Elche vs Zaragoza
for digital nomads
Under balanced weights Zaragoza edges it, 69 to 68, winning 2 of the 9 factors. Elche is stronger on nothing outright; Zaragoza on air quality. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.
Palm-grove city beside Alicante airport and the Costa Blanca beaches
Full Elche profile →Plan a trip to Elche →Spain's affordable fifth city between Madrid and Barcelona
Full Zaragoza profile →Plan a trip to Zaragoza →Where they differ
- Air quality. Zaragoza leads on air quality, 94 to 83, against Elche. PM2.5: 12.5 µg/m³ vs 7.6 µg/m³.
Where they are close. Within five points on internet, getting there & around, cost of living, safety, healthcare, visa ease, climate, quality of life.
Pick Elche if you want
- no clear edge over Zaragoza in the data
Pick Zaragoza if you want
- cleaner air
Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | 36 | 36 |
| Safety | 76 | 76 |
| Healthcare | 90 | 90 |
| Internet | 79 | 81 ✓ |
| Visa ease | 80 | 80 |
| Getting there & around | 33 ✓ | 32 |
| Climate | 50 | 50 |
| Air quality | 83 | 94 ✓ |
| Quality of life | 81 | 81 |
Cost
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city | $2,200 | $2,200 |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data |
Safety and health (country-level)
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Homicides per 100k | 0.73 | 0.73 |
| Political stability (0–100) | 68.7 | 68.7 |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 84 | 84 |
| Life expectancy | 83.3 yrs | 83.3 yrs |
Internet (M-Lab measured medians)
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Download | 55.4 Mbps | 62.2 Mbps ✓ |
| Upload | 46.4 Mbps | 49.4 Mbps ✓ |
Visa
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Nomad visa | International teleworking visa (digital nomad visa) | International teleworking visa (digital nomad visa) |
| Minimum income for the visa | $2,741/mo | $2,741/mo |
| Entry, US passport | 90 days | 90 days |
| Entry, EU passport | unlimited | unlimited |
| Entry, UK passport | 90 days | 90 days |
Getting there and around
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Non-stop airport destinations | 127 ✓ | 12 |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 4 ✓ |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 2 | 4 ✓ |
Climate and air
| Metric | Elche | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Comfortable months per year | 6 | 6 |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 12.5 µg/m³ | 7.6 µg/m³ ✓ |
✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.
Frequently asked
- Which is cheaper, Elche or Zaragoza?
- Elche and Zaragoza cost about the same: roughly $2,200 per month for one person.
- Is Elche or Zaragoza safer?
- Elche and Zaragoza score the same on safety (76), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
- Where is the internet faster, Elche or Zaragoza?
- Zaragoza: a measured median of 62.2 Mbps versus 55.4 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).
More comparisons
Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year); UHC service coverage index; Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes; M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024); Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables); NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means); WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8); Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023); EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band); Walkability and transit ratings (editorial); Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Nostos long-stay visa guides; Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.11.2. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.