How much does it really cost to retire to Spain in 2025?

2025 cost snapshot: what your money actually buys

Consider this your quick‑fire sanity check before you deep‑dive into visas, villa prices and the seductive lure of €1 espresso at La Bodega de Pepe.

• Monthly essentials for a couple – Expect €2,200–€2,900 to cover rent, utilities, groceries, healthcare, local transport and a weekly splash‑out on tapas. The high end reflects Costa del Sol flash; the low end is achievable in Tarragona, Murcia or inland Andalucia.
• Annual residency hurdle – Show €28,800 (400 % IPREM) plus €7,200 per dependent to keep the Non‑Lucrative Visa gatekeepers happy.
• Typical property outlay – Expect roughly 12 % extra on top of the agreed purchase price to cover transfer tax/VAT, stamp duty, notary and land‑registry fees, legal costs and initial furnishing.
• Private health cover – Budget €60–€200 per person per month, age‑dependent, until you qualify for state care.
• Flights home – Early‑bird returns on budget carriers stay under £150 from London to Málaga, Alicante or Palma.

Visa & income rules: the IPREM truth pill

Before you dust off your flip‑flops, you’ll need the paperwork that proves you can fund the fun. Spain uses the IPREM (Indicador Público de Renta de Efectos Múltiples) as its income benchmark. For 2025 it’s holding steady at €7,200 a year, a fixed, predictable target that lets you plan your budget with confidence instead of chasing moving goalposts.

Non‑Lucrative Visa (NLV) – the classic retirement route. Prove passive income of €28,800 a year (plus €7,200 per dependent) from pensions, savings or investments and promise not to take a Spanish job. Overshoot the target by 10% to make consulate staff smile.

Digital‑Nomad Visa – useful only if you still earn at least €31,752 annually from a non‑Spanish employer or freelance clients abroad. Great for semi‑retired consultants who can’t resist one more contract.

EU/EEA citizens – stroll straight in; just register locally once you arrive.

Note: Spain’s Golden Visa ended on 17 April 2025, so large real‑estate purchases no longer grant automatic residency.

For more information about what visa is right for you, take a look at our comprehensive guide to Spanish visas. 

Region matters: price tags along Spain’s sunbelt

Spain is really 17 mini‑economies stitched together by tapas and the high‑speed rail network. Where you buy decides whether your budget feels Ibiza‑VIP or back‑street‑bodega.

Costa del Sol – Málaga province
Marbella’s Golden Mile still commands €5,300 / m², while more down‑to‑earth Torremolinos and Fuengirola average €3,200–€3,400 / m². Add a sunshine surcharge for gated golf estates, where community fees often top €1,500 a year.

Costa Blanca – Alicante province (plus south‑Valencia)
Torrevieja keeps resale apartments from €1,700 / m², Orihuela Costa starts near €1,900 / m² for pool‑equipped complexes, and chic Jávea or Denia lift to €3,000 / m². Beachfront flats in Valencia city hover around €2,800 / m², half Costa del Sol money with twice the tapas bragging rights.

Costa Cálida – Murcia region
Under‑the‑radar Mazarrón still sells homes south of €1,600 / m². Push inland and traditional villages dip below €1,300 / m²—ideal for DIY enthusiasts happy to drive to the beach.

Catalonia’s underrated north‑east
Property in Tarragona province averages €1,800 / m². Prices climb toward Barcelona’s commuter belt, nudging €3,200 / m² in prime Sitges and Costa Daurada pockets.

Island life – Balearics & Canaries
Balearic beauty comes at a premium: Mallorca and Ibiza sit between €3,500 and €6,000 / m². The Canaries are friendlier to wallets: south‑Tenerife and Lanzarote apartments still change hands below €2,200 / m².

Everyday living costs: from groceries to gin and tonics

Spain will happily undercut northern Europe by a third if you keep the thermostat sensible and the tapas local.

• Groceries – Budget €210 a head monthly for a Mediterranean diet heavy on tomatoes, olive oil and the odd Serrano ham splurge. Push to €400–€600 for two if Rioja is your love language.
• Utilities – Spain isn’t immune to energy jitters: electricity on the regulated PVPC tariff averages €83 a month. Water clocks in at €20–€35, while fibre‑optic internet packages start near €32.
• Dining out – The legendary menú del día still sits around €12–€18, roughly half the price of soggy pub grub back home. Even coastal tourist strips rarely break €20 for three courses at lunchtime.
• Transport – A local bus pass is €35; seniors’ railcards knock 25–40 % off high‑speed fares; and early‑bird flights from London Málaga, Alicante & Palma hover at £80–£150 return.
• Entertainment – Cinema tickets are €7–€9, theatre starts at €15, and a gin‑tonic in a seafront chiringuito rarely tops €8 (unless you insist on artisanal cucumber garnish—your call).

Healthcare: stay healthy, stay insured

No insurance, no visa—it’s that blunt. Applicants for Spain’s Non‑Lucrative Visa (NLV) must show private medical insurance with no co‑pays. In other words, the insurer covers 100 % of treatment costs so you never hand over cash at the clinic.

• Private policies start at €60 a month for healthy fifty‑somethings and climb past €200 if you’re collecting grandkids and pre‑existing conditions.
• After twelve months on the padrón you can jump to the Convenio Especial, paying €60 (if you[re under 60) or €157 (65+) for public system access.
• Once you qualify as a Spanish state pensioner, prescription co‑pays plunge to 10% - another reason to stick around long‑term.

Top tip: choose an insurer with English‑speaking helplines; hospital Spanish is not the same as holiday Spanish.

Buying a home: taxes, fees and other unavoidable fiestas

Think of Spanish property fees as the polite cover charge for that future rooftop paella party.

• Transfer tax (ITP) on resales runs 6–13 % depending on region, with Catalonia introducing progressive bands up to 13 % from June 2025.
• New‑builds attract 10 % VAT plus 1.2–1.5 % stamp duty (AJD).
• Notary & land‑registry fees stay mercifully tame—€1,200–€2,800 on a €300k flat.
• Annual IBI council tax lands between 0.4–1.3% of cadastral value; on a €350k apartment that’s €500–€700.
• The Wealth Tax gives you a €700k personal allowance (€1 m including your main home). Above that, rates start at 0.2%.
   

Top tip: Before signing anything, demand the cadastral value—it affects not just IBI but wealth‑tax exposure.

Taxes on your income: Spanish sun, Spanish taxman

Spain will want a slice of your pension unless a treaty says otherwise.

• State & private pensions are taxed as ordinary income: 19% on the first €6,000, climbing to 30 % above €300,000 starting 1 January 2025.
• UK Government pensions remain UK‑taxed, but private pensions flip to Spain. File in both countries; let the tax offices arm‑wrestle.
• Planning to Airbnb your seafront pad? Non‑resident rental income is 19% for EU/EEA citizens, 24% for everyone else, calculated on net receipts.

Top tip: Hire a bilingual accountant; it costs less than the fine for getting Form 210 wrong. For more information, check out our comprehensive guide to how much tax you pay in Spain, written by an expert lawyer. 

Budget comparison (excluding housing)

Why pit Málaga province against Tarragona province? Both hug the Mediterranean, but they book‑end Spain’s coastal property market: Málaga tops the price charts, while Tarragona regularly ranks among the cheapest beachfront buys. Seeing them side‑by‑side shows how everyday costs shift once the purchase cheque clears.

The table below sets the two regions head‑to‑head—housing costs removed—so you can see at a glance how much you could save each month by choosing a lower‑cost coastal base like Tarragona over pricier Marbella country.

Trim the cava habit, or swap the golf club for coastal hiking and you can shave another €100–€200 from either column.

Bottom line: ready to make the leap?

If your income clears the visa bar and the everyday numbers look comfortable, Spain still delivers more sun for less spend than northern Europe. All that’s left is to choose your slice of coast—or countryside—and let the Spanish bureaucracy know you’re coming. Browse our latest homes in Alicante, Málaga, Valencia, Murcia, the Balearics and the Canary Islands, fix a viewing trip, and start practising mañana—Spanish for “tomorrow” and local shorthand for “no rush”—as your new favourite word.