Cost of living, family of 4

We spend €180 a month of food for the two of us, thats like €45 a week, €7 a day, and we eat very well on it.

If you never cook and live of convenience, processed food and restuarants, then yes, you can easy burn a lot more money

So what do your 3 meals a day consist of for the amount of money?

richardlionheart wrote:We spend €180 a month of food for the two of us, thats like €45 a week, €7 a day, and we eat very well on it.

If you never cook and live of convenience, processed food and restuarants, then yes, you can easy burn a lot more money

Bye and large Spain is no longer CHEAP, overall you will probably notice very little difference. Food is usually dearer, electricity the dearest in Europe, gas and water are metered so depends on use. Council tax etc much cheaper. Petrol etc rising daily. Cars furniture white goods far more expensive.medical care is first class better than the NHS. But we have the weather Which is why we love Spain. Please bear in mind my comments are relative to the exchange rates. Oh and do not forget the punative taxes and estate agent fees when buying and selling property

I give myself €50.00 a week for all are food and we eat really well I cook fresh everyday my biggest out lay is tea bags for hubby we have meat five times a week and fish for two and that includes shopping at chop shop I even have two or three euros left which I put in a jar so every 2/3mth it pays for things like laundry stuff extra treats for our dog

Yes we cook using mainly chicken, pork and fish - curries, chillies, spag bog. pasta with meat balls from lidl, we try and avoid red meat tho , apart from mince and meat balls cos im a bowel cance rsurvivor, red meat not good. We do baked potaoes with salad, and for snacks beans on toast, , and chips in an air fryer. We can also do various dishes based on noodles, thai, vienamese and chinese recipies. We can make pizza bases from scratch, and do various toppings. We also have a soup maker, and make soup with the odds and ends leftover.

I probably do overspend especially on nuts, I can easily spend 20 euros a week or more then I buy the dried Apricots and figs so probably around 30 euros most weeks.

Algorfawoman wrote:Bye and large Spain is no longer CHEAP, overall you will probably notice very little difference. Food is usually dearer, electricity the dearest in Europe, gas and water are metered so depends on use. Council tax etc much cheaper. Petrol etc rising daily. Cars furniture white goods far more expensive.medical care is first class better than the NHS. But we have the weather Which is why we love Spain. Please bear in mind my comments are relative to the exchange rates. Oh and do not forget the punative taxes and estate agent fees when buying and selling property

So true! .... O/P, I would assume the same spend that you have in the UK, this would reflect your current lifestyle. However, this would also allow for more socialising & more eating out than you probably enjoy in the UK.

More importantly though, how are you going to finance this move? Do you have independent means or are you taking a new job in Spain? Have you considered the cost of your children's education? I would strongly recommend you rent for a few months in various areas and retain your UK property until you're sure that you & your family are happy to settle in Spain.

Good luck, what ever you decide.

Your biggest outlay, at least initially, is likely to be for your children's education and private health care, until your business is established.

If your husband is planning to be "autonomo" (self-employed) that will entitle you to Spanish state healthcare, but the costs associated with that are expensive in themselves: following an initial discount during the start up phase, I think this rises to around Eu 250 per month. Income tax will be on top.

Until you've obtained Residencia and registered on your local Padron, you will not be able to send your children to State funded schools. Private schools are expensive.

As Paul58 has said, financing the move should be your highest priority: understanding what is involved and whether it is logistically (and financially) possible.

Just looking at the spreadsheet my wife runs for our annual budget, the total figure for 2019, for two adults and a dog, in a 3 bed/3 bath villa with private pool is Eu 19,500. But, you're right, there are many variables, so if you'd like to PM your email address to me, I can ask my wife to send an extract to you, giving the detailed breakdown.

Paulr, you don’t need residencia to send your children to a Spanish state school.

€60 a week that about what we spend on our dogs and cats they are very spoiled