Spain ranks second globally for expat experience, says HSBC poll

The latest Expat Explorer Survey by HSBC has ranked Spain second in terms of experience, with the country performing particularly well on matters of health, culture, quality of life and social life…

While Singapore took the top spot overall, Spain once again showed its worth as an expat location able to deliver on “things that matter”, taking top spot globally on health, and second spot on the categories ‘Quality of Life’ and ‘Social Life’.

Spain ranked 16^th place overall, out of 66 countries included in the survey, and was largely let down by its poor performance in the economics categories, particularly career progression, wage growth and job security, where it performed below average.

However, for many people considering moving to Spain, the country pretty much ticks every box imaginable for those that do not need to work. Hence, Spain is a perennially popular location with retirees and families looking for good quality healthcare, a good climate and the chance to lead an active and varied social life.

The HSBC survey ranks countries on three main categories: Economics, Experience, and Family, with a sub-section of categories under each. Spain was the second-highest ranked country under Experience (after New Zealand), performing strongly in every sub-category (which includes property, safety, integration, making friends and culture), while it was also in the top five for Family (topped by Sweden), offering high levels of tolerance, good childcare, affordable education and seamless integration.

Where purely money was concerned, Switzerland was the clear winner, with more than 30% of expats there earning more than $200,000 per year. The UK’s reputation as an expat destination is bang-average, coming in 20^th place and not really excelling or disappointing in any metric, although in the city specific survey London performed well in terms of job prospects.

The data shows that there are three types of expats: those who move for their career, those who move for their family, and those who simply want to improve their quality of life. If you fall into either of the two latter camps, then Spain has proven time and again to be the location for you.