Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

COST OF LIVING

How much does it really cost to live in Spain’s Ibiza?

The Balearic Island of Ibiza is one of the most sought-after places to live in Spain for foreigners, due to its enviable Mediterranean location, natural beauty and hedonistic lifestyle.

Published: 12 September 2023 17:00 CEST
How much does it really cost to live in Spain’s Ibiza?
How much does it cost to live in Ibiza? Photo: marucha / Pixabay

The Balearic Islands are one of the most popular places to live in Spain and the high demand, along with popularity among tourists, makes it one of the most expensive places to live too, on par with the largest cities of Madrid and Barcelona.

Ibiza sits on the southwestern edge of the Balearic chain and is closest to the tiny island of Formentera. It has become synonymous with a glamorous lifestyle and vibrant nightlife, but it also has a wild and natural side with two nature parks.

Because of all of this, Ibiza has become a big destination for digital nomads, and with the introduction of Spain’s digital nomad visa, prices have been driven up even more. Remote workers earning salaries from places such as the US or the UK are able to pay much higher accommodation costs than locals, meaning that prices have increased significantly. 

Obviously, prices will vary depending on where in Ibiza you choose to live, as some are a lot more expensive than others, but for the purposes of this article, we have taken the island average. 

READ ALSO: Spain’s Balearic Islands want to limit number of tourists

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

According to Yes Mallorca estate agency, Ibiza is the third most expensive Balearic Island to live on after Formentera and Mallorca.

Living Cost website states that a single person would need a total of €1,806 per month to live in Ibiza, while a family of four would need €4,612.

Looking at the price comparison website Numbeo, both rental prices and restaurant prices are higher in Ibiza than they are in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, while groceries are lower. When compared with Madrid again both rental and restaurant prices are significantly higher, and similarly groceries are lower.

So, we’ve established that Ibiza is one of the most expensive places to live in Spain, but surely that means that the salaries are one of the highest too?

Unfortunately not, the latest data suggests that the Balearic Islands have only the sixth highest average salary in Spain, at €1,721 per month, which is just below the amount Numbeo suggested you would need to live in Ibiza. It’s also below the national average which is currently €1,822 per month.

Rental prices in Ibiza

One of the biggest costs is of course accommodation and in the summer of 2023 rental prices in Ibiza are some of the highest they’ve ever been.

According to the website RealAdvisor, 80 percent of the properties for rent in Ibiza are between €1,125 and €6,697 per month.

The latest data from property portal Idealista agrees stating that the average rental price per month is 33.70 eur/m2. This means that if you were to rent an apartment of 80m2 it would cost you a total of €2,696 per month.

Buying a property in Ibiza

Buying a property in Ibiza is a similar story as it’s also one of the most expensive places to buy in the country. Holiday apartments, second homes and luxury villas are all in high demand.

The latest stats from Idealista show that the average price to buy in Ibiza in August 2023 was 5.859 €/m2. And the prices are climbing, this is two percent more than in July and 0.9 percent more than in June. In fact, properties in Ibiza have risen by a staggering 9.1 percent in the last year, since August 2022.   

This means that if you’re looking for an apartment of around 80m2 you’d be looking at paying €468,720. If you’re dreaming of a villa or anything bigger then it’s likely to set you back at least half a million euros or significantly more.

Groceries

Surprisingly, groceries are one of the cheapest things when living in Ibiza, even though prices in supermarkets have skyrocketed across the whole of Spain over the last year.

According to Numbeo, grocery prices in Ibiza are 8.4 percent lower than in Madrid and 12.3 percent lower than in Barcelona.

But when compared with Spain’s other islands such as the Canary Island of Tenerife, food was 9.7 percent higher.

The latest data suggests that when food shopping in Ibiza on average a loaf of bread costs €0.76, a dozen eggs will set you back €2.48 and a block of local cheese will be €4.54.

Transport  

If you live in Ibiza it’s likely that you will get your own car as getting around will be easier, but there is a local bus network of over 50 different lines. Tickets for various routes vary between €4 for a 45-minute journey to €1.55 for a 10-minute journey. 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

TOURISM

FACT CHECK: No, Spain’s Balearics haven’t banned tourists from drinking alcohol

Over the last few days, there have been a slew of sensationalist headlines mainly from UK media stating that Mallorca and Ibiza have banned alcohol.

Published: 16 May 2024 11:35 CEST
FACT CHECK: No, Spain's Balearics haven't banned tourists from drinking alcohol

Anyone having read the news about Spain in the UK over the past few days would be forgiven for thinking that drinking alcohol had been completely banned on the ‘party’ islands of Mallorca and Ibiza, but that’s not exactly the case. 

GB News went with ‘‘I cannot believe this!’ Britons fume at ‘tough’ new alcohol restrictions in popular parts of Spain’, while the Daily Mail wrote: ‘A kick in the Balearics for boozy Brits’.

Euronews reported ‘No more ‘sun, sex and sangria’ tourism in Ibiza and Mallorca under new alcohol laws’ and The Drinks Business simply said ‘Balearics bring in booze ban’.

It’s easy to understand why holidaymakers are confused and there has already been quite a lot of backlash, particularly from Brits.

Most of these articles concede further down that the truth is that the islands have only updated and toughened up laws on drinking in the street, and have also put a stop to shops selling alcohol late at night.

All this is in a bid to try and curb anti-social behaviour which many locals have been protesting against recently.

In fact, the rules don’t even apply to the whole of the Balearics or even the whole of Mallorca and Ibiza, they only apply to three resorts in Mallorca – Palma, Calvià and Llucmajor and one in Ibiza – Sant Antoni de Portmany.

As well as a ban on drinking in the streets in these areas, shops in these locations will also be forced to close between 9.30pm and 8am.

It’s not only that they will be banned from selling alcohol between these times, like many reported, but that they will have to close completely. 

The Governing Council of the Balearic Islands approved the modification of the Decree Law 1/2020 at the proposal of the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sports, which regulates ‘excess tourism’.

The changes aim to promote responsible tourism and the improvement in the quality of tourist areas.

The ban also extends to one nautical mile or 1.85km off the coast, in a bid to put a stop to party boats from coming in too close to shore or picking up extra passengers.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t drink at all at night. Bars, clubs and restaurants in these resorts will still be serving booze late into the night, you just can’t walk down the street with your bottle of beer.

Anyone found breaking the rules will be subject to fines between €500 to €1,500.

The government of the Balearics also approved an annual spending of €16 million from tourist taxes which will be allocated for the modernisation and improvement of these areas and enforcing the ban.

The new laws came into effect on May 11th and the government has confirmed that they will be in effect until at least December 2027. 

What has changed from before?

The new decree reinforces laws that were brought in in 2020 banning alcohol offers such as two-for-one drinks, happy hours and bar crawls in these areas. These will also be extended until 2027. 

The prohibition of alcohol sales between 9:30pm and 8am was also already in place, but now the shops will be forced to close entirely.

The main change that will affect holidaymakers will be the ban on drinking alcohol on the streets.

Nothing new

But this is nothing new when it comes to Spain. Aragón, the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castilla y León, Castilla-La Mancha, Catalonia, Valencia, Extremadura, Madrid and La Rioja all have some type of ban on what is known in Spain as botellón, essentially drinking alcohol with friends in a public place (street, square etc).

The Balearics are simply catching up to a large majority of the country, where this is already the norm.

All of this comes on the tail of mass complaints from the locals, particularly in Ibiza, where residents are planning to take to the streets at 8pm on May 24th to call on authorities to act on the impact tourism is having on locals’ living standards.  

It started with calls online to “imitate the protests that took place in the Canaries” in April, with many locals feeling that the issues that Ibiza faces are even worse than those of the Atlantic Archipelago. 

SHOW COMMENTS