Spain's coasts from a property-buying perspective

Costa Brava is one of those places where property gets bought very often not because a spreadsheet shows the highest yield, but because you simply can't create a second Cadaqués or Begur.

That limited supply is precisely its greatest strength.

Cadaqués

Cadaqués is a premium market. In July 2026 the average asking price was around 6 720 €/m² — a higher level than Marbella and approaching Spain's most expensive cities. This isn't a place for people looking for high yields from classic rental.

Here you're buying, rather:

• an exceptional location
• limited property availability
• a second home
• a premium asset
• the potential resilience of the best properties to downturns

A house with a terrace and sea view can be a completely different kind of asset than an average flat 500 metres from the beach.

Begur

Begur is a little more accessible, but still edges into premium territory: around 3 929 €/m² in July 2026.

Here, villas and flats around Sa Tuna, Sa Riera and Aiguablava are particularly attractive. The investment problem is seasonality — demand can be enormous in summer and quite different in winter.

That's why Costa Brava suits a personal-purchase strategy best, with letting as an option depending on circumstances.

Barcelona is a completely different product. In July 2026 the average asking price was around 5 449 €/m², and already around 6 630 €/m² in Eixample.

The average asking price for long-term rental was around 20,1 €/m² a month. If we very roughly divide the annual asking rent by the purchase price:

20,1 × 12 / 5 449 ≈ 4,4% gross per year.

That's still before taxes, community fees, renovations, vacancies, management and financing costs — so it's not the case that Barcelona delivers a phenomenal cash flow.

Its strength is a huge market, an international brand, a local population, students, company employees, foreign specialists and very high liquidity in the best locations. Buying a good flat in Eixample or Gràcia is more a bet on the long-term value of property in a world city than an attempt to squeeze out 8–10% a year.

On top of that, the regulatory risk around tourist letting is exceptionally high here.

As a property play, Barcelona is great for personal use and long-term rental, weak for Airbnb. Value growth and capital protection, despite the pricey entry ticket, are a big plus for Barcelona.

Costa Dorada already counts among Spain's more budget-friendly regions — suited to people who don't want to spend 500–700 thousand euros on an ordinary flat.

Tarragona

As a property market it's more interesting than its popularity among foreign investors would suggest. It's a normal city with year-round residents:

• year-round residents
• universities
• industry
• services
• tourism
• a beach

It's not dependent on the holiday season. At around 2 thousand €/m² you can still find large flats for budgets that would only buy a small studio on Costa del Sol.

Salou

Salou is the opposite — very strong for tourism, but far more seasonal. If someone buys a flat there, the location relative to the beach can matter enormously: a flat 150 metres from the promenade and one 1,5 km inland may formally both be "Salou", but as investments they're two different products.

Cambrils

Cambrils is a slightly calmer, higher-quality version of Salou. A good spot for someone who wants a property that's both for personal use and for occasional letting.

For anyone looking for a single city that combines:

• the sea
• a big city
• year-round life
• tourism
• foreign residents
• an airport
• long-term rental
• a more reasonable price level than Barcelona

Valencia would rank very high. That said, this is no secret discovery — the market noticed long ago. In July 2026 the asking price for flats in the city was around 3 485 €/m², about 8% more than a year earlier.

Rent was around 16,3 €/m² a month, which gives around 5,6% gross per year on a simple comparison of asking rent to purchase price — quite decent for a large coastal city.

What's interesting about Valencia?

You don't have to buy right on Malvarrosa. In fact a property in a normal neighbourhood with good transport links often looks better as an investment than an expensive "holiday" flat by the beach.

Valencia has demand from Spaniards, students, workers, expats and tourists. That makes the investment more resilient to any one type of client.

The main risk: prices have gone up very sharply. This is no longer the "cheap alternative to Barcelona" it could be described as a few years ago.

Costa Blanca has one huge advantage — you can pursue practically any property strategy here. From a flat for around 150–200 thousand euros in Torrevieja, through a normal city flat in Alicante, to villas in Altea Hills for millions.

Alicante

In July 2026 the average price in the city was around 2 705 €/m², with an average asking rent of around 13,8 €/m² — giving around 6,1% gross, one of the more interesting results among large coastal cities.

Alicante also has an airport, a port, a university, a city centre, beaches, tourists and year-round residents. You can look at it as a normal residential investment in a city that also happens to be a resort.

Benidorm

Benidorm looks controversial, but as a property market it can't be ignored. In July 2026 the average price was around 3 788 €/m², as much as 13,4% more than a year earlier. The spread, however, is enormous: the centre around 2 850 €/m², Playa Levante around 4 421 €/m², Playa Poniente around 4 933 €/m² (rent there around 20,9 €/m²).

Why is Benidorm interesting?

Because it functions a bit like a tourism factory — the sheer number of tourists, hotels, restaurants and foreign residents means it isn't a small resort that dies off after August. The building itself is key, though. An old apartment block can carry:

• high comunidad fees
• technical problems
• a costly façade renovation
• old lifts
• no parking
• difficulties with a tourist licence

A modern flat near Poniente will be a completely different kind of asset.

Torrevieja

Torrevieja remains one of the most affordable large coastal locations on Costa Blanca. In the popular La Mata area prices reached around 2 936 €/m².

It's not Spain's prettiest city, but from a property standpoint it has:

• a huge number of foreign residents
• a relatively low entry threshold
• a wide range of flats on offer
• year-round demand
• a climate that attracts northern Europe

Altea

Altea is a completely different product — an average of around 3 518 €/m², and around 3 886 €/m² in Altea Hills. This is where villas, sea views, gated developments and clients with bigger budgets start.

If someone is buying a house for 800 thousand–2 million euros, rental yield very often stops being the only criterion — what matters is the view, the plot, sun exposure, security, privacy, the standard of the development, and how easily it can later be sold to a wealthy foreign buyer.

Murcia is far less fashionable internationally than Málaga or Alicante — and that's precisely why you can still find completely different price levels here.

Cartagena

In July 2026 the average price was only around 1 569 €/m² (even the old town centre — around 2 191 €/m²). That's an enormous difference compared with Marbella: for the price of around 50 m² of an average Marbella flat you could theoretically buy almost 190 m² at Cartagena's average rates, though of course the location and the product are completely different.

Cartagena is ideal for someone looking for:

• a lower entry threshold
• a local market
• potential growth
• a large flat for reasonable money

Less so for someone expecting clients from across Europe paying a premium for a sea view.

Almería and its surroundings have potential mainly because they stayed outside the top league of international investors for a long time. Mojácar is a good example.

In July 2026 the average price was around 2 620 €/m², but the year-on-year increase reached as much as 17,2%. In Mojácar's coastal areas prices exceeded around 2 800 €/m².

That shows both the potential and the danger — if a market grows 15–20% a year, you can't automatically assume it will keep doing so. Mojácar is also far more dependent on tourism than Málaga or Alicante.

That's why, when buying, you need to pay particular attention to the quality of the location and the possibility of a later resale, rather than only to the fact that it's cheaper than Marbella.

Almuñécar and its surroundings are something of a hidden market. They don't have Marbella's brand, but they do have:

• a very good climate
• mountains
• the sea
• proximity to Granada
• relatively limited land available for development

For someone buying a second home this can make a lot of sense, but for a purely financial investor the drawback is lower market liquidity. Marbella has a huge international ecosystem of agents and buyers, while in the smaller Almuñécar the pool of potential clients is far narrower.

Looking at foreign capital, Costa del Sol is probably the largest slice of Spain's mainland coast. Three completely different markets need to be separated: Málaga, Marbella and Estepona.

Málaga

Málaga reached around 3 937 €/m² in July 2026 — a historic high. That's less than Alicante, but Málaga has a huge qualitative advantage: it's a genuine large city. Tenants don't have to be tourists — they can be students, employees, foreign specialists, city residents.

If someone wants to buy on the Costa del Sol above all as a classic investment, Málaga looks structurally safer than a random holiday flat somewhere between Marbella and Estepona.

Marbella

Marbella reached around 5 950 €/m² in July 2026 — its historic high. Rent was around 23,9 €/m², and around 27,6 €/m² in the Nagüeles–Golden Mile area. A simple long-term rental yield therefore comes out at around 4,8% gross — paradoxically less than Alicante or Torrevieja, because Marbella isn't primarily a high-yield market.

This is a market of capital protection, price growth, lifestyle and wealthy foreign buyers. The best properties can be very expensive, but the end client also commands a great deal of capital.

In Marbella the city-wide average isn't a precise indicator, because the difference a few kilometres make is enormous. Each of these is a different product:

• a flat in San Pedro
• a villa in Nueva Andalucía
• a flat near Puerto Banús
• Golden Mile
• Sierra Blanca
• Elviria

In premium property, the micro-location can matter more than the floor area itself — 90 m² on the Golden Mile can be a far more valuable asset than 160 m² a dozen or so minutes' drive inland.

Estepona

Estepona used to be presented as a cheaper alternative to Marbella, but that label is becoming less and less accurate. In July 2026 the average reached around 4 902 €/m², as much as 17% more than a year earlier.

Investors are paying an ever-larger premium for new-build developments, the town's modernisation, the beach, proximity to Marbella and the growth of the luxury segment.

Caution is warranted here — a 17% rise in a year sounds great if you're already an owner, but if you're only now buying, it also means you're entering after a very sharp price move.

Cádiz

Cádiz has very little land and a very particular peninsula geography — so the best waterfront locations are naturally limited. Around Playa Victoria, for example, prices reached around 4 272 €/m².

Tarifa

Tarifa is even more interesting — the average reached as much as 4 411 €/m² in July 2026, more than Málaga. There are several reasons: Tarifa is small, very popular, has limited supply and a distinctive brand in the world of watersports. A well-located property can make a great holiday home.

In July 2026 San Sebastián was Spain's most expensive provincial capital according to Idealista — an average of around 6 590 €/m², and around 7 516 €/m² in Antiguo.

Rent averaged 18,6 €/m² a month, which means only around 3,4% gross. From a current-income point of view that's weak — but so it is in the most prestigious parts of Paris or London. This isn't about yield.

San Sebastián has:

• low supply
• a wealthy local market
• a very high quality of life
• premium tourism
• excellent gastronomy
• limited space

It's more a place to park capital than to aggressively generate rent.

Northern Spain is interesting precisely because prices are much lower than in the trendiest south.

Gijón

Interestingly, Gijón still remained around 10% below its 2008 peak prices, despite strong recent gains — a very different situation from Marbella, where the market is already at record highs.

The biggest downside is the weather. A foreign client interested in a house under palm trees will sooner head to Alicante, so international demand is smaller — but prices are far more rational.

Vigo

On paper it's actually about the same as Benidorm, except the client and the market are completely different — Benidorm relies heavily on tourism and foreign residents, while Vigo has a port, industry, residents and a more classic housing market.

A Coruña

The average is around 3 260 €/m², with the historic centre exceeding 4 300 €/m². The north can be interesting for someone who, instead of speculating on yet another holiday flat, wants a normal property in a normal coastal city.

It's worth remembering that the listing price isn't the full cost of the transaction.

For a new property bought from a developer, the standard VAT on a flat is currently 10%. On top of that comes the regional AJD stamp duty.

On the resale market, instead of VAT you pay the regional ITP transfer tax, whose rates vary between the autonomous communities.

Then there are also, among others, the notary, the land registry and the lawyer — the property needs to cost less so there's room left for taxes and the whole transaction.

You should be most wary of average holiday flats in an average location. For example:

• a building from 1985
• 900 metres from the sea
• no parking
• an average view
• a pool generating high community fees
• the assumption that it'll somehow get rented out to tourists

A product like that can work in a bull market, but the problem appears when you want to sell it — because a new development springs up next door with:

• a garage
• a large terrace
• an infinity pool
• a gym
• energy efficiency

And suddenly the old flat has to compete on price.

Being right on the beach, a great city centre, a unique view, a penthouse, a plot in a good neighbourhood, or a high-quality new development — these have qualities that can't easily be replicated.