Region · Spain
Living in Extremadura
Extremadura runs hot and dry: summer highs average 34°C over only about 62 rainy days a year, with plenty of sun. That suits sun-seekers, but summer water stress is worth watching (WEI+ 65 vs a national 56). On our six settler profiles, Extremadura is worth a look if you're investor (ranks #3 of 17 regions), and probably not the one if you're american retirees (#16 of 17).
Overview
On the wallet: homes run about €1,085/m² (46% below the national average (€2,024/m²)); median net income is about €11,293 per person (21% below the national average (€14,279)).
Public healthcare here means a mean surgical wait around 135 days (31% above the national average (103 days)), with 23.1% of the surgical list waiting over six months — a real, published number, not a brochure claim.
We publish 14 of Extremadura's 388 municipalities in depth so far — the ones with a full guide portrait to sit alongside the numbers, weighted toward the warm-summer south and interior. Every figure below is shown against the national reference, gaps included.
Who Extremadura is for — and who should look elsewhere
Not our opinion: we ran the same scoring engine behind the quiz for six settler profiles across all 8,132 municipalities, then took the median score of Extremadura's towns and ranked it among Spain's 17 comunidades. It answers "how does the typical town here score, versus the typical town elsewhere?"
Good to explore if you're
- investor #3 of 17 regions
- budget_inland #4 of 17 regions
Probably skip if you want
- American retirees #16 of 17 regions
- year_round_mild #16 of 17 regions
- Heat-averse settlers #15 of 17 regions
- couple_starting_family #15 of 17 regions
- Families with school-age kids #15 of 17 regions
- Budget-first coastal settlers #15 of 17 regions
- winter_sun #15 of 17 regions
- Retiring couples #14 of 17 regions
- Remote-working couples #14 of 17 regions
Ranked 1–17 by the median national percentile of the region's municipalities for each profile (higher median = better place to explore). Hover a town's own page for the town-level version.
The numbers for Extremadura
Region-level data, each figure against the national reference. Where a figure is a comunidad-autónoma reading rather than a town measurement, we say so under the card.
Climate
- Winter average
- 9.0°C #9 of 17 regions · +1.3°C vs national 1.3 °C above the national average (7.8°C)
- Summer high
- 34.0°C #17 of 17 regions · +3.8°C vs national 3.8 °C above the national average (30.2°C)
- Rainy days a year
- 62 days #9 of 17 regions · −6 days vs national 9% below the national average (69 days)
- Sunshine
- 8.2 h/day #3 of 17 regions · +0.9 h/day vs national 13% above the national average (7.2 h/day)
- Summer water stress (WEI+)
- 65 #11 of 16 regions · +9 vs national 9 points above the national average (56)
Aggregated from the region's municipalities (AEMET/derived); summer water stress is a river-basin (WEI+) reading.
Schools
- PISA maths
- 469 #12 of 17 regions · −10 vs national 10 points below the national average (479)
- PISA reading
- 468 #11 of 17 regions · −10 vs national 10 points below the national average (478)
- PISA science
- 479 #13 of 17 regions · −10 vs national 10 points below the national average (489)
PISA 2022, reported per comunidad autónoma (INEE). National reference = the mean across the 17 comunidades.
Healthcare
- Surgical wait
- 135 days #14 of 17 regions · +32 days vs national 31% above the national average (103 days)
- Waiting over 6 months
- 23.1% #14 of 17 regions · +6.5 pts vs national 6.5 pts above the national average (16.6%)
- Specialist consult wait
- 112 days #12 of 17 regions · +17 days vs national 18% above the national average (95 days)
Public waiting lists, SISLE-SNS Dic 2025 (2025-12-31), per comunidad autónoma.
Cost & economy
- Median net income / person
- €11,293 #16 of 17 regions · −€2,986 vs national 21% below the national average (€14,279)
- Median home price
- €1,085/m² #1 of 17 regions · −€940/m² vs national 46% below the national average (€2,024/m²)
Median across the region's municipalities (INE net income; Catastro-derived sale price).
Who lives here
- Born in Spain
- 95.4% 6.6 pts above the national average (88.8%)
- Born elsewhere in EU/UK
- 1.8% 2.1 pts below the national average (3.8%)
Share of residents by place of birth, averaged across the region's municipalities (INE).
Tax posture (2025)
- Wealth tax none
- Flat ≈100% bonificación — the only region keeping an unconditional 100%, so no annual wealth tax on the region's own scale.
- Inheritance & gifts none
- 100% bonificación for spouse/children (Grupo I & II) up to €500,000 (90% for €500k–600k) — effectively no inheritance tax for typical estates.
- Buying resale (ITP)
- General transfer tax around 8% — Progressive / banded historically (~8–11%); 8 used as typical general entry rate. Check current bands for high-value homes.
- Buying new-build
- IVA/IGIC around 10%; AJD around 1.5%.
- Annual property tax (IBI)
- Municipal rates typically 0.4–1.1% of cadastral value — set by each town, not the region.
Because Extremadura's 100% bonificación is unconditional (not a capture design), the state ITSGF (Grandes Fortunas) still bites DIRECTLY above ~€3M net worth. Source: primary source. General posture, not personal tax advice — thresholds, reduced rates and reliefs change and depend on your circumstances. ITP/AJD figures are regional general rates for budgeting, not a quote.
Best towns in Extremadura, by what you're after
The same engine as the quiz, run over Extremadura's towns and filtered to the ones we profile in depth. Top of each list, in the engine's order — not hand-picked.
Best towns in Extremadura for families
schools, coast and cost, scored for remote-working parents
- Llerena a hospital in town · low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.79/m²·mo)
- Zafra a hospital in town · 16,708 people
- Olivenza low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.61/m²·mo) · 11,775 people
- Jerez de los Caballeros low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.39/m²·mo) · 9,104 people
- Mérida a hospital in town · 60,319 people
Best towns in Extremadura for winter sun
ranked on winter warmth and sunshine
Best-value towns in Extremadura
cheap to buy in, but still a real town with services
- Llerena low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.79/m²·mo) · a hospital in town
- Olivenza low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.61/m²·mo) · 11,775 people
- Jerez de los Caballeros low cost of living (registered rent ~€3.39/m²·mo) · 9,104 people
- Zafra 16,708 people · a hospital in town
- Arroyo de la Luz low cost of living (registered rent ~€2.99/m²·mo) · 5,495 people
Town profiles in Extremadura
We profile 14 of Extremadura's 388 municipalities in depth — numbers plus an honest portrait. More as we cover them.
See how Extremadura's towns rank for you
These are Extremadura's regional numbers. Whether it fits you depends on your priorities — winter sun or mild summers, short medical waits, a city or a village, an easy flight home. The 3-minute quiz scores every one of Spain's 8,132 municipalities on what you care about — and we'll flag Extremadura as one to watch, so your results surface its best towns for you.
Take the quiz — rank Extremadura for you →