{"id":598495,"date":"2025-11-28T04:13:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-28T04:13:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/598495\/"},"modified":"2025-11-28T04:13:13","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T04:13:13","slug":"expats-ditch-spain-for-country-with-lower-cost-of-living-and-great-healthcare-europe-travel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/598495\/","title":{"rendered":"Expats ditch Spain for country with lower cost of living and great healthcare | Europe | Travel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Countless Britons fantasise about relocating to Spain<\/a>, drawn by its sunny weather, delicious cuisine and lively culture – seemingly the perfect destination for expats. However, whilst expat<\/a> populations in Spain have remained steady, its neighbouring country is experiencing a remarkable surge in arrivals, particularly amongst remote workers and pensioners.<\/p>\n

Portugal’s<\/a> expat community has grown by 150% since 2018, but what makes this nation so appealing? A key factor driving Britons towards Portugal rather than Spain is the lower cost of living<\/a>. In a recent TikTok<\/a> post, one woman exposed the harsh realities of Spanish life, stating: “Basically, you’re working to survive”, with rental prices averaging 972 euros monthly for a one-bedroom flat.<\/p>\n

Rising inflation has also impacted Spanish grocery bills, while according to Housing Anywhere<\/a>, Portugal is “one of the most budget-friendly countries in Western Europe”, stating that living costs for a single person were around 1,285 euros per month.<\/p>\n

Experts at Numbeo<\/a> suggest Portugal’s overall cost of living sits 37.9% below that of the UK, positioning it as an appealing destination for pensioners.<\/p>\n

Portugal typically boasts hot summers and mild winters, with the north being slightly cooler and experiencing more rainfall.<\/p>\n

Despite the many attractions of Spain for those who can afford it, Portugal is increasingly becoming a favoured choice for budget-conscious Brits, offering a lower cost of living yet still plenty of sunshine.<\/p>\n

Portugal also has a great healthcare system, with experts at\u00a0Wise<\/a> describing Portugal\u2019s medical services as “reliable and some of the best in Europe”.<\/p>\n

“Portugal offers both affordable public healthcare (SNS) and premium private options with faster service and English-speaking doctors.”<\/p>\n

To use the free healthcare system, British expats need to register with their local health centre, with their passport and proof of residency, and get a National Health Service or “utente” number.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Countless Britons fantasise about relocating to Spain, drawn by its sunny weather, delicious cuisine and lively culture –…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":598496,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5312],"tags":[188002,12966,188003,2000,299,20291,188001,3046,187999,188000,104],"class_list":{"0":"post-598495","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-spain","8":"tag-best-country-for-expats","9":"tag-british-expats","10":"tag-cheapest-country-expats","11":"tag-eu","12":"tag-europe","13":"tag-expats","14":"tag-life-in-portugal","15":"tag-portugal","16":"tag-portugal-expats","17":"tag-relocating-to-portugal","18":"tag-spain"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115625381286598065","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598495","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=598495"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598495\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/598496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=598495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=598495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=598495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}