Which is cheaper, Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián?

San Sebastián is cheaper: about $2,200 per month versus $2,200 for one person.

Is Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián safer?

Palma de Mallorca scores higher on safety (77 vs 77), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

Where is the internet faster, Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián?

San Sebastián: a measured median of 93.8 Mbps versus 92 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

Palma de Mallorca vs San Sebastián

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Palma de Mallorca edges it, 74 to 71, winning 2 of the 9 factors. Palma de Mallorca is stronger on climate; San Sebastián on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Palma de Mallorca

out of 100

Island capital with a Gothic cathedral and a beach

Full Palma de Mallorca profile →

San Sebastián

out of 100

Pintxos, surf and the prettiest bay in Spain

Full San Sebastián profile →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Cost of living	33	33
Safety	77	77
Healthcare	87	87
Internet	88	88 ✓
Visa ease	90	90
Getting there & around	51 ✓	41
Climate	67 ✓	50
Air quality	89	92 ✓
Quality of life	80	80

Cost

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
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	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Homicides per 100k	0.5	0.5
Political stability (0–100)	65.8	65.8
UHC service coverage (0–100)	84	84
Life expectancy	82.7 yrs	82.7 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Download	92 Mbps	93.8 Mbps ✓
Upload	84.3 Mbps	86 Mbps ✓

Visa

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Nomad visa	International Telework Visa (Digital Nomad, Ley 14/2013 amended Dec 2022)	International Telework Visa (Digital Nomad, Ley 14/2013 amended Dec 2022)
Minimum income for the visa	$2,714/mo	$2,714/mo
Visa-free days, US passport	90 days	90 days
Visa-free days, EU passport	unlimited	unlimited
Visa-free days, UK passport	90 days	90 days

Getting there and around

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Non-stop airport destinations	180 ✓	75
Walkability (1–5, editorial)	4	5 ✓
Transit (1–5, editorial)	3	3

Climate and air

Metric	Palma de Mallorca	San Sebastián
Comfortable months per year	8 ✓	6
Annual mean PM2.5	9.8 µg/m³	8.6 µg/m³ ✓

✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián?: San Sebastián is cheaper: about $2,200 per month versus $2,200 for one person.
Is Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián safer?: Palma de Mallorca scores higher on safety (77 vs 77), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Palma de Mallorca or San Sebastián?: San Sebastián: a measured median of 93.8 Mbps versus 92 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

More comparisons

Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Digital Nomad Visas 2026; Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Estimates of rates of homicides per 100 000 population; 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). Dataset 2026.09.4. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.