€1,821	€1,737	€1,480	€1,654	€1,654	€1,669
Couple: total	€3,693	€3,345	€2,800	€2,958	€2,766	€2,877

Over a year, a single person in Madrid spends €27,768 (12 × €2,314) and in Alicante €19,932 (12 × €1,661). These totals leave out income tax, a private health policy, and anything you pay for before you arrive. For city detail see Valencia, Madrid and Barcelona.

What drives the differences

Rent explains most of the gap. Between Madrid and Alicante, a single person’s budget differs by €653 a month (€2,314 minus €1,661). Rent accounts for €570 of it (€1,404 minus €834) and everyday spending for €83 (€910 minus €827). Rent is also the biggest line everywhere: 61% of the single budget in Madrid (€1,404 of €2,314) and 50% in Alicante (€834 of €1,661).

Leisure follows income and city size. Madrid residents spend €2,382 a year on leisure and eating out against €1,741 in Andalucía, a €641 difference that is larger than the gap in any other line apart from “other”.

Transport is lower in Andalucía. €1,418 a year, against €1,611 for Spain.

The averages hide your own choices. A flat in a central district costs more per m² than the city figure, and a smaller flat costs less. Each extra 10 m² adds roughly €234 a month in Madrid and €139 in Alicante (10 × the €/m² figure).

Do these budgets meet the visa income rules?

Visa thresholds measure income you must prove, not what you spend, but they show whether your budget and your paperwork line up:

Monthly	Single	Couple
Non-lucrative visa minimum	€2,400	€3,000
Digital nomad visa minimum	€2,442 (safe: €2,849)	€3,358 (safe: €3,918)

A single person in Madrid (€2,314) lives on slightly less than the non-lucrative minimum, while a couple in Madrid (€3,693) or Barcelona (€3,345) spends more than theirs. The digital nomad threshold sits above every budget in the table.

How these figures were built

• Rent: idealista’s report of 1 October 2026 gives Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga and Spain. Alicante comes from idealista’s own city report, and Valencia from idealista’s September 2026 data as reported by EDATV, both linked above.
• Spending: INE Household Budget Survey 2025 (final results, 25 June 2026), tables 73991 and 73993.
• Limits: rents are asking prices in listings, not rents actually paid, and INE publishes spending by region, not by city. Checked 7 October 2026.