Moving to Croatia from Spain
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Spain to Croatia — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Spain to Croatia, you would find that Croatia is 10.8% cheaper than Spain overall. A €67,000 salary in Spain would need to be roughly HRK450,000 in Croatia to maintain the same lifestyle, and you’d need to navigate life in Croatian.
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How your spending power changes when you relocate from Spain to Croatia.
What does your salary buy?
€67,000 → HRK450,000
To maintain the same standard of living in Croatia
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 12.0% less
Groceries
pay 14.2% less
Transportation
pay 0.3% less
Housing
pay 17.5% less
Childcare
pay 17.4% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 5.4% 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 Croatia cost about 14% less than cities in Spain.
Compare cities head-to-head
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Who Else Is Making This Move?
Real numbers on people moving from Spain to Croatia, and how the trend has changed.
Who's moving to Croatia?
Top countries of origin for Croatia's foreign-born residents.
- 381,100
- 48,170
- 31,783
- 18,432
- 9,462
- 5,815
- · · ·
-
31.175
Spain
Key Indicator Comparison
How Spain and Croatia stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
per 100,000 people per year
per 100,000 people per year
Spain generally does better on safety, though Croatia leads in homicide rate.
How's the healthcare?
annual government + private spending per person
affects wait times and access to care
WHO index from 0–100 measuring essential service access
share of adults with obesity
per 100,000 people — a proxy for mental health support
Spain generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Croatia leads in healthcare spending per person.
What about the environment?
deaths attributable to air pollution per 100k people
tonnes of CO₂ emitted per person per year
Spain performs better than Croatia across all environment metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
fixed broadband subscriptions — key for remote work
higher means greater strain on freshwater supply
annual consumption — reflects grid capacity
share of households with internet
Spain generally does better on infrastructure, though Croatia leads in water stress level.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
the highest marginal rate on personal income
share of people below the poverty line
Spain generally does better on employment & economy, though Croatia leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
deaths per 1,000 live births — lower is better
government spending on education as % of GDP
percentage of adults who can read and write
Spain performs better than Croatia across all family life metrics.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), Agencia Tributaria, Spain (2016), Croatia Tax Administration (2016), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Madrid | Zagreb |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 55°/40°F (13°/4°C) | 44°/29°F (7°/-2°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 73°/53°F (23°/12°C) | 69°/48°F (21°/9°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/64°F (30°/18°C) | 77°/55°F (25°/13°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 58°/44°F (14°/7°C) | 50°/35°F (10°/2°C) |
View all months
| Month | Madrid | Zagreb |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50°/37°F (9.8°/2.7°C) | 38°/25°F (3.1°/-4.0°C) |
| Feb | 54°/39°F (12.0°/3.7°C) | 43°/28°F (6.1°/-2.5°C) |
| Mar | 61°/43°F (16.3°/6.2°C) | 52°/34°F (11.3°/0.9°C) |
| Apr | 65°/46°F (18.2°/7.7°C) | 62°/41°F (16.4°/4.9°C) |
| May | 72°/52°F (22.2°/11.3°C) | 70°/49°F (21.3°/9.2°C) |
| Jun | 83°/61°F (28.2°/16.1°C) | 76°/55°F (24.6°/12.7°C) |
| Jul | 90°/66°F (32.1°/19.0°C) | 80°/58°F (26.7°/14.2°C) |
| Aug | 88°/66°F (31.3°/18.8°C) | 79°/57°F (26.2°/13.7°C) |
| Sep | 80°/60°F (26.4°/15.4°C) | 72°/51°F (22.3°/10.4°C) |
| Oct | 67°/51°F (19.4°/10.7°C) | 61°/42°F (16.2°/5.8°C) |
| Nov | 56°/43°F (13.5°/6.2°C) | 49°/35°F (9.3°/1.8°C) |
| Dec | 50°/38°F (10.0°/3.6°C) | 40°/29°F (4.4°/-1.9°C) |
Data:
Agencia Estatal de Meteorología,
Croatian Meteorological and Hydrological Service
Visitor Visa Requirements
Short-stay tourist visa rules between Spain and Croatia. To live, work, or study long-term in Croatia, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check Croatia's immigration authority.
Spain passport holder visiting Croatia
Visa Free
Croatia 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 Croatia than Spain?
Generally yes: Croatia runs about 11% cheaper than Spain on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Croatia?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a €67,000 comparable salary, that's around HRK112,500 in Croatia for everyday spending, before flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees.
Can I work remotely from Croatia?
With 29.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Croatia can support video calls in major cities. The hard part is paperwork — visa category, employer policy on overseas staff, and tax residency in Spain and Croatia.
Is Croatia safe for expats?
Spain generally does better on safety, though Croatia leads in homicide rate. The homicide rate in Croatia is 0.7 per 100,000 people, compared to 0.7 in Spain.
How is healthcare in Croatia compared to Spain?
Spain generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Croatia leads in healthcare spending per person. There are 39.1 doctors per 10,000 people in Croatia, compared to 42.9 in Spain. Croatia scores 80 on the WHO universal health coverage index (Spain: 85).
What's the weather like in Croatia compared to Spain?
The average high temperature in Zagreb is 60°F, compared to 68°F in Madrid. Zagreb receives around 33.7 in of rainfall per year, while Madrid gets 16.6 in.
What language do they speak in Croatia?
The official language in Croatia is Croatian. In Spain, the official languages are Basque, Catalan, Galician and Spanish.
