For all expats living in spain?

Question

What is the average cost per week in euroes to survive in spain would you get by on say 200

Answer 1

Things are much cheaper here, you can live as cheap as you wish, what kind of lifestyle do you want, is this before or after you have paid rent/mortgage? do you want/have a car? do you wish to pay private medical insurance? are you a pensioner? will you be working?

I would say it would be very difficult to "live" on 200 euros a week, takng the afore mentioned into consideration.

Its a hard question to answer, cirumstances play a  large part in the answer! Hope this helped.

I had my hair done today...............highlights/cut/shamp... etc 38 euros.............what would that be in the UK?

Filled up my car with diesel  40 euros, for a fill up, Peugoet 307 - what would that be in the UK?

Answer 2

You need a minimum of about £12,000 a year ( € 17.000).

In some areas, this is not enough because of the higher cost of housing or the lack of adequate public transport if you live in the middle of nowhere.

Caz talks a lot of sense. Try living in a small town like Sitges, and you will find that you will be lucky to live in a bedsit. The house prices are like London.  

Another point is that in order to live cheaply, you have to go native and enjoy lentejas and garbanzos.

The comments on the medical situation (not Caz) are totally incorrect and potentially dangerous information.

If you bring the necessary paperwork from the UK you will be automatically taken up by the Spanish NHS system, which by the way, is better in my town than in any small town in the UK.

You do not have to go private.

Answer 3

Yes it is absolutely possible to live on this.. that is high actually. If you are doing your own cooking etc, you can get by on way less..my friend lives on 40euros or less a week. Not including his rent. Depending on where you are, rent can be very reasonable... apts in my town vary from 300-700 per month. Food and booze are cheap too.

Milk is 55 a litre, eggs vary anywhere between 85-110 a dozen, bread .60cents. Chicken breast 5.40 a kilo, large shrimp vary between 5.40-6.30 a kilo depending on time of year, beer 6.40 a 24 case- you can buy more expensive and you can buy cheaper. Orange juice 55 cents a liter, coca cola 1.29- 2 litre bottle. 1 red pepper 75cents, 3 red peppers 1.45. lettuce 1.euro a head iceberg, .95 for romain, .95 cents a bag fresh spinach.. onions 4 spanish onions 1.30

For all of the things I listed,you can find it cheaper and more expensive depending on where you shop..You will always pay more for imported products, like heinz baked beans .. they go for .86cents a tin.  Hair cut 16 euros for a woman.

Answer 4

As with all places, this will depend on the area you are talking about and your chosen standard of living. I would say that the answer is probably no if you are looking to live in Madrid, Barcelona or Marbella but if you go to a village somewhere, you could quite easily survive on this. In some places, you would have to share a flat (easier to do in University towns for obvious reasons), and in others, you could probably get one on your own for 400€ a month which would leave you another 400€ as spending money. You can get a "menú del día" in most small towns or villages for 7.50€. This is usually in a venta or a worker type restaurant and comprises 3 courses.

You can only get these during the week but it means you could eat well 5 days a week without even cooking or washing up for only 37.50€!

It's definitely easier to survive in Spain on this kind of money than in London!

Answer 5

Yes, 200 per week is what the Spanish Government says you can live on.  The cost of living is a lot cheaper than the UK, but your healthcare is not free.  Emergency health care is free for all EU citizens but ongoing treatment has to be paid for either by Private Medical Insurance or paying into the Spanish Social Security system.  The cost of this is 234 euros per month, per person.

Entering "the system" also makes you liable for taxes in Spain as you would in the UK.

If you want to know anything else, give me an email and I will try to help.

Answer 6

The person who said that rent was 400euros per moth obviously doesn't live in Barcelona. Here the average rent is 800 plus! a normal shopping bill for me is 100 euros more or less per week, then there's the train fare and the bills and that's before you decide you want a car, to go out have a decent life etc..

If you or the government can get by on 200 euros per month ( which I suppose is possible if you live in the back of beyond and like a hermit) let me know.

By the way if you are a resident here the health system is free as other people mention if you are paying tax (which you should be if you're living here) and there are lots of advantages as well, the government has decided to give 210 euros to people up to the age of 30 who are renting, and if you have a child you are given 2500 euros.

Answer 7

If you are over retirement age you will get free health care in Spain. The Social services in the UK will give you an E121 which you would take to the Social Services in your area in Spain and they will do the necessary paperwork. You can then go and register with a doctor. One downside that many don´t realise. By doing this you have no rights in the UK NHS other than that of another European. Some people get away with it, but they are living a lie.

All the people I know that come to Spain do not do so to just survive. You could probably survive in some areas but not in others. Do you intend buying a house or renting it. Are you going to buy a car or use public transport. You may have insurance to be paid for. If you intend living here permanently then I would suggest €200 per week will not go far. Spain is a fantastic country but this is not the UK. There will be many things here that you expect in the UK but have to compromise on here. As one person said, if you decide on living here you will come under the Spanish tax system. The taxes here are probably better than the UK but there is a tax that many don´t know about. It´s the wealth tax.

Answer 8

It all depends if you have to rent somewhere to live......i suppose you could get by on that if you don,t want to live in a major city, because the cost of renting a flat or a room has risen quite a lot recently as have propery prices. It is cheaper to live in the south than the north so obviously you would have easier time with that amount there.

Answer 9

Are you going to rent or buy here. If you own your own home outright then you could live on 200 a week, but if you have to rent then you are looking at about 400 upwards a month on rent. If you are going to work then you must pay into the social security system which is 242 a month. This is for health and pension. It is cheaper to live here than in the UK.  But not easy.

Answer 10

yes you can survive on 200e a week especially if you shop in supermarkets, and buy your drink there, i have done it many times.

                  dave.