Madrid
A capital where a set lunch still costs €15.
A day in Madrid
$152
- Lean
- $73
- Comfort
- $338
Real change, 12 months
+4.4%
Slightly cheaper. Tracks Spain as a whole.
Against the rest of Spain
+10%
Pricier than the national figure of $138 a day.
The short answerIn US dollars, as of November 12, 2026
As of November 12, 2026, a mid-range day in Madrid costs about $152 per person, excluding flights: about 10% more than the average for Spain. For US-dollar travelers it is 4.4% cheaper than a year ago after inflation, in line with Spain as a whole. A capital where a set lunch still costs €15.
What your money buys in Spain
Exchange rates and inflation are national, so the city follows this line. The dashed line is the exchange rate alone; the solid line is after inflation.
Nov 12, 2026After inflation 96.2Exchange rate only 96.3
Madrid, in five questions
City costs are the national model scaled by a premium of +10% that we set by hand. To cite: “Trip Arbitrage (triparbitrage.com), reading of November 12, 2026.”
- How much does a day in Madrid cost?
- About $73 on a lean budget, $152 mid-range and $338 in comfort, per person per day as of November 12, 2026, excluding international flights. These are modeled estimates: the national figure for Spain, updated daily, scaled by a city premium.
- Is Madrid expensive compared with the rest of Spain?
- Madrid costs about 10% more than the national average for Spain, which is $138 a day mid-range. A capital where a set lunch still costs €15.
- Is Madrid cheaper to visit than last year?
- The exchange rate moved +4.5% for US-dollar holders over twelve months while prices in Spain rose +3.6%, a real change of +4.4%. City prices broadly follow the country.
- When is the best time to visit Madrid for lower prices?
- For Spain the shoulder months, with workable weather and lower prices, are March, April, November. Peak season is May, June, September, October.
- Is Madrid safe?
- The US State Department rates Spain at Level 2: Increased caution. Country-wide levels can hide large differences between cities and regions, so read the full advisory.