Country comparisons
Spain vs Italy
Both are warm EU countries with a recent nomad visa and the same 183-day tax line, so the real split is money: Spain asks a higher income bar (roughly 2,850 euros a month) but hands you the coast and easier settling, while Italy starts from a lower floor (around 2,065 euros) and a genuinely gentle flat tax for the self-employed. The catch is where you land, since Milan can cost as much as northern Europe while the south stays among the cheapest corners of the EU.
Side by side
| Spain | Italy | |
|---|---|---|
| Digital nomad visa | Digital Nomad Visa (Startups Law) | Digital Nomad / Remote Worker Visa |
| Income requirement | ~2,850 EUR/month (Digital Nomad Visa, 200% of SMI; ~34,200 EUR/yr) | ~EUR 24,789/yr minimum (Digital Nomad / Remote Worker Visa, 3x the healthcare-exemption threshold; some consulates apply ~EUR 28,000) |
| Tax residency | 183+ days = tax resident on worldwide income; Beckham regime can flat-tax Spanish income at 24%. | Resident if >183 days OR habitual home/centre of interests in Italy; forfettario (15%) or impatriati (~50% exemption) regimes |
| Cost of living | Moderate | Moderate |
| Currency | EUR | EUR |
| Healthcare | For visits there is no reciprocal public health agreement except for UK nationals using a GHIC or valid EHIC; residents access care via social security or private cover, which the Digital Nomad Visa requires. | Visitors carry travel insurance or a GHIC (EU reciprocity); nomad and long-stay applicants need private health cover of at least 30,000 EUR, and legal residents can enrol in the national health service (SSN). |
| Driving | An International Driving Permit is recommended alongside the home licence for short visits, and residents must obtain or exchange for a Spanish licence. | Visitors can drive on a foreign licence, with an International Driving Permit recommended for non-EU holders, but residents must convert to or obtain an Italian licence. |
The bottom line
For a salaried remote worker who wants sun, walkable cities and a lower bar to clear, Spain usually wins; its digital nomad visa is well trodden and Valencia, Seville or Granada keep a solo month near 1,500 to 2,500 euros. Italy pulls ahead if you are self-employed, because the regime forfettario can tax revenue under about 85,000 euros at a flat 15 percent (5 percent for the first five years), a break Spain's Beckham regime does not quite match. On lifestyle both deliver, but Italy swings harder by region, so a cheap month in the south and an expensive one in Milan are the same country. Healthcare is strong in both, and both will treat you as a tax resident past 183 days, so confirm your regime with a gestor or commercialista and the current income floor with the consulate before you commit.
Pick Spain if you are a salaried remote worker who wants coastal cities, an easier-to-clear visa path and a predictable month in Valencia or Seville.
Pick Italy if you are self-employed and the forfettario's flat 15 percent, plus a cheaper southern town, matters more to you than Spain's higher income bar.
Read the full guides
Put it to work
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Digital-Nomad Visa Checker
See which digital-nomad visas you could actually get with your passport and income, ranked, with the binding reason per country.
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Tax-Residency Reality Checker
Go beyond the 183-day myth: model the treaty tie-breaker and see whether two countries could both claim you as a tax resident.
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Cost-of-Relocation Calculator
Estimate the all-in, one-time cost of moving to a country (shipping, visa fees, flights, deposits) as low, likely and high bands.
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