Cost of living

Article written by Juan Cabrerizo, SATE specialist and thermal insulation expert at Propamsa 

Imagine if you could get paid just for choosing to live in a certain town or village.

How much do you need to live comfortably in Spain? Is living in Spain expensive? These are just some of the questions we aim to answer in this guide to the cost of living in Spain in 2021.

Is electricity more expensive in Spain?

Summer is just around the corner and many Europeans, despite Spain holidays affected by the coronavirus in some cases, are starting to pack their suitcases in preparation for a holiday in Spain this summer 2021.

Spain has introduced its new electricity tariff charges this June 2021, meaning that customers, including the thousands of expats living in Spain, will have to get used to reading a new electricity bill and in many cases, higher household expenses and utility bills.

Generally speaking, it is possible to install fibre optic broadband in Spain for around 30 euros per month, including VAT. When you add mobile lines, the average cost rises to 40 euros per month.

A sizeable amount of property demand in Spain comes from expats who have relocated to the country, and despite uncertainties such as Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic, the expat population in Spain continues to grow and moving to Spain in 2021 continues to be a good idea.

Spending more time at home, forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, has opened the eyes of many residents in Spain who consequently want to improve the health, comfort and safety of their homes.

The British insurance company CIA Landlord has published a report where it analyses the best cities for teleworking for the British, and Spain's capital, Madrid, leads the ranking.

The expat community in Spain is made up of 5.6 million foreign residents, according to the latest figures from the Spanish government.

The consulting firm Mercer has published a new edition of its famous ranking on the cost of living in the main cities of the world for expats. As usual, Hong Kong leads the list of the most expensive cities, although there are some changes in the top positions compared to previous editions.