Moving to California from Spain
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from Spain to California — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from Spain to California, you would find that California is 82.9% more expensive than Spain overall. A €65,374 salary in Spain would need to be roughly $100,838 in California to maintain the same lifestyle, and you’d need to navigate life in English.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
What to expect for your wallet after moving from Spain to California.
What does your salary buy?
€65,374 → $100,838
To maintain the same standard of living in California
Calculate with your salary →Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 24.1% more
Groceries
pay 69.7% more
Transportation
pay 15.0% more
Housing
pay 2.3 times more
Childcare
pay 3.6 times more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 87.2% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in California cost about 61% more than cities in Spain.
Compare cities head-to-head
Get free moving quotes to California
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Who Else Is Making This Move?
How many people actually move from Spain to California, based on official data.
people moved from Spain to United States · OECD (latest data available)
Who's moving to United States?
Top countries of origin for United States's foreign-born residents.
- 10,853,105
- 2,723,764
- 2,184,110
- 2,061,178
- 1,829,251
- 1,410,659
- · · ·
-
64.102,633
Spain
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from Spain to California.
How's the healthcare?
share of adults with obesity
Spain performs better than California across all health & wellbeing metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
Spain performs better than California across all infrastructure metrics.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
share of people below the poverty line
California performs significantly better than Spain across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
Spain performs better than California across all family life metrics.
Data: The World Factbook
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Madrid | Sacramento |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 55°/40°F (13°/4°C) | 60°/41°F (15°/5°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 73°/53°F (23°/12°C) | 79°/51°F (26°/11°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/64°F (30°/18°C) | 90°/57°F (32°/14°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 58°/44°F (14°/7°C) | 65°/44°F (18°/7°C) |
View all months
| Month | Madrid | Sacramento |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50°/37°F (9.8°/2.7°C) | 54°/39°F (12.1°/3.8°C) |
| Feb | 54°/39°F (12.0°/3.7°C) | 60°/41°F (15.7°/5.2°C) |
| Mar | 61°/43°F (16.3°/6.2°C) | 65°/44°F (18.4°/6.7°C) |
| Apr | 65°/46°F (18.2°/7.7°C) | 71°/46°F (21.7°/7.9°C) |
| May | 72°/52°F (22.2°/11.3°C) | 80°/51°F (26.6°/10.6°C) |
| Jun | 83°/61°F (28.2°/16.1°C) | 87°/56°F (30.6°/13.2°C) |
| Jul | 90°/66°F (32.1°/19.0°C) | 92°/58°F (33.4°/14.7°C) |
| Aug | 88°/66°F (31.3°/18.8°C) | 91°/58°F (32.9°/14.4°C) |
| Sep | 80°/60°F (26.4°/15.4°C) | 87°/56°F (30.7°/13.2°C) |
| Oct | 67°/51°F (19.4°/10.7°C) | 78°/50°F (25.3°/10.1°C) |
| Nov | 56°/43°F (13.5°/6.2°C) | 64°/43°F (17.7°/6.0°C) |
| Dec | 50°/38°F (10.0°/3.6°C) | 54°/38°F (12.2°/3.6°C) |
Data:
Agencia Estatal de Meteorología,
National Weather Service
Visitor Visa Requirements
Short-stay tourist visa rules between Spain and United States. To live, work, or study long-term in United States, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check United States's immigration authority.
Spain passport holder visiting United States
Electronic Travel Authorisation
United States passport holder visiting Spain
Visa FreeData: Henley Passport Index. Check with the destination country's embassy for the most current requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in California than Spain?
No — California is on average about 34% more expensive than Spain. City-level variation matters.
How much money do I need to move to California?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $25,210 in California on a €65,374 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees).
Can I work remotely from California?
Usually fine from major cities in California. The harder questions are legal — digital nomad visa eligibility, your employer's overseas-work policy, and tax residency in both countries.
How is healthcare in California compared to Spain?
Spain performs better than California across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in California compared to Spain?
The average high temperature in Sacramento is 74°F, compared to 68°F in Madrid. Sacramento receives around 18.5 in of rainfall per year, while Madrid gets 16.6 in.
What language do they speak in California?
The official language in California is English. In Spain, the official languages are Basque, Catalan, Galician and Spanish.
