Cádiz · Andalucía

Puerto de Santa María, El

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz.

90,242 residents~24 min to Cádiz
Puerto de Santa María, El, Cádiz
Photo: Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0

Living in Puerto de Santa María, El

El Puerto de Santa María is a traditional family beach town of 90,000 across the bay from Cádiz, popular with day-tripping gaditanos and sevillanos for its friendly beach bars, cheap seafood and sangría. It's overwhelmingly Spanish, though with a notable American-born community. The Atlantic climate is easy: warm summers around 31°C, mild winters near 13°C and lots of sun. It has its own hospital, beaches on the doorstep, and Cádiz and Jerez's airport both within about half an hour — a well-connected, unpretentious bay town.

Puerto de Santa María, El'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 Puerto de Santa María, El's percentile for that group — 87 means it beats 87% of the towns we could score. How scoring works.

American-retiree Spainability Score 93

Higher than 93% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for American retirees.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick for American retirees — a hospital in town and a health centre close by.

  • Winter average temp 12.9°C
  • Drive to a hospital 0 min
  • U.S.-born residents 6.41 per 1,000
  • Registered long-let rent €7.53/m²·mo
Heat-averse Spainability Score 89

Higher than 89% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for heat-averse settlers.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick if you can't stand hot summers — 7 km from the sea and a settled international community.

  • Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C
  • Rainy days a year 51 days
  • Summer water stress (WEI+) 9
  • Winter average temp 12.9°C
Retiree Spainability Score 89

Higher than 89% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for retiring couples.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick for a retiring couple — a hospital in town and a health centre close by.

  • Winter average temp 12.9°C
  • Drive to a hospital 0 min
  • Surgical wait (region) 173 days
  • Registered long-let rent €7.53/m²·mo
Remote-work Spainability Score 84

Higher than 84% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for remote workers.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick for a remote-working couple — a settled international community and 7 km from the sea.

  • 100 Mbps+ coverage 99%
  • Drive to nearest airport 24 min
  • Registered long-let rent €7.53/m²·mo
  • Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C
Family Spainability Score 82

Higher than 82% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for families.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick for a family with school-age kids — 7 km from the sea and a settled international community.

  • Schools in town 61
  • PISA maths (region) 457
  • Registered long-let rent €7.53/m²·mo
  • Drive to a hospital 0 min
Budget-coastal Spainability Score 79

Higher than 79% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for budget-first coastal settlers.

A traditional family beach resort for both gaditanos and sevillanos, an easy day-trip across the bay from Cádiz. A strong pick for coastal living on a budget — a settled international community and 7 km from the sea.

  • Registered long-let rent €7.53/m²·mo
  • Net income per person €13,277
  • Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C

What is the climate like in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El's reported winter average is 12.9°C, while July–August highs reach 30.6°C.

Climate

Winter average temp
12.9°C top 5% of 8,131 towns 5.1°C above the Spanish average (7.8°C)
Summer high (Jul–Aug)
30.6°C bottom 49% of 8,131 towns 0.4°C above the Spanish average (30.2°C)
Rainy days a year
51 days top 19% of 8,088 towns 26% less than the Spanish average (69 days)
Sunshine
8.5 h/day top 1% of 3,829 towns 18% more than the Spanish average (7.2 h/day)
Summer water stress (WEI+) regional estimate
9 top 12% of 8,033 towns 47 below 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)
0.02 ha/km² top 40% of 8,132 towns 2.29 ha/km² below the Spanish average (2.31 ha/km²)
Forest fires (2010–23)
2 bottom 42% of 8,132 towns 4 below the Spanish average (6)
High fire-weather days (province) regional estimate
19.2% top 5% of 8,130 towns 3.7% 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.

vs London: ~4°C milder winters+2h December daylight~7°C hotter summers
10° 20° 30° 100 0 mm 16° 17° 20° 10° 22° 12° 25° 14° 28° 18° 30° 19° 31° 20° 28° 18° 25° 15° 20° 10° 17° day high night low JFMAMJJASOND
day high → night low (°C) rain (mm/month, right axis) Measured at the ROTA, BASE NAVAL station.

How good is healthcare in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El's nearest health centre is 2.8 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
2.8 km top 14% of 8,132 towns
Surgical wait (region) regional estimate
173 days #17 of 17 regions, +70 days vs national 60% more than the Spanish average (108 days)

What are schools like in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El has 61 schools in town; the nearest international school is 5 km away.

Schools

Schools in town
61 top 1% of 7,042 towns
Nearest international school
5 km top 4% of 8,132 towns
PISA maths (region) regional estimate
457 #16 of 17 regions, −22 vs national 24 below the Spanish average (481)

How much does it cost to live in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El's reported home price is €2,496/m², while registered long-let rent is €7.53/m²·mo.

Cost & economy

Home price
€2,496/m² appraisal (valor tasado) bottom 35% of 306 towns 13% more than the Spanish average (€2,208/m²)
Asking price
no local data
Registered long-let rent
€7.53/m²·mo
Registered rent p25
€5.87/m²·mo
Registered rent p75
€9.63/m²·mo
Registered-rent yield
3.62% bottom 22% of 306 towns
Net income per person
€13,277 bottom 34% of 8,059 towns 8% less than the Spanish average (€14,495)
Income growth ’18–’23
28.8% top 33% of 6,605 towns

Which languages are used in schools in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Spanish is the only region-wide official language in Andalusia, 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 Andalusia region guide for the wider regional context.

What is the community like in Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El's reported population is 90,242.

Who lives here

Population
90,242
Born in Spain
92.7% 3.9% above the Spanish average (88.8%)
Born elsewhere in EU/UK
1.7% 2.2% below the Spanish average (3.8%)
U.S.-born residents
6.41 per 1,000

How easy is it to get around Puerto de Santa María, El?

Puerto de Santa María, El is a reported 24 min drive from the nearest airport, with 95% fibre-to-home coverage.

Getting around

Drive to nearest airport
24 min top 4% of 8,132 towns
Fibre-to-home coverage
95% top 26% of 8,132 towns 16% above the Spanish average (79%)
100 Mbps+ coverage
99% top 18% of 8,132 towns 16% above the Spanish average (83%)
Nearest airport Jerez Airport (XRY) — 24 min drive · international: direct flights to 7 countries (incl. UK, Germany)

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 Puerto de Santa María, El 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 Puerto de Santa María, El against every one of Spain's 8,132 municipalities on your priorities. It sits about 24 min from Cádiz, if that's your anchor.

Take the quiz — rank Puerto de Santa María, El 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.

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