Rental demand in the major provincial capitals, with the exceptions of Vitoria and Barcelona, is outstripped by towns such as Hospitalet de Llobregat, Badalona and Terrassa, which exert greater pressure on the existing supply in the rental market, according to idealista's latest ranking. However, interest in residing in these large cities has continued to grow in recent years. Notable areas include the Barcelona districts Nou Barris and Horta Guinardó, alongside the Madrid districts Puente de Vallecas and Usera, as well as the Valencian districts L'Olivereta and Patraix, where rental prices range from €900 to €1,250 per month.
Discover the most sought-after districts for renting in Spain's three major cities, along with the areas experiencing the highest relative demand among the most desirable towns, as highlighted in idealista's quarterly ranking, the leading real estate marketplace for southern Europe.
Among the large cities, Barcelona's districts of Nou Barris, Horta Guinardó and Sant Andreu stand out due to their high relative demand, indicated by the number of leads – such as email inquiries, counter-offers, and favourited listings – received for each idealista property compared to the total number of available rentals in each district. Notably, these three districts are also among the most affordable in the city, with rental prices ranging from €960 to €1,250.
Following Barcelona, several Madrid districts, including Puente de Vallecas, Usera, Villaverde, Carabanchel, Villa de Vallecas and La Latina, have rental prices ranging from €900 to €1,000 per month.
Next in line for rental demand pressure are Barcelona's districts Sants-Montjuïc and Gràcia, where rents range from €1,400 to €1,700. These districts precede the Madrid areas Vicálvaro and Moratalaz, where rental prices have already exceeded €1,000.
The most popular districts are not always the cheapest.
The first Valencian district to feature on the market is L'Olivereta, where the average rental price remains below €1,000, followed closely by Patraix, where it exceeds €1,100. Despite this, Patraix shows higher relative demand than districts with more affordable rents, such as Jesús or Rascanya (between €1,000 and €1,100) and is comparable to others in the same range, such as Benimaclet and La Saïdia.
In Barcelona, districts with higher rental prices, such as Sant Martí and Les Corts, are notable, with Les Corts averaging over €2,000, while Ciutat Vella is priced at approximately €1,500 to €1,600.
In Madrid, the Fuencarral district, with rental prices in the €1,400–€1,500 range, shows higher relative demand than more affordable districts like Barajas, Tetuán, and Arganzuela, where prices range between €1,200 and €1,400.
A similar trend is seen in the Chamberí district, one of the capital’s most expensive areas, where average rents fall between €1,900 and €2,000. Despite the higher prices, Chamberí experiences greater demand pressure than districts such as Hortaleza, Moncloa, Centro, and Retiro, where rents range from €1,600 to €1,900.
Barcelona's outskirts show the greatest relative demand for renting
In Q2, the 10 towns with the highest relative demand in the rental market were all located on the outskirts of Barcelona. Heading the list were Hospitalet de Llobregat, Badalona, Terrassa, Manresa, and Sabadell, which faced the greatest pressure on available supply during this period. Vitoria and Alcalá de Henares, representing the periphery of Madrid, also saw significant demand, with their districts ranking among the most sought-after.
There are examples across the board: in Hospitalet de Llobregat, the districts of Can Serra - Pubilla Cases and Bellvitge have rental prices ranging from €900 to €1,400. In Terrassa's Sud district, rents remain below €900, while in Badalona, the Gorg - Pep Ventura and La Salut - Lloreda areas see rental prices between €1,000 and €1,400 per month.
In Vitoria, standout neighbourhoods include Judimendi - Sta. Lucía, where rental prices stay below €900, and San Martín, which remains under €1,200.
The outskirts of Barcelona are the most sought-after places to rent
Five of the 10 most popular locations to find a rental apartment during the second quarter of the year are in the metropolitan area of Barcelona. According to the idealista study, Hospitalet de Llobregat leads the relative rental demand between April and June, followed by Badalona and Vitoria, the first provincial capital on the list. After them, Terrassa, Manresa and Sabadell complete this Barcelona quintet, all of them ahead of Barcelona (8). Still in this 'top 10' the Madrid town of Alcala de
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