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Spanish income tax is computed twice. There is a state scale fixed in article 63 of the income tax law, and there is a scale that each autonomous community sets for itself; you pay the sum of both. That is why the same salary produces different net pay in Madrid and in Valencia, and why “the Spanish tax rate” is not a single number.
Below is the same person in four regions: single, no children, employment income, 2025 parameters. Madrid, Catalonia, Valencia and Andalusia are the four regions our engine is calibrated to, cited to the state law, the AEAT Manual Práctico Renta 2025 and each community’s own fiscal law.
| Region | €60,000 salary | €80,000 salary | €120,000 salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madrid | €41,179 (31.4%) | €52,902 (33.9%) | €75,702 (36.9%) |
| Catalonia | €40,306 (32.8%) | €51,728 (35.3%) | €73,639 (38.6%) |
| Valencia | €40,350 (32.8%) | €51,775 (35.3%) | €72,978 (39.2%) |
| Andalusia | €40,376 (32.7%) | €51,629 (35.5%) | €73,229 (39.0%) |
| Any region — Beckham regime | €41,783 (30.4%) | €56,983 (28.8%) | €87,383 (27.2%) |
Madrid is the cheapest of the four at every salary we tested, and the size of the advantage grows with income: €873 at €60,000 against Catalonia, €1,273 at €80,000 against Andalusia, and €2,724 at €120,000 against Valencia.
The worst region changes with salary, which is the part a single-rate comparison hides. Andalusia is the most expensive at €80,000 and Valencia at €120,000, because each community’s upper brackets differ even where their first brackets look similar. Ranking regions on one salary and assuming the order holds at another is a mistake the numbers do not support.
Why Madrid wins, and where the region’s second lever pulls
| Scale | Personal allowance | First bracket | Top bracket |
|---|---|---|---|
| State (art. 63 LIRPF) | €5,550 | 9.5% | 24.5% |
| Madrid | €5,956.65 | 8.5% | 20.5% |
| Catalonia | €5,550 | 9.5% | 25.5% |
| Valencia | €6,105 | 9.0% | 29.5% |
| Andalusia | €5,790 | 9.5% | 25.5% |
Madrid is cheaper for two independent reasons: every one of its regional brackets sits below the corresponding state bracket (8.5% to 20.5% against 9.5% to 24.5%), and its personal allowance is slightly higher than the state one. Valencia shows why the two levers have to be read together: it has the most generous personal allowance of the four at €6,105, and it is still the most expensive region at €120,000, because its top regional bracket reaches 29.5%. A higher allowance helps a little at every income; a higher top bracket costs a lot at high incomes.
Regional scales also move, and not always prospectively. Catalonia’s first bracket was cut from 10.5% to 9.5% in 2025 by Decret-llei 5/2025, applied retroactively from 1 January 2025. If you are comparing this article against a payroll from early 2025, the payroll may be the one that is out of date.
What the Beckham regime does to the regional question
It removes it. The regime under article 93 LIRPF is a federal-only arrangement: a flat 24% on employment income up to €600,000, with no personal allowance and no regional scale, so your community changes nothing while you are on it. That is why the Beckham line in the first table is identical in all four regions — and why at €120,000 it beats even Madrid, by €11,681 a year.
The consequence is worth stating plainly: the regional comparison only applies to you if you are on the standard schedule. Arriving in Spain with the regime means the region decision has no tax effect during the regime’s six years, and matters again the year after it ends.
What this comparison does not include
- Wealth tax. Regional rules differ sharply — Madrid rebates its regional wealth tax while other communities charge theirs — and the engine does not model it. For larger asset holdings it can outweigh every salary difference on this page.
- Regional deductions. Many communities offer their own deductions (Madrid’s rent deduction for tenants under 35 is in our strategy library but not in this table). They reduce the final liability rather than the base.
- The other regions. Our engine is calibrated to Madrid, Catalonia, Valencia and Andalusia; the remaining communities are not modelled, and assuming they sit between these four would be a guess.
- Anything outside 2025. Spain’s 2026 parameters were still pending final publication when this rule set was verified, so Spain computes 2025 exactly rather than 2026 approximately.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I choose which region taxes me?
- No. Your regional scale follows the community where you are tax resident, which in practice means where you actually live for most of the year and where your economic interests are centred. The engine asks you for a region because it cannot infer one; you cannot select a cheaper one.
- Why is Madrid cheaper than the other three?
- Because its regional scale is below the state scale at every bracket (8.5% to 20.5%, against the state’s 9.5% to 24.5%) and its personal allowance is slightly higher. Catalonia, Valencia and Andalusia all add brackets above the state scale at higher incomes.
- Which region should I pick if I am moving to Spain?
- The region question is downstream of where you will actually live — housing, schools and work decide it, and the tax difference between Madrid and Valencia at €120,000 is €2,724 a year. Arriving under the Beckham regime makes the regional difference zero for six years.
- Does the Beckham regime really ignore the region?
- Yes. It is a federal-only regime: a flat 24% on employment income up to €600,000 with no regional scale and no personal allowance. Our engine produces the same net figure whichever region is supplied.
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