The real cost of living in a Spain (vs UK)

Let’s break down the monthly living costs of living in a small Spanish village...

Photo credit: Greg Wilson for Unsplash

We get asked how the cost of living in Spain vs UK really compares - a lot. So, here it is!

We didn’t really have a clue what to expect before buying and we were pleasantly surprised for the most part (phew.)

Your costs will, of course, depend on your circumstances and choices and these costs reflect ours but we hope it’s a helpful guide. 

Please take it as just that though - a guide!

Let’s start with our position and a few caveats which will help you make sense of this:

• We bought a modest village home outright (for a lot less than you think) and we put a little money into it to ensure the electrics were good, the kitchen and bathroom were right and the windows had glass in them! It’s still a very simple home but it’s a lovely (slightly quirky) one. So, we don’t have a mortgage to pay.

But you can rent a place in the hills/campo for between €400-€600 per month for 2-3 bedrooms.

• We have electric energy only and we don’t have a log burner or air-con so our winter bills are high as these Spanish homes can get cold and we run fans in the summer months (but the house stays relatively cool)! We don’t have gas.

• We live in one of the cheaper parts of Spain - the Almeria region in Andalucia.

• We have a ton of other bills associated with our business (web design, SEO and copywriting) which aren’t listed below, of course.

• We haven’t included grocery bills or discretionary spending as that’s up to you - but there are a few tips below!

• We travel in our campervan a lot (maybe as much as a third of the time) but it doesn't really change the below much.

• The below costs are monthly averages (for our household - two people and a small fur baby) as, certainly in our area of the ‘campo’, the bills are paid on specific dates and not even at regular intervals (more on that below) so you’ll need to get your spreadsheet skills up to scratch if a similar move is on the cards! 😂

Photo credit: Frank van Hulst for Unsplash

Energy (electric only)	€57	Paid roughly every two months by direct debit to your electrical provider. As above, we don’t have a log burner so we have high usage in winter!
Water	€23	Paid 4-5 times a year (fairly random) by direct debit to the ayuntamiento (the town hall). We don’t drink the water so see the price for that below!
Bins	€20	Paid roughly every two months by direct debit to the ayuntamiento
Council tax	€12	Paid annually by direct debit to the ayuntamiento. Note the first year is complicated and may be wholly or partially paid by the previous home owners.
House insurance	€18	Paid annually. This will obviously vary on the value of your property, other risks and who you choose as a provider.
Autonomo (self-employment)	€90 approx (per person)	Paid monthly by direct debit. It’s super important to note that this is first year ‘Autonomo’ and this rises massively (quadruples) after the first year if you’re earning over minimum wage).
Tax accountant (‘gestor’)	€45	Paid monthly by direct debit. This depends entirely on your tax position and who you use but this pays for all management of ‘autonomo’ set up and quarterly tax returns (a requirement for self-employment here).
Campervan insurance	€45 ish	Paid quarterly (€140). We’re now on Spanish plates and we have Spanish insurance.
Car insurance	€35 (approx)	Paid in a single annual payment. Note this was third party only (with fire and theft) insurance for an old car on Spanish plates.
Health insurance (per person)	€160 - 250 (for two people)	Paid monthly by direct debit. We pay the lower end of this and only for one person (i.e. around €85/month) but this will vary (and could sky-rocket) massively depending on your needs.  Generally, you will need health insurance to become resident in Spain but, as ever, it’s best to take legal advice.
Mobile data and wifi	€55	Paid monthly. Note that this depends on your set up.  We each run both Spanish and very cheap UK mobile SIMs and we have a shared hotspot SIM that we use at home and on the road for wifi. This covers the lot. Treat this as a guide.
Tele/Streaming	€8 (plus a one-off payment of around €45 for a firestick.)	Paid annually (€95). This will vary massively. But we pay for an annual ‘subscription’ to a set up available here which gives us films, series, live tele and sport.  In fact, we cancelled Netflix, Apple TV and a load more when we went in this direction which saved us a ton of money but you’d need to count those subs if that’s your preference!
Drinking water	€18	We don’t drink the tap water. This cost is based on buying it from the ‘agua man’ that visits the village once a week. This is for 6 x 8l bottles and we use it for our kettle and espresso machine (we drink a lot of coffee) too. You could choose to filter only but you’ll have the cost of filters then too. Supermarkets are more expensive (and it’s a lot of plastic too.)
Gym membership	€20 (for two people)	This is cheeeeeap as our village has it’s own ‘ayto’ run gym. It’s very basic and this is for access to the gym and equipment only.  Classes (which are offered and popular) are extra.
OTHER
Pet/dog insurance	€27	Paid by direct debit to our provider over four payments of around €81 (or can be paid in one annual payment.) Note that this is for a healthy dog and the cover is much less than in the UK (for example) but vets bills are much cheaper here!
Travel insurance	€40	This was a recent quote which we're yet to get (but will soon). It's for expats. We still travel overseas and back to the UK so, for us, this is important.

Photo credit: Adam for Unsplash

A few final final tips before you shoot off to buy your dream home in the Spanish countryside!

• Note that being self-employed (autonomo) here also means you get health insurance so there’s a saving to be made there (but do weigh up the costs as autonomo starts costing a lot after the first year).

• Groceries cost almost the same as the UK (anywhere we’ve lived really) but simple toiletries are a little more expensive from supermarkets here. So you probably won’t find a big saving on groceries, despite what some people think.

  
  

  But you can buy cheaper if you buy only seasonal produce and Spanish brands (and skip beef)!

  
  

• Dog food is also roughly the same (for quality food) but grooming is a fair bit cheaper here!

• Eating and drinking out and about is cheaper here, especially where you get tapas provided with your drinks (alcoholic or otherwise)!

• You should think carefully and take good advice from a lawyer early (from a Spanish professional) on your tax position here and it will also depend on your residency status.

• We don’t pay any fees for our Spanish bank accounts but we do have a modest amount held by them to ensure no fees. However, this may be for newbies only (and not required once you have residencia).

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So, that's it in a nutshell - the real cost of living in Spain vs UK (or anywhere else, really).