Zaragoza is currently #4 in the list of most populated cities in Spain, right behind Madrid, Barcelona, and Valenica. While I am striving to share accurate information for our family, your personal situation will vary based on your own family, priorities, and choices. We consider ourselves to “live a comfortable lifestyle”. We are voluntary migrantss to Spain, from Mexico. We are not voluntary migrants from the USA, as my husband cannot live there legally at this point.
My husband is the main income earner. He is Latino. He is now also Spanish, by residency and decent. Our greatest benefit in our lifestyle is that he can earn US dollars without being a US citizen or resident. This is an option available to anyone in the world, who has the correct skill set and opportunities to obtain them. We know that not everyone does. We have been blessed by opportunities through living in the USA for a period of time, that others have not had.
Now with all of the small print out of the way, I share with you our cost of living, as it pertains to Zaragoza, Spain.
November 2025
Mail Service in the United States. >20€
I use USA2ME, based in Texas and pay just under $20 a month for their service. I have used them since 2018, with no problems. I receive mail there, and can view it online. I can then choose to have it held, shipped to me, or trashed.
Public Transportation: 0-28€/month
Unlimited use on tram and regular city buses. These prices are for residents, with a padron, who go through the process to get “personalized” cards. Kids free (currently). Adults 28€.
Extracurriculars: 87-102€/term
Our kids take classes after school at a private sports center. They pay the member cost. Membership is not required to join groups. Frees are paid 2 times per year. Tennis: 102€. Swim 87€. Rock Climbing 102€.
Private Sports Center: 1200€/year
Approximately 1200€ per year for 2 adults and 2 kids.
Haircuts: 9-40€
All of the boys and men in our home go to the same barber down the street. Kids: 9-10€. Men’s 12€. Women’s: 40€
Car: Rental fees only
We do not own a car, so we have zero car cost. We do rent cars when needed and they cost somewhere around 150-200€, including the cost of gas, for 1-3 day rentals.
Cellphone and Internet: 47€/month
This bill includes two cellphones with unlimited data and calls and 13gb of roaming. The internet is 10gb. The bill is combined. 47€
Maintaining US numbers: 0€ monthly
For our US numbers, we utilize google voice, which has a $20 initial fee, with NO monthly fees. I do receive bank codes to this number. I ported it to GV after I left the USA, using a VPN, and *before* I canceled my monthly service in the United States.
Utilities: varies by use
Electricity: (November 2025) $156.53.
Gas: is included in our community fees. Some buildings have this feature, while some don’t. It obviously saves us a lot of money, since we do not pay for use, nor have a monthly fee for this of any type. Community fees are paid for by the owner.
Garbage & Water: 50.24€
Dental:
So far, consultations (check ups) at private clinics have had no cost. For kids 6-14 years old, Aragon has a “free” basic dental program if the child is in the public health system, which is utilized through private care or special public care locations.
Health Care:
Private: 2400€/yearly
Public: paid monthly through autonomo fees
We have public and private healthcare. Public is paid for monthly, along with social security payments, through the autonomo (self-employed) system of Spain. We use MAPFRE for private healthcare and pay 2400€ per year. For autonomos, the first year of fees (which includes access to public healthcare) is 88€ per month, but then increases to match your income level the following year.
Tutoring:
For now, we do not have any tutoring cost. Throughout the transition into Spanish schools, I have maintained all of the tutoring myself. I also cover all of the “keeping the english language” tasks as well.
Rental Cost:
For a 5 bedroom apartment, with 2 bathrooms, 180+m2, in the city center, we pay 1500€.
August 2026
It has been almost a year since I last shared our cost of living, and since it is the hottest month of the year, and the end of summer, I thought that would be a good contrast to the last update, which was in November of last year, and at the end of autumn, or fall, depending on where you are from.
Cost that remain as they were:
Mail Service in the United States. >20€
Private Sports Center: 1200€/year
Dental: Consults continue to be 0€ and we haven’t had any dental work done, so I don’t have those cost to share.
Public Transportation: 0-29.05€/month
The terms are still the same, but the cost increased slightly at the first of the year.
Haircuts: 9-40€
Car: Rental fees only
Maintaining US numbers: 0€ monthly
Utilities (gas only) still included in rent
Tutoring: no change, except that the school provided any tutoring needed as an after school class, at no fee. I did not have to carry that load alone for the 2025 school year.
Cost that have adjusted or are new:
Summer Camps:
Non-school summer camps (or colonias): ~ 120-180€ per week
*Tip: Early registration for summer camps begins in March and/or April. If you sign up at that time, you normally get a discount. If you are a member of a private sports club, you will get early access to registration, and a possible discount, depending on the camp.
Utilities:
Electricity: our last bill was 303.89€, which is more or less for the month of July. Our yearly average is 145€/month
Water/Garbage
Health Care:
Private: We now pay for this monthly, we are with the same provider (MAPFRE). 218€/month
Public: Included in the monthly autonomo fees, which are ~550€/month
A note on MAPFRE. We chose them because they were the most affordable out of the three quotes that we received when we moved to Mexico. At the time, the health insurance requirements for the NLV were apparently not the same as they are now. They are not a good fit for the visas, because (as of this post), they can not start a policy mid-year and have it last for a full calendar year from that starting date.
Disclosure: A representative from Sanitas contacted me for a partnership. He speaks perfect english. I asked him the many questions that I get about health insurance, like what is the coverage like in Zaragoza, can you run the insurance for a full year, regardless of start date, etc. Everything was very positive. If you are interested in using Sanitas, please use my link to contact James.
Cellphone and Internet: We added a line and our price went down. We also added their standard TV package. All other details remain the same. 34€/month.
Education:
Private, faith-based Spanish School: 170€ per month
+ fees for supplies and books at the beginning of the year, which for 1 kid this coming school year will be ~ 350€
Rental Cost:
After living in the same apartment for two years, we had a rental increase of about 3%, which puts us slightly above our starting rate, to 1537.50€.