How is living in Spain compared to the US?

By
Bruno Bianchi
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Question

Hey Guys, how do you guys like living in Spain? Compared to the US

Answers

These are the answers of some Facebook group members:

“Vastly prefer Spain. People are incredibly friendly, cost of living much lower, great food, great wine and 70 and sunny today”

“After 10 years in Spain, and having traveled back to the USA, I can safely say that I will never go back to live in the USA again. I live in the Andalucían mountains which is paradise for me. I own my house which costs peanuts to maintain and insurance and property tax are less than 1/10 of what I paid in the USA. I have solar panels and utilities are minor. People are very friendly, almost no crime. Pomegranates, oranges, lemons, persimmons and figs grow wild.”

“Don’t get me started! Healthcare and no guns. Cafe Culture. Foods, wines, olives, cheeses, citrus. Weather. Cost of Living. Safety. Less Traffic. High-speed trains. No broken bridges. Shall I go on? Be assured I can.”

“Yes, we like it. We have been traveling and living around the world and decided to settle in Spain so our kids could attend high school. Above all, our kids are safe here. They aren’t being shot at. They take the metro/bus to school and it is safe.
Food is better and cheaper.


Healthcare is cheaper – €213 a month for family of four. A big haha, but I called my broker to ask about adding dental insurance to my package. Her response, “But Sandra, you already have dental insurance in your package.”. Dental and health insurance for €213 a month? Yes please.

Tons of stuff to do here. Our weekends are full. Every Friday, we meet the kids in the city and pick a different restaurant.

Good private schools, though I must admit, if you need to send your kids to an American school they can be really pricey. My kids attend a German speaking school. Runs us about €1000 per child per month. Looked at the American school for curiosity, it was about €40,000 per year I think? Not including the enrollment fee.

Gas is expensive, but everything else is less. Maybe it’s a wash.

My kids have a transportation card that allows them to ride any train, any metro, any bus. Cost? 10 euros a month. It is golden. They can safely run all around the city and I don’t have to drive them. I love this because it teaches kids to use public transport from a young age. It’s their freedom pass.

My kids are growing up with much less of a focus on materialism. They don’t focus on brands and back packs and Air Force ones.

Also, my kids have no expectation to drive at 16 (they can’t anyway). Even at 18, no one really has a car. When they go to Uni, it’s unlikely they will have or even need a car.
Even we don’t take the car much anymore.

We also use a lot of public transport, even though we do own a car. The car goes mostly for grocery runs. My kids will later attend Uni somewhere in Europe. The cost for this is very very low.

My kids will gain citizenship while here. This will give them access to later work in the US or EU (they also have passports from Latin America which gives them access to Mercosur).
The things I miss from the US? Big parking spaces and tacos. I miss my family.”

“Pros: very safe country, relaxed lifestyle, full bars and restaurants, kids free to run and play, huge families, weather, history, sights, cheap(er) life, beautiful lush gardens and parks, great nature nearby where many people go for hiking and swimming (in the waterfalls and rivers)

Cons: unfriendly people (not rude but not friendly either), dog poop and garbage everywhere, bland/fried food and too much meat (at least here in Valencia), flying sand, badly insulated apartments, no heating (temps can go down to 32F), humidity all year, complete lack of customer service, total lack of interest in anything that’s not their immediate family or surroundings. At least these are my observations and experiences.”

How is living in Spain compared to the US?

“We go back and forth. Just got back to the US after several months in Madrid and having sticker shock with restaurants and grocery stores. $10 dollars for a glass of crap California wine is insulting. Then 20% tip on top of that. “Te roban en la cara” as my Spanish wife often says.”

“We are a couple with young children in our earning years, and there are some serious cons to be aware of to go with the pros.


Lifestyle: Roughly, I find that our family of four lives pretty well. We have good friends, plenty of other families with kids and overall it’s a pretty pleasant (if not a little bit boring sometimes) life. Spain in general is miles behind the US in many way, such as automation, daily conveniences, energy efficiency- really anything related to efficiency. The economy is simply more old school, though it’s improved a bit post covid with digitization, etc.

Customer service is really, really patchy. If you are the type of person who provides amazing customer service and demands the same, it will take quite a while to buffer your expectations. The US is the land of choice, Spain is much simpler, in general. This is what you make of it.

Weather- we live in Estepona (Malaga), and aside from some days of wind/rain it’s pretty nice all year round during the day.

Most “everyday person” houses are not built to provide any insulation in the winter, so it’s far colder here at night in the house, than in Chicago when it’s -10f.
Weather events (Calima, wildfires) are typical in this area. Riptides are frequent on the coast as well, and few lifeguards. Research your area before you swim.

Costs: Food staples, alcohol, clothing staples, mobile phone plans and “normal” restaurants are much cheaper here in Spain. I also found a good value on the car we purchased v. what I would get in the US for the same type of car. Seat LEON v. say an Honda Civic. Not apples to apples, but close-ish.
Anything related to energy (electric, gas, water) is much, much more expensive here. Sometimes crazily so.

Luxury or non-domestic items and brands from outside the EU are much more expensive than in the US from my experience. For instance, good Japanese food is crazy expensive compared to my local haunts back home- but there are lots of cheap places serving mostly farmed salmon sashimi that is awful. Want great Mexican food? Forget about, or learn to cook it at home.

Home appliances (even light bulbs) are normally energy rated E or F! Compared to most other countries in Europe or the US, it’s simply astounding how inefficient the standard appliances are here.

Most home goods are bought at Chinese Bazaar style stores, that are super, super low quality- whereas the foreign made goods at say Target are a bit more expensive but vastly superior in quality. Little things, but they add up.

Taxes are much, much higher here and there are lots of regulations to remain compliant with when you file. Income tax and IVA are both through the roof. The social security system for retirement is strained, but overall seems like a decent value, or roughly on par with US social security. Keep in mind that 401k, IRA, Roth accounts- these really don’t work the same way here at all, and there are other major drawbacks regarding finances hidden around every corner.

Medical care is hit and miss in the private and public systems. Living in a fairly seasonal area there is massive amount of turnover with doctors, and finding one that is here year round, and has a good mix of bedside manner and medical skills is tough.

In general I find the system ok for normal things, but if you have a serious long term medical issue AND great insurance in the US, then that system is going to treat you better. If you don’t have great insurance in the US, then this system works well, is cheap to get private medical insurance to supplement the often-slow public system.

You will only get access to the public system if you qualify, by working for a Spanish company, for instance.
There is plenty more to talk about, but that’s a start”

“No Trumpers. Healthcare. Cost of living. Quality of life. Fresh food (2,000+ common US ingredients illegal here and in most of Europe). Safety. History. Trains. Wine. There is SO much.
Our apt is really badly insulated, but that’s a small price to pay for not worrying about money, healthcare or safety.”

“It is impossible to compare. US is above all the other countries. Spain is century behind. Weather is good but so in Florida. Food is good but also many places in US. If you don’t speak Spanish big problem. You have to have patience of a turtle otherwise things do not happen may not happen at all. It’s great for vacation or for short time living .”

“California wines can be great. But that notwithstanding… we have a house in the country in Valencia state. I can only go for short periods as I am still working in the US. We have built a great extended family in spain and that’s what I love best. The people have been great.

I love the food. The wine, of course. The roads are well maintained. The weather is great, although the summer was unbearably hot last year. Traveling back and forth is hard and expensive. But it’s worth it. I get to live two completely different lives. The history is everywhere.

Medical issues are a fraction of US. (Having a medical exam and getting a prescription filled cost me less than my co-pay in the US). I wish I could be there full time!”

“In the global Peace index 2022, Spain comes in at number 29, whereas the USA comes in at 129. But America is not just less peaceful according to broad social measures. It also has much higher rates of crime, including violent crime, than does Spain.

Spain comes in at number 26 for murders in the world, with 0.6 per 100,000 people, whereas the United States sits at number 137, with 6.3 murders per 100,000. That’s a murder rate that is ten times higher! In terms of robberies, the USA has 314 per 100,000 people, while Spain has 129 per 100,000. Just from these few examples it is obvious that Spain is a much safer country.”

“There are things I miss about the US. But for each thing I miss about the US, there are 10 things I do not.”

“It depends on what you value. In my 20’s and 30’s I loved Spain, and never thought I would leave. I lived in Barcelona for 20 years. Now as I get close to 50, I’m enjoying the US way more.

Spain was amazing when I wanted to drink in life, and live in the moment. Now I just want things to work well, and everything is better quality in the US. It’s definitely more expensive, but I make more and pay less taxes.

I know that statistically Spain is safer than the US, but after seeing several stabbings and muggings literally EVERY SINGLE day in Barcelona, I just feel safer in the US. I’m very aware that Barcelona is different than the rest of Spain, and there is plenty of crime in the US.

However, I just feel subjectively safer here. It’s really subjective, and it’s easy to argue for either one. I love Spain, and it holds a special place in my heart, but at least for now the US is going to be home base for a while.”

“After being in Valencia a month and a half i would say my major con is the lack of privacy. Living so close to so many people can be a bit difficult to get used to if you are coming from a house. My second con would be houses do not seem to exist inside major cities, at least not close to the central areas.

Spain has more people living in Apartments than just about anywhere else in Europe. “Spain is at the top of the league table in terms of the percentage of flat residents at a very high 65.9%. They are more affordable, with reduced living costs, and it is the cultural norm since the mid-20th century, which encourages a sense of community. Vertical development is more economical.”

“Both countries have their pros and cons. If you want to know what they may be for you, pick a city or two and take a long term trip. If you can stay long enough in one place for the newness to wear off, then that will help even more. It’s a fine place to live, but so is the US and a lot of other places.”

“Oh, yes. People are so closeminded, it hurts. Nothing is of their interest unless it affects their tapas, vermout time and family.”

“Like everything, there is good and bad…..in general, the pros here have to do with Quality of life and Services like Healthcare, College education etc and safety (no mass shootings, no shooter drills at school, safe for kids)…..You will need to lea… See more”

Conclusion

In conclusion, based on the responses from members of Spainguru’s Facebook group, the experience of living in Spain compared to the US can vary greatly depending on the individual. However, some common themes that emerged include: the relaxed lifestyle, great food, wine, and weather in Spain, as well as the lower cost of living and high safety level.

Additionally, the healthcare system, absence of a gun culture, and vibrant café scene are highly valued by expats living in Spain. However, some respondents noted the lack of friendliness from some people, as well as issues with dog poop and garbage on the streets.

Challenges such as dealing with unfriendly customer service and a perceived lack of interest in matters beyond immediate family or local surroundings were also mentioned. Other concerns include the poor insulation in apartments and the year-round humidity.

Ultimately, the decision to live in Spain versus the U.S. depends on individual preferences, needs, and priorities

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