- Lowest purchase tax: Basque Country 4% on homes, Madrid 6%, Canarias 6.5%, Andalucía 7%.
- Highest purchase tax: Balearics, 8% rising in bands to 13% above €2 million; Valencia 9%, and 11% on the part above €1 million.
- Most expensive per m² (Q2 2026, Registradores): Madrid region €4,477, Balearics €4,311, Málaga €3,347.
- Best-value sunny coast: Alicante province at €2,267/m², below the Spanish average of €2,487.
- Hardest for holiday lets: the Balearics (no new lets in flats), Madrid centre, Málaga city and Alicante city.
Source: Ministerio de Hacienda, Tributación autonómica 2026, and regional tax agencies (checked Sept 2026). Basque rate is for homes.
Show as table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Basque Country | 4% |
| Madrid | 6% |
| Canarias | 6.5% |
| Andalucía | 7% |
| Balearics | 8% |
| Galicia | 8% |
| Valencia | 9% |
| Cantabria | 9% |
How we compare the best places to buy property in Spain
Most "best places to buy property in Spain" lists are written by agents with homes to sell. This guide uses only five things you can check: the regional purchase tax, the holiday-let rules, the climate, the flights, and the official price level. Prices come from the Colegio de Registradores (registered sales, Q2 2026) and the INE housing price index (year to Q2 2026). Neither is an asking price.
The seven regions side by side
| Region | Resale tax (ITP) | Price per m², Q2 2026 | INE change, year to Q2 2026 | Main airport, 2025 passengers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Costa del Sol | 7% | €3,347 (Málaga prov.) | +11.9% (Andalucía) | Málaga, 26.8m |
| Costa Blanca | 9% (11% above €1m) | €2,267 (Alicante prov.) | +13.0% (Valencian C.) | Alicante-Elche, 20.0m |
| Mallorca | 8–13% banded | €4,311 (Balearics) | +13.7% (Balearics) | Palma, 33.8m |
| Ibiza | 8–13% banded | €4,311 (Balearics) | +13.7% (Balearics) | Ibiza |
| Tenerife | 6.5% | €3,045 (S.C. de Tenerife prov.) | +11.0% (Canarias) | Tenerife Sur, 14.0m |
| Madrid | 6% | €4,477 (Madrid region) | +12.9% | Madrid-Barajas, 68.2m |
| Northern Spain | 4% (Basque homes) to 9% (Cantabria) | Varies by province | +10.0% (Basque C.) to +15.0% (Asturias) | Bilbao and smaller airports |
Balearic, Valencian and Asturian rates rise with the price, so check the band that applies to your budget. New builds pay 10% IVA plus stamp duty (AJD) instead, except in the Canarias, where IGIC replaces IVA. Our property taxes guide explains how the two taxes work.
Best place to buy a property in Spain for sun and flights
The Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca are the mainland's warmest, driest coasts. Málaga and Alicante-Elche both set passenger records in 2025, so there are year-round flights from UK and Irish airports. The Costa Blanca is cheaper per m² and has the highest share of foreign buyers of any Spanish province. The Costa del Sol has the lower purchase tax (7% against 9%).
Tenerife has the mildest winter of the seven. It also has the Canarias' lower taxes: 6.5% ITP and IGIC instead of IVA on new builds. The trade-offs are longer flights and a regional holiday-let law that restricts new lets.
Best place to buy a villa in Spain
For a detached villa the question is often the land, not the house. On Mallorca and Ibiza, building on rustic land needs a very large plot. A time-limited legalisation scheme is open for unlicensed buildings, and the top ITP bands (12% to €2 million, 13% above) apply to most villas. In Andalucía, a villa on rural land may be an AFO: a building put up without a licence that can no longer be demolished but has limited rights. The Valencian coast adds the coastal law's easement zones. Whatever you choose, check the plot before you commit.
Where to buy property in Spain to let out
If rental income matters, holiday-let rules should come before views. Since April 2025, a new tourist let in a Spanish apartment building needs approval from three-fifths of the owners, and since July 2025 every short-term let also needs a national registration number. Regional and city rules go further:
- Balearics: no new holiday-let registrations in flats since April 2025 (Decreto-ley 4/2025); Ibiza already banned them in flats.
- Madrid city: the Plan Reside keeps new tourist flats out of residential buildings in the historic centre.
- Málaga city: new tourist homes suspended citywide since August 2025, for up to three years.
- Alicante city: new licences in residential buildings frozen since December 2024.
- Basque Country: new tourist lets suspended in areas with a stressed housing market, including Bilbao and San Sebastián.
Rental income is also taxed in Spain, whether or not you live there.
Best value and lowest tax: Madrid and the north
Madrid has the highest prices per m² but a 6% ITP and low stamp duty on new builds. In Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria, prices are rising at least as fast as on the coasts: Asturias recorded the biggest rise of any region in this guide (+15.0% in the year to Q2 2026). The Basque Country and Navarre run their own foral tax systems and cadastres, which changes both the tax you pay and where you look up the property.
Worked example: purchase tax on a €400,000 resale
The same €400,000 resale home costs very different amounts in tax depending on where it is. These figures use the general 2026 rates, before any reduced rate for residents, young buyers or large families. Non-resident second-home buyers rarely qualify for those reductions.
| Region | ITP rate | Tax on €400,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Basque Country (homes) | 4% | €16,000 |
| Madrid | 6% | €24,000 |
| Canarias | 6.5% | €26,000 |
| Andalucía | 7% | €28,000 |
| Balearics | 8% (first band, to €400,000) | €32,000 |
| Galicia | 8% | €32,000 |
| Valencian Community | 9% | €36,000 |
| Cantabria | 9% | €36,000 |
| Asturias | 9% (€300,000–€500,000) | €36,000 |
Notary, Land Registry, lawyer and bank costs come on top everywhere. Our cost of buying guide adds them up.
Checks that matter in every region
Whichever region you choose, the legal checks are the same, and so are the mistakes. Before you pay a deposit, make sure your lawyer confirms:
- the Land Registry entry (nota simple) matches the seller, the plot and the house you are viewing;
- the Catastro description matches the Registry, and extensions, pools and conversions have a licence;
- for a holiday let, the property can legally be registered in that building and town, not just that the seller let it before;
- there are no community, IBI or utility debts.
- Ministerio de Hacienda: Tributación autonómica 2026 (ITP/AJD by region)
- INE: Índice de Precios de Vivienda, Q2 2026
- Colegio de Registradores: Estadística Registral Inmobiliaria, Q2 2026
- Aena: 2025 passenger traffic
- BOE: Balearic Decreto-ley 4/2025 (tourist lets)
- BOE: Decreto Legislativo 1/2014 Illes Balears, tributos cedidos (art. 10, DA 5ª)
- BOE: Asturias DL 2/2014, tributos cedidos (art. 26)