Cost of living in Valencia in 2026: A realistic monthly budget

A health insurance policy is a legal condition of the Non-Lucrative Visa: article 61.2 b of the immigration regulation (Royal Decree 1155/2024) requires applicants to hold health insurance. The regulation sets no price, so check the documents your consulate asks for before you buy a policy.

Digital Nomad Visa requirements are set separately, so check the criteria for your own visa before you sign. Premiums depend on your age, the insurer and the level of cover: ask for quotes rather than relying on an average.

Providers and what a compliant policy looks like are in our Spain health insurance guide.

Public schools charge no tuition for the compulsory years (basic education is free under the Education Law). Families pay for the canteen: the Generalitat's school-meal aid is up to €4.35 per day in infant, primary and secondary schools. As a rough scale, 20 school days at that rate is about €87, and what you actually pay depends on the school and on any aid you qualify for.

International schools are the big variable, and each one publishes its own scale. As one example, Caxton College in Puçol lists for 2026-27 monthly fees from €888 in primary to €998 in sixth form with the dining room included, a one-time €900 enrolment fee for new students and a €464 annual resources fee.

Compare more schools in our international schools guide, then run your own numbers with the school fees calculator.

Las Fallas are held in March: the official visitor guide gives 15 to 19 March for the main days, with the daily mascletà starting on 1 March. Short-term stays are in high demand in those weeks, so do not start your rental search or book a temporary stay at that time.

Arrive after the festival ends on 19 March, or aim for the autumn window, and compare prices before you commit. Our Fallas accommodation guide covers the March booking squeeze, and the Las Fallas overview explains the festival itself.

If you move to Spain for work and meet the conditions, the special regime in article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Law taxes the employment income you earn in Spain at 24 percent up to €600,000 and 47 percent above, instead of the progressive scale. It applies in the year you move and the five following tax years.

That can change your net cost of living, but eligibility is conditional: for example, you must not have been tax resident in Spain in the five previous years. Check whether you qualify in our Beckham Law guide.

Under article 36 of Spain's rental law (LAU), the legal deposit is one month's rent for a residential lease on your habitual home and two months for a lease for other uses, a category that includes many seasonal rentals. Deposit size does not depend on whether the flat is furnished. Additional guarantees can be agreed within the legal limits.

Since Ley 12/2023, property-management and contract-formalisation costs fall on the landlord, so if an agency tries to charge you a month's commission on a habitual residence, push back. See the full move-in maths in our renting in Valencia guide.

If you register as self-employed (autónomo) you owe a monthly social-security contribution to the Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social - separate from your income tax. New autónomos get a discounted rate for the first year (the tarifa plana), and after that the fee scales by declared net income under the current banded system. Budget for this from day one; freelance expats who forget it are the ones who end up short at the end of month two.