How expensive is Spain? Rent, groceries & lifestyle

Quick Answer

• The cost of living in Spain for one person sharing a flat is around €800 to €1,200 per month in most cities.

• Rent is the biggest variable: a room in a shared flat averages €425 across Spain.

• Coastal cities like Valencia, Alicante and Málaga are cheaper than Madrid and Barcelona.

• The Spanish legal minimum wage is €1,424.50 gross per month, when paid in twelve instalments.

What is the average cost of living in Spain per month?

Most people who share a flat and cook at home, spend between €800 and €1,100 a month in Spain, including rent. That assumes a room in a shared flat, cooking on weekdays, going out once or twice at the weekend and using public transport instead of taxis.

Two things move that number: your city, which mainly means your rent, and how often you eat out. Spanish social life happens outside the house, which also may add up faster than you expect. 

Example monthly budget in Spain

• Rent:  €355 - €550

• Groceries: €200 - €250

• Utilities: €40 - €60

• Transport: €10 - €45

• Social life: €150 - €200.

Total:  €800 to €1,100 

How much does a room cost in Spain?

In Spain almost everyone shares a flat with roommates, which is actually the easiest way to connect with people in a new city abroad. A room in a shared flat costs €425 a month on average across Spain, according to the most recent figures from most used property portal Idealista (Marrero, 2026). Between cities the difference runs to hundreds of euros a month. Where you live decides your budget more than how you live.

Rent in Valencia

Valencia sits around €400 for a room. The centre is walkable, the metro covers the rest, and the beach is for most a twenty-minute bike ride away. Supply has grown fast here, which means less competition per room and more chance of finding one you actually like. 

Rent in Alicante and Málaga

Alicante is the best budget option of the coastal cities at roughly €355 a room, Málaga sits at €450. Alicante is smaller, which means shorter commutes and lower rent, most people who move there walk or cycle to work. 🌞

Rent in Madrid and Barcelona

Madrid and Barcelona are genuinely more expensive. A room costs around €550 in Madrid and €600 in Barcelona, which is €150 to €250 more per month than the coastal cities. Though, you get a bigger city and better transport links for that money.

Considering working in Madrid through Yobbers? One big advantage is that the employer arranges temporary accommodation for your first six months, which takes a lot of the housing stress out of moving to a new city. Your rent is covered for that period. If you decide to leave the accommodation earlier, part of the amount can be reclaimed.

Still weighing up countries? Our guide to what Greece costs per month and the comparison of Portugal versus Spain use the same categories.

I moved from Madrid to Valencia and pay €160 less for a bigger room with a balcony. That's a flight home every month, more or less.

How much do groceries cost in Spain?

Expect to spend €200 to €250 a month on groceries if you cook most weekdays, which works out at roughly €50 to €60 a week. A normal shop with vegetables, fruit, pasta, rice, chicken and yoghurt lands comfortably inside that. Good to know: some Yobbers jobs come with free lunch at the office, so your grocery bill could end up even lower.

Local markets and Spanish supermarket brands are where the savings sit. Imported products cost about the same as at home, so a trolley full of familiar brands wipes out the difference. Compared with the Netherlands or Germany, the same weekly shop is usually 10 to 20 percent cheaper here.

What do you pay for electricity, water and internet?

Utilities for a whole flat run between €100 and €150 a month, so your share in a three-person flat is usually €40 to €60. That covers electricity, water and waste collection. The Internet adds €25 to €40 for the flat, and most people take a mobile plan on top for €15.

Summer is worth budgeting for: air conditioning pushes the electricity bill up between June and September, especially inland. In winter, the surprise is often indoors: many flats don't have central heating, so homes can feel colder than you're used to. Most people get by with warm clothes and a portable heater.

How much is public transport in Spain?

Public transport is cheap, and if you are under 26 it is close to free. In Madrid, the youth travel pass for anyone aged 15 to 25 costs €10 a month and covers the whole region. Over 26 year-olds still get a large discount on the standard monthly pass, and a single metro ticket costs only about €1.50.

In smaller cities the maths changes completely, because you often do not need a pass at all. In Alicante and central Valencia, plenty of people walk or cycle to work and only buy tickets at the weekend.

What does going out cost in Spain?

A coffee costs €1.50 to €2.50 and a menú del día averages €14.20 across Spain, which gets you a starter, a main, dessert and a drink at lunchtime. Prices vary by region: the Valencian Community sits slightly above that at €15.20, Andalusia slightly below at €13.40, and once you step out of the tourist streets you find menus between €10 and €13.

A Friday night with tapas, a couple of drinks and a shared taxi home usually stays under €30. And plenty of what people actually do at the weekend costs nothing: the beach, the coastal paths, a long walk through the old town on a Sunday. 🦞

My rule is one menú del día a week, on Thursdays. Three courses for €13, and half the office comes along, so it turns into the catch-up of the week.

Can you live on a Spanish salary?

Spain's legal minimum wage is €17,094 gross a year. Employers you'll find through Yobbers usually pay this in 12 monthly instalments, so that's at least €1,424.50 gross a month. That is the bottom floor: no full-time contract in Spain pays less.

What you actually earn depends on the employer, the role and the contract, so treat the minimum as a reference point rather than a prediction. The same goes for extras like accommodation or a flight: some employers arrange them, others do not, so ask before you sign. You also need a NIE number to work and open a bank account, which we cover in our blog about everything you need to know before you move to Spain.

Which Spanish city fits your budget?

The coast stretches your salary further. Madrid and Barcelona give you more city for more rent. Neither is wrong, as long as it is a choice rather than a surprise.Valencia gives you a beach, a metro and mid-range rent. Alicante is the cheapest of the three and the easiest to live in without transport costs. Málaga sits in between, with the warmest winter of these three.

There is no better option here, only the one that fits how you want to spend your month.

Now that you know what a month in Spain costs, the next question is where you want it to be. Browse our jobs in Spain and pick your city and job. ✈️

Source: Marrero, D. (2026, August 24). La oferta de habitaciones sigue creciendo entre abril y junio (12%): su precio apenas sube un 1%. Idealista/News. https://www.idealista.com/news/inmobiliario/vivienda/2026/08/24/910850-la-oferta-de-habitaciones-sigue-creciendo-entre-abril-y-junio-12-su-precio-apenas