One of the questions we are often asked is how much does it cost to live in Valencia? The answer to the cost of living in Valencia question is always the same, it depends. It depends on you, what you do and how you live but generally the answer is always similar “Cheaper than where you are now!”.
However, in this article we are going to look at some typical examples of what it might cost in terms of property costs, food, transport, entertainment and more so you get an idea of the day to day costs of living here compared with other places that you may be living in right now.
We have looked at how much money you need to receive in order to get the non-lucrative visa in Valencia before and it’s interesting to see how that tallies with what is needed to live here comfortably. The good news is that Valencia continues to be a relatively inexpensive place to live compared with other major cities in Spain and with international cities. Bear in mind though that if you are working here and receiving your money here then salaries tend to be lower than in other countries. The median salary in Valencia is thought to be around 1350 Euros per month.
This is why it is important to think about what it costs to live here if you are on a fixed income, whether that be from a pension, investments, interest payments or salary from remote work. It may well be that your lifestyle bang for your buck, pound, kroner, yen or even Euro gets you much more in Valencia.
So, let’s look at the numbers. Numbeo is a rather cool website where crowdsourced data is used to provide a snapshot of costs of living for places around the world. You can see the numbers for Valencia here.
National Comparisons
It’s interesting to note that day to day living in Valencia is just under 10% cheaper than Madrid for example but 27% cheaper for accommodation. Therefore monthly living as a whole is 15% cheaper in Valencia. For people living and working remotely in Valencia this is huge because their salary comes from a different place, normally a more expensive place. If you are only getting the average local salary then Valencia is actually 2% less affordable than Madrid as salaries tend to be higher in Madrid. The only things considerably more expensive in Valencia than Madrid according to the figures are Potatoes, Taxi fares and a summer dress from Zara (Honestly don’t know how that works as Zara’s prices are the same across Spain!) However when you look at the quality of life indices then Valencia knocks spots off Madrid as it does most places, see below.
However what you come here for are the hot takes aren’t they, and an apartment in Valencia is between 45-56% cheaper to buy than Madrid currently and your gym fees are 21% lower too. Not too shabby.
Compared with Barcelona, Valencia comes out even better. Consumer prices are 14.5% lower and rent again is 28% lower. Local purchasing power is actually 5.8% higher meaning that a remote salary is even better value than when comparing with Madrid. The only things that are more expensive in Valencia than Barcelona typically are Potatoes (What is it about potato prices in Valencia?) taxi fares and that same summer dress.
The hot take? Not only is Valencia 42-53% cheaper to buy an apartment than Barcelona but also the fees for your children in an international school are 21% less. Check out our guide to international school in Valencia here.
International Comparisons with Valencia
Let’s compare internationally though. London? Turn away now London people because living under the yoke of Bozo the Clown doesn’t even have compensations in terms of lifestyle. The day to day cost of living is 37% lower in Valencia and rent an eye watering 69% lower. Groceries are 29% lower and we actually have stock on shelves here too. Fancy going out? Then restaurants are 42% lower in price although surprisingly McDonalds is 14% more expensive in Valencia which probably explains why Valencians tend to be healthier.
And what are the hot takes when comparing Valencia with London? Well childcare is 70% cheaper, schooling 65% cheaper and buying an apartment is around 80% cheaper in Valencia than London. Never have I seen a more convincing reason to leave a city and come to Valencia… until that is we get to the Big Apple.
New York prices compared with Valencia are truly astounding. No wonder all of our American clients from the big cities think Valencia is soooooo cheap. There are few things cheaper in New York but that famous yellow taxi ride is one of them, at least until it starts moving. However virtually everything else is considerably more expensive giving a day to day living cost that is 45% more expensive in New York. Rents are 76% lower in Valencia than New York and groceries are 53% cheaper.
The hot takes from this one are that buying a property is 80% cheaper in Valencia and restaurants are 50% cheaper before you even factor in the huge amounts you are obliged to tip in the States, although you do need to pay 5% more for a McDonalds in Valencia if you are so inclined (You shouldn’t be) and petrol is around 100% higher here in Valencia so it’s a good job most people don’t need a car for day to day travel around the city and that public transport is so good and cheap.
Los Angeles I hear you cry. The same, rent 67% cheaper in Valencia, restaurants 40% cheaper, groceries 38% cheaper and property purchase 62-72% cheaper in Valencia than LA.
San Francisco, more of the same with the kicker that buying a property is 76-84% cheaper in Valencia. Imagine you are still getting even a fraction of your Silicon Valley salary but managing to work remotely from Valencia. Life could be sweet.
Closer to home what about Amsterdam? Day to day living is 34% lower in Valencia. Rents are 59% lower and purchasing a property 63-73% cheaper. No wonder so many Dutch people are now moving to Valencia for the convenience of working remotely and living a much better lifestyle.
The big surprise is that there is an even more expensive place to buy property closer to home which makes no sense at all. Paris prices are up to 85% more expensive than Valencia to purchase a property and rents are 41-59% more expensive. Again if you can work remotely with your Parisian wage then it’s no surprise there is an influx of French remote workers into Valencia. Even groceries are 44% more expensive in Paris. The only thing showing up as cheaper in Paris is an internet connection!
How Much Do You Need Then?
So what are the figures in round numbers for the cost of living in Valencia in 2021? Numbeo estimates that a single person can get by adequately, not living like a king but also not checking every Euro, on 600 Euros per month after rental costs. A family of four in Valencia can get by quite adequately on 2120 Euros per month. For a couple the numbers are around 1130 Euros per month.
Why is this important to know?
You can get the non lucrative visa in Spain for a single person by proving you have 2150 Euros per month to live on. You can get it as a couple for around 2800 Euros per month. Once you have paid your rent, mortgage or other accommodation costs this means you have more than enough to live on in Valencia with those figures. If your income is above the minimum levels required for the non lucrative visa then your lifestyle can be extremely good in Valencia as a result. Equally, if you have bought a property outright and have no mortgage or rental costs then the minimum numbers for the non lucrative visa look very good for living in Valencia.
Other Factors
Money and property are not everything of course. We also like to look at the quality of life index which takes into account safety, health care, climate, commute times, pollution and more.
When we do this we can see that Valencia beats every place we have mentioned with only Amsterdam coming even close in terms of quality of life. London scores particularly badly. Valencia scores well on every metric and when you add this to the purchasing power of a remote income then the only question you should be asking is whether you can move here.
If you are thinking of joining us in Valencia it’s well worth looking into how you can do that. We are happy to hop onto a chat with you via Skype, Zoom, Whatsapp video or more and discuss options. Take a look at our article about that here.
And if you liked this article then feel free to share it with others who might be thinking of joining you here in Valencia. You may also like the following articles. Just click on the images to read more. And to look at our properties just visit our Valencia Property homepage here.
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