Madrid · Madrid
Madrid
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction.
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Living in Madrid
Madrid is the capital and by far the biggest city in the country — some 3.5 million people on a high plateau at 726m, 300km from any sea, defined less by monuments than by the sheer pace of madrileño life. It is deeply cosmopolitan: only about seven in ten residents were born in Spain, and it holds vast Latin American communities — over 100,000 each of Venezuelans, Colombians and Peruvians — alongside some 14,000 US-born and thousands of British and German residents. The altitude gives it real seasons: hot dry summers around 32°C, cold winters near 8°C, and little rain. World-class museums, the Prado among them, endless bars, football and nightlife come with everything a capital offers — hospitals, and an international airport twenty minutes from the centre.
Madrid's Spainability Scores — by who's moving
Not our opinion: we ran the same scoring engine behind the quiz for six settler profiles across all 8,132 municipalities. Each score is Madrid's percentile for that group — 87 means it beats 87% of the towns we could score. How scoring works.
Higher than 90% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for American retirees.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick for American retirees — a hospital in town and a health centre close by.
- Winter average temp 7.9°C
- Drive to a hospital 0 min
- U.S.-born residents 4.18 per 1,000
- Registered long-let rent €14/m²·mo
Higher than 72% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for retiring couples.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick for a retiring couple — a hospital in town and a health centre close by.
- Winter average temp 7.9°C
- Drive to a hospital 0 min
- Surgical wait (region) 50 days
- Registered long-let rent €14/m²·mo
Higher than 21% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for remote workers.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick for a remote-working couple — a settled international community and a hospital in town.
- 100 Mbps+ coverage 100%
- Drive to nearest airport 21 min
- Registered long-let rent €14/m²·mo
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 32.4°C
Higher than 12% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for families.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick for a family with school-age kids — a settled international community and a hospital in town.
- Schools in town 1,504
- PISA maths (region) 494
- Registered long-let rent €14/m²·mo
- Drive to a hospital 0 min
Higher than 10% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for heat-averse settlers.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick if you can't stand hot summers — a settled international community and a hospital in town.
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 32.4°C
- Rainy days a year 59 days
- Summer water stress (WEI+) 117
- Winter average temp 7.9°C
Higher than 9% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for budget-first coastal settlers.
Spain's capital simply by virtue of its central geographical position — a vast modern city where, beyond the museums, it's the vibrant lifestyle of the madrileños that is the key attraction. A strong pick for coastal living on a budget — a settled international community and a hospital in town.
- Registered long-let rent €14/m²·mo
- Net income per person €19,632
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 32.4°C
What is the climate like in Madrid?
Madrid's reported winter average is 7.9°C, while July–August highs reach 32.4°C.
Climate
- Winter average temp
- 7.9°C top 40% of 8,131 towns 0.1°C above the Spanish average (7.8°C)
- Summer high (Jul–Aug)
- 32.4°C bottom 25% of 8,131 towns 2.2°C above the Spanish average (30.2°C)
- Rainy days a year
- 59 days top 40% of 8,088 towns 14% less than the Spanish average (69 days)
- Sunshine
- no local data
- Summer water stress (WEI+) regional estimate
- 117 bottom 10% of 8,033 towns 60 above the Spanish average (56)
- River-flood depth (T=100, town centre) estimated
- 0 m top 1% of 8,129 towns 0.04 m below the Spanish average (0.04 m)
- River-flood risk score estimated
- 0 top 1% of 8,129 towns about the Spanish average (0)
- Wildfire burn rate (2010–23)
- 0.43 ha/km² bottom 27% of 8,132 towns 1.88 ha/km² below the Spanish average (2.31 ha/km²)
- Forest fires (2010–23)
- 33 bottom 3% of 8,132 towns 27 above the Spanish average (6)
- High fire-weather days (province) regional estimate
- 20.4% top 21% of 8,130 towns 2.4% below the Spanish average (22.9%)
The year, month by month
AEMET 30-year climate normals — what a January or an August actually feels like, not the annual average.
How good is healthcare in Madrid?
Madrid's nearest health centre is 0.2 km away, and the reported hospital drive is 0 min.
Healthcare
- Drive to a hospital
- 0 min top 1% of 8,132 towns
- Nearest health centre
- 0.2 km top 1% of 8,132 towns
- Surgical wait (region) regional estimate
- 50 days #1 of 17 regions, −53 days vs national 54% less than the Spanish average (108 days)
What are schools like in Madrid?
Madrid has 1,504 schools in town; the nearest international school is 1 km away.
Schools
- Schools in town
- 1,504 top 1% of 7,042 towns
- Nearest international school
- 1 km top 1% of 8,132 towns
- PISA maths (region) regional estimate
- 494 #4 of 17 regions, +15 vs national 13 above the Spanish average (481)
How much does it cost to live in Madrid?
Madrid's reported home price is €5,466/m², while registered long-let rent is €14/m²·mo.
Cost & economy
- Home price
- €5,466/m² appraisal (valor tasado) bottom 1% of 306 towns 148% more than the Spanish average (€2,208/m²)
- Asking price
- no local data
- Registered long-let rent
- €14/m²·mo
- Registered rent p25
- €11/m²·mo
- Registered rent p75
- €17.9/m²·mo
- Registered-rent yield
- 3.07% bottom 6% of 306 towns
- Net income per person
- €19,632 top 3% of 8,059 towns 35% more than the Spanish average (€14,495)
- Income growth ’18–’23
- 17.6% bottom 11% of 6,605 towns
Which languages are used in schools in Madrid?
Spanish is the only region-wide official language in Madrid, and Spanish-medium teaching is the public-school default. Individual bilingual and international programmes can use other languages, so check the specific school. See the Madrid region guide for the wider regional context.
What is the community like in Madrid?
Madrid's reported population is 3,477,497.
Who lives here
- Population
- 3,477,497
- Born in Spain
- 70.8% 18% below the Spanish average (88.8%)
- Born elsewhere in EU/UK
- 3.1% 0.7% below the Spanish average (3.8%)
- U.S.-born residents
- 4.18 per 1,000
How easy is it to get around Madrid?
Madrid is a reported 21 min drive from the nearest airport, with 99% fibre-to-home coverage.
Getting around
- Drive to nearest airport
- 21 min top 3% of 8,132 towns
- Fibre-to-home coverage
- 99% top 4% of 8,132 towns 21% above the Spanish average (79%)
- 100 Mbps+ coverage
- 100% top 1% of 8,132 towns 17% above the Spanish average (83%)
Numbers: Spainability town dataset, derived from INE, AEMET, Mitma and the Catastro. Registered long-let rent is SERPAVI declared-contract data; its p25–p75 values show the observed band. Registered-rent yield is gross, excludes costs and is never imputed. Percentile chips count only the municipalities that report the figure — the "of n" says how many. Region-ranked figures (PISA, surgical waits) compare Spain's 17 comunidades autónomas. A blank means no municipal-level figure is published — not a zero.
How does Madrid fit you?
These are the town's numbers. Whether it's your town depends on what you're optimising for — winter sun or mild summers, a city or a village, short medical waits, an easy flight home. The 3-minute quiz scores Madrid against every one of Spain's 8,132 municipalities on your priorities. It sits about 14 min from Alcobendas, if that's your anchor.
Take the quiz — rank Madrid for you →Questions to verify locally
- Ask whether current long-let rents match the registered-contract figure.
- Request recent comparable sales before relying on the appraisal figure.
- Test fibre speed at the exact address, not the town average.
- Visit local schools and confirm places for incoming families.
- Confirm health-centre registration and opening hours in person.
- Ask an insurer how the mapped flood or wildfire exposure affects cover.
Nearby towns
Other places we profile within easy reach.