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SEVILLE

How much does it really cost to live in Seville?

Are you thinking about moving to the Andalusian capital of Seville and wondering if you can afford to or want to work out how much it will cost? Here, we break down all the costs so you can find out exactly how much living in this southern sunny city will be.

Published: 1 June 2023 16:18 CEST
How much does it really cost to live in Seville?
What is the cost of living in Seville? Daria Nepriakhina 🇺🇦 / Pixabay

Seville is the capital of Andalusia and is popular for its great weather (although it can often be too hot in the summer), its thriving tapas scene, fascinating culture and lively vibe. 

Even though it’s the capital of the region, its prices, especially when it comes to rents, are not as expensive as some of the southern coastal cities such as Málaga, where rents have recently risen the most out of the whole country. 

READ ALSO: Where in Spain are rent prices rising the most?

So, how much does it really cost to live in the coastal city in terms of rent, transport, groceries and other costs?

Seville is Spain’s fourth-biggest city with a population of 701,000 in 2023. It’s both popular a holiday destination and a great place to live, known for its charming architecture, history and passionate flamenco culture.

How do costs in Seville compare with other cities in Spain?

According to Expatistan cost of living website, the cost of living in Seville is 22 percent less expensive than in Madrid and 23 percent less than in Barcelona. Even if you compare it with the coastal hub of Málaga, it’s still 10 percent cheaper.  

On another cost of living website, Numbeo, Seville scores less than both Madrid and Barcelona for consumer prices, rent and eating out, however, groceries are more expensive there than in Madrid and local purchasing power is lower.

Numbeo states that a single person would need a total of €657.70 per month to live in Seville, excluding rental costs, while a family of four would need a total of €2,300.40 per month, excluding rent.

Rental prices in Seville

One of the biggest costs is of course accommodation, whether you’re renting or you decide to buy.

According to the property portal Idealista, the average rental price in Seville in May 2023 was €10.7/m2. Prices have increased by one percent in just the last three months.

Centro is the most expensive area to rent, where prices are €11.9/m2, followed by Los Remedios at €11.5/m2 and Triana at €11.3/m2. The cheapest area is Cerro Amante at €8.9/m2, followed by Bellavista – Jardines de Hércules at €9.2/m2.

Buying a property in Seville

According to online estate agent portal FotoCasa property in Seville costs on average €2,291/m2. This means that the average cost is €236,200. The most expensive areas are Centro, Prado de San Sebastián – Felipe II – Bueno Monreal and Los Remedios.

Groceries

Supermarket prices have shot up significantly over the past year in Spain due to the rise in inflation and Seville is no different, however, like in most cities, prices depend on where you choose to shop.

According to the latest data available from Spain’s Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU) Alcampo, Cash Fresh, Carrefour and El Jamón are the cheapest supermarkets in Sevilla.

Numbeo shows that a loaf of fresh white bread in Sevilla costs €0.84, while a dozen eggs will set you back €2.33 and a 1kg block of local cheese is €11.36.

READ ALSO: Nine ways to save money on grocery shopping in Spain

Eating out

Seville is a great city for dining out and has some particularly innovative tapas bars, as well as the classic much-loved favourites. It also has a good array of international restaurants too, although far few than in bigger cities like Barcelona and Madrid. While you can spend a lot on going out to eat in Seville, there are still many affordable spots in the city.

You can still find places that will serve a menu of the day (menú del día), a three-course meal at lunchtime on weekdays for €10. According to Numbeo, a meal at an inexpensive restaurant will cost around €10 also, while for a three-course meal for two in a mid-range restaurant, you’ll have to shell out €40. And if you just want to go out for coffee, you’ll be paying €1.58. 

Transport  

A one-way ticket on a local bus or metro costs around €1.40. There is also a multi-trip card that is valid for an unlimited number of trips and can be topped up at various stations. The price without a transfer to another part of the line is €0.80, with one it’s €1.17 and with two it’s €1.37. During 2023, however, the city is giving travel discounts to help people with the cost of living crisis.

If you live in the centre, however, you’ll find that Seville is a very walkable city, saving you on transport costs.

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For members

DROUGHT

Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Whether it be limits on swimming pools, street cleaning or even daily water consumptions limits, several parts of Spain are considering their drought restrictions ahead of the summer season.

Published: 8 May 2024 12:27 CEST
Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Many parts of Spain have been suffering from ongoing droughts for the better part of the last three years. The situation has been particularly bad in Catalonia and Andalusia, as well as parts of the Canary Island of Tenerife.

This past winter, reservoir levels in Barcelona fell to just 16 percent and the region declared a drought emergency in February 2024. This was the lowest level that had ever been recorded. Water restrictions were put in place, affecting Barcelona and 201 other municipalities in the region in total, over 6 million people and almost 80 percent of the Catalan population.

In Andalusia, at the start of the year, reservoir levels had plunged to an average of just 20 percent capacity and restrictions were put in place there too.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: What and where are the drought water restrictions in Catalonia?

As well as agriculture and industry, water restrictions also have the potential to affect holidaymakers in Spain this summer because the rules mainly affected those with private swimming pools and gardens, although in many areas, particularly in and around Barcelona, personal usage was limited to 200 litres per day.

Typically, spring is the rainiest time in Spain and everyone was hoping for a return to normal conditions. Luckily there has been rainfall over the past few months and reservoir levels have risen slightly. 

The Ter-Llobregat Reservoir, which serves nearly six million people in the metropolitan area of Barcelona and part of Girona, is now up to 25 percent and heavy rains in Andalusia meant the levels there have risen to an average of 30 percent capacity.

Because of this, on Tuesday May 7th Catalonia announced that it would loosen restrictions and lift the state of emergency. The personal limits have risen to 230 litres per person per day and the agriculture, livestock and industry sectors will have a little more water for their needs.

Patrícia Plaja, spokesperson for the Government of Catalonia said: “The increase in reserves allows the restrictions of the last three months to be lifted and for us to exit the emergency phase,” however she also warned that “the drought is not over.”

The levels are still very low and although Spain’s regions are no longer at the highest level of drought emergency, they are still experiencing drought and some restrictions are still in place and likely will in some form over the summer.

Various measures have been put in place over the last few months to try and help rectify the situation. Barcelona announced it would fight the drought with a floating desalination plant and dictated that hotel swimming pools should be open to the general public. 12 desalination plants are also slated to be installed on the Costa Brava.

Though the situation has definitely improved ahead of the long dry summer months, tourists still need to be aware of the situation.

People spend the day at the WaterWorld aquatic park, in Lloret de Mar, Catalonia. (Photo by Josep LAGO / AFP)

Will drought restrictions affect summer holidays in Spain?

Though the signs are cautiously optimistic following the rainy Easter period, drought restrictions in some parts of the country could still affect summer holidays in Spain.

Public and private community pools can now be topped up once again in Catalonia, but cannot be completely refilled if they were completely empty. Single use private pools are prohibited from both being refilled completely and topped up.

This means that if you’ve rented a private villa in the region that advertises a pool, you may want to check if it will be filled or not as chances are if it has to be re-filled, it may not be possible.

Cleaning streets and watering grass in public and private gardens with drinking water remains prohibited. This may mean that parks and gardens will appear browner and dryer than usual and streets may be dirtier (and slightly smellier than usual). Cars can only be washed at specialised establishments, you cannot wash them yourself.

Local government in Tenerife recently declared a state of emergency due to the critical water situation on the island. There are restrictions in place in several areas of the island, though it seems the brunt of water restrictions are focused on irrigation systems used in the agricultural sector for now.

Water authorities in the Valencia region, however, have indicated that no urban water restrictions are expected to be necessary this summer nor at any point this year, except in small municipalities in inland Castellón.

Andalusia’s Minister of Sustainability and Environment, Ramón Fernández-Pacheco, announced on Tuesday that “the filling of swimming pools will be allowed” in Málaga province this summer, something that was until recently unclear due to the ongoing restrictions.

Owing to the Easter rains and subsequent refilling of the region’s reservoirs, the Junta gave the green light to the filling of pools throughout Málaga province, including the Axarquia area, one of the hardest hit by drought conditions. Until now, the filling of community pools was allowed, but has now been extended to pools in neighbouring urbanisations and private homes, something many tourists will be thankful for this summer.

However, there are still some municipalities in which water consumption per person per day is still restricted to 180, 200 or 225 litres depending on the area and the local rules.

“The amount of water is being maintained… it would be another matter if we had a May in which it rained a lot, but at the moment it doesn’t look like that is going to happen,” said Fernández-Pacheco.

In Cádiz and Almería, locals are still waiting to see if the restrictions will also be eased further ahead of summer. Regarding swimming pools, Fernández-Pacheco pointed out that this latest decision concerns the rules in Málaga only. “The Junta will study area by area,” he said.

This means that summer rules remain up in the air until the region’s drought committees meet again. The next meeting is scheduled for sometime in May.

However, if developments in Catalonia and Málaga are anything to go by, some restrictions, particularly on pools, could be lifted following the recent rains but daily per person consumption limits could remain in place.

Though it seems likely that some restrictions could be eased ahead of the busy summer season, the affected regions, which are also often popular tourist destinations, are still at risk of drought regardless of short-term rainfall.

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