Living in Nerja
In Nerja, the statutory reference rent is €7.20 per m² a month (2022) and unemployment is 4.3% (2026).
Gigabit broadband availability was 93.6% in June 2025. The unemployment rate was 4.29% in June 2026. Nerja, a city in Spain, had a population of 22,132 at the start of 2025.
Pricier rent than 78% of Spanish cities that publish it and more recorded crime than 89% of Spanish cities that publish it.
Which Spain-wide rules apply when you move to Nerja?
National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.
Housing and cost
How much does it cost to rent in Nerja?
Average net cold rent is 7.2 EUR/m² per month (2022), excluding heating and operating charges.
Published average over existing tenancies; a specific flat can sit either side of it. Asking-rent series, where present, are separate rows in the table.
- Average net rent (nettokalt): 7.2 EUR/m²/month · cdn.mivau.gob.es1
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited | 20 EUR/month | 30 Sept 2026 | DIGI 300 Mbps fibre3Official · national market |
| Mobile plan, 10 GB | 12 EUR/month | 30 Sept 2026 | DIGI 100GB mobile plan2Official · national market |
| Dwellings | 16,623 dwellings | 31 Dec 2021 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain9Official |
| Main residence dwellings | 8,454 dwellings | 31 Dec 2021 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain9Official |
| Secondary, seasonal or vacant dwellings | 8,172 dwellings | 31 Dec 2021 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain9Official |
| Average net rent (nettokalt) | 7.2 EUR/m²/monthcountry median €5.10 | 31 Dec 2022 | cdn.mivau.gob.es1Official |
Is Nerja a good place to live?
There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.
Worked out from these numbers
What does a 60 m² flat cost?
About 432 EUR a month in cold rent at the published average of 7.2 EUR/m² per month, before heating and operating charges.
Heating, water and operating charges come on top, and a specific flat can sit either side of an average.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Nerja?
The unemployment rate is about 4.3 % (June 2026).
- Unemployment rate: 4.29 % · SEPE — registered unemployment by municipality, June 202623
Nerja 4.3%
Unemployment rate (%)
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gigabit broadband availability | 93.64 % | 30 Jun 2025 | SETELECO Cobertura Banda Ancha España 2021-202516Official |
| People in employment | 5,871 people | 31 Dec 2021 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain9Official |
| Median gross salary (regional) | 1,796 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2024 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE)5Official · regional context |
| Unemployment rate | 4.29 %country median 4.4% | 30 Jun 2026 | SEPE — registered unemployment by municipality, June 202623Independent |
What does a salary buy in Nerja?
Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.
RentInternetMobileLeft over
Line-by-line breakdown and sources
| Each month | € |
|---|---|
| Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions. | €1,463 |
| Rent, 60 m²€7.20/m² · official · cdn.mivau.gob.es · 2022-12-31 | − €432 |
| Internet€20 · official · DIGI 300 Mbps fibre · 2026-09-30 | − €20 |
| Mobile plan€12 · official · DIGI 100GB mobile plan · 2026-09-30 | − €12 |
| Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities | — |
| Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish | €999 |
Public employment service
No exact public employment office is currently linked to Nerja. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.
Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal — Public employment service
Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Nerja. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Safety
How safe is Nerja?
Police recorded about 6,414 incidents per 100,000 (2024). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: MIR 2024 Q4 exact III. TOTAL INFRACCIONES PENALES, enero-diciembre 2024; INE 29005 denominator.10
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents | 6,414 incidents per 100,000country median 4,281 | 31 Dec 2024 | MIR 2024 Q4 exact III. TOTAL INFRACCIONES PENALES, enero-diciembre 2024; INE 29005 denominator.10Official |
Mobility and administration
The nearest airport was GRX, 50 km away, with 5 listed destinations in June 2026.
Language courses and integration
No exact city-level course record is currently published for Nerja. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.
Escuelas Oficiales de Idiomas — public language education network — State Language Course
Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports / autonomous education authorities
For adult language learners, residents.
Climate and air quality
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly extreme high temperature | Jan 20.36 · Feb 22.72 · Mar 27.03 · Apr 26.48 · May 34.03 · Jun 36.06 · Jul 38.89 · Aug 39.27 · Sep 38.14 · Oct 31.26 · Nov 24.61 · Dec 22.81 °C | 31 Dec 2001 | NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center11Official |
| Monthly extreme low temperature | Jan -4.59 · Feb -4.15 · Mar -1.5 · Apr 1.14 · May 3.49 · Jun 8.6 · Jul 11.83 · Aug 13.13 · Sep 10.96 · Oct 1.39 · Nov -0.3 · Dec -1.53 °C | 31 Dec 2001 | NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center11Official |
| Average temperature by month | Jan 7.96 · Feb 8.53 · Mar 10.93 · Apr 13.51 · May 17.55 · Jun 22.86 · Jul 26.21 · Aug 26.03 · Sep 21.61 · Oct 17.11 · Nov 11.38 · Dec 8.87 °C | 31 Dec 2001 | NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center11Official |
Population and city profile
How many people live in Nerja?
The published population was 22,132 people in January 2025. Source: Nerja - official stats12
By nationality
National passport70.3%Foreign residents29.7%
Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| City area | 85.12 km² | 20 Oct 2025 | www.ign.es17Official |
| Foreign-resident share | 29.99 % | 31 Dec 2025 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE España)4Official |
| Foreign residents | 6,565 people | 1 Jan 2024 | Official INE municipal population by country of nationality; foreign total derived as Total nationality minus España.13Official |
| Female residents | 11,162 people | 31 Dec 2023 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE)6Official |
| Male residents | 10,751 people | 31 Dec 2023 | Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE)6Official |
| Population | 22,132 people | 1 Jan 2025 | Nerja - official stats12Official |
International community in Nerja
Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.
Country of birth
Population resident in Spain; both sexes; official INE Census 2021 municipal table · 2021 Census
| Published group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | 20,899 | 100.0% |
| Spain | 14,671 | 70.2% |
| European Union (without Spain) | 2,056 | 9.8% |
| Rent of Europe | 1,922 | 9.2% |
| South America | 1,140 | 5.5% |
| Africa | 529 | 2.5% |
| Asia | 246 | 1.2% |
| Central America and Caribbean | 223 | 1.1% |
| North America | 98 | 0.5% |
| Oceania | 14 | 0.1% |
Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source7
Citizenship
Population resident in Spain; both sexes; official INE Census 2021 municipal table · 2021 Census
| Published group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | 20,899 | 100.0% |
| Spanish | 15,586 | 74.6% |
| European Union (without Spain) | 2,117 | 10.1% |
| Rent of Europe | 1,928 | 9.2% |
| South America | 410 | 2.0% |
| Africa | 399 | 1.9% |
| Asia | 205 | 1.0% |
| Central America and Caribbean | 170 | 0.8% |
| North America | 77 | 0.4% |
| Oceania | 7 | 0.0% |
Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source8
Additional context
Alternatives for people set on Nerja
Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.
Torrox as a Nerja alternative in the same region
7 km away, better on 2 of 7 metrics measured the same way, worse on 1.
- Recorded crime, per 100k: 4,749 Torrox vs 6,414 Nerja−26%
- Foreign residents: 39.3% Torrox vs 30.0% Nerja+31%
- Unemployment: 4.6% Torrox vs 4.3% Nerja+7%
- Rent: €7.00/m² Torrox vs €7.20/m² Nerjasame level
- Nearest airport: 49.7 km Torrox vs 50.0 km Nerjasame level
- Residents: 22,015 Torrox vs 22,132 Nerja−1%
- Median gross pay, region: €1,796 Torrox vs €1,796 Nerjasame level
Elda as a Nerja alternative in the same country
A move, not a commute, at 333 km, better on 4 of 5 metrics measured the same way, worse on 0. Foreign residents cannot be compared like for like.
- Rent: €4.00/m² Elda vs €7.20/m² Nerja−44%
- Residents: 55,222 Elda vs 22,132 Nerja+150%
- Recorded crime, per 100k: 4,318 Elda vs 6,414 Nerja−33%
- Nearest airport: 30.0 km Elda vs 50.0 km Nerja−40%
- Foreign residents: 7.1% (2024) Elda vs 30.0% (2025) Nerjano percentage
- Median gross pay, region: €1,888 Elda vs €1,796 Nerja+5%
Cities near Nerja
Published cities within 25 km, nearest first. Distances are straight-line.
- Rent
- 7 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-12-31
- Rent
- 7.1 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-12-31
- Rent
- 6.1 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-12-31
- Rent
- 6 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-12-31
Alternative cities in Spain
Other cities in Spain to compare with Nerja, nearest in population first.
How does Nerja compare?
Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Nerja's.
Nerja in rankings
Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Nerja under the national coverage rules.
Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.
Open the official coverage guideSchool for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 6 to 16. Newly arrived pupils get support in the school language: Regional reception programmes (aulas de enlace Madrid / aules d acollida Catalonia etc). How to enrol a child (educacionfpydeportes.gob.es).
A country-wide rule for Spain; Nerja's school authority applies it locally.
Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.
Common questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
How many people live in Nerja?
The published population was 22,132 people in January 2025. Source: Nerja - official stats.
How much does it cost to rent in Nerja?
Average net cold rent is 7.2 EUR/m² per month (2022), excluding heating and operating charges. For a 70 m² flat that is about 504 EUR a month before utilities. Source: cdn.mivau.gob.es.
How safe is Nerja?
Police recorded about 6,414 incidents per 100,000 (2024). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: MIR 2024 Q4 exact III. TOTAL INFRACCIONES PENALES, enero-diciembre 2024; INE 29005 denominator..
What is the unemployment rate in Nerja?
The unemployment rate is about 4.3 % (June 2026). Source: SEPE — registered unemployment by municipality, June 2026.
What is the typical salary around Nerja?
The median gross salary is 1,796 EUR/month. Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE).
How many foreign residents live in Nerja?
6,565 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Official INE municipal population by country of nationality; foreign total derived as Total nationality minus España..
Is Nerja a good place to live?
Nerja may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.
Which cities are near Nerja?
Torrox, Algarrobo, Almuñécar, Vélez-Málaga are near Nerja. Typed relationship labels are shown where published; other rows use straight-line distance from admitted coordinates.
How many people born in Spain live in Nerja?
The official country of birth distribution records 14,671 people (70.2%) in the source-defined population for 2021 Census. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.
Cite this page
Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.
APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Nerja, Spain: population, rent, salary, cost of living, jobs [ImmigrationDB compilation; version deae2ad25467c0854e7f64771ddb987c]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/es/nerja/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_nerja-spain-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living-jobs_e18e85a4ad2c,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Nerja, Spain: population, rent, salary, cost of living, jobs},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-16},
version = {deae2ad25467c0854e7f64771ddb987c},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/es/nerja/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Nerja, Spain: population, rent, salary, cost of living, jobs](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/es/nerja/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version deae2ad25467c0854e7f64771ddb987c; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
- cdn.mivau.gob.es cdn.mivau.gob.es · checked 2026-08-26
- DIGI 100GB mobile plan digimobil.es · checked 2026-09-15
- DIGI 300 Mbps fibre digimobil.es · checked 2026-09-15
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE España) ine.es · checked 2026-08-03
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) servicios.ine.es · checked 2026-08-06
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) ine.es · checked 2026-08-07
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Spain servicios.ine.es · checked 2026-08-30
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Spain servicios.ine.es · checked 2026-08-30
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain ine.es · checked 2026-08-07
- MIR 2024 Q4 exact III. TOTAL INFRACCIONES PENALES, enero-diciembre 2024; INE 29005 denominator. estadisticasdecriminalidad.ses.mir.es · checked 2026-07-16
Show 13 more sources
- NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center power.larc.nasa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
- Nerja - official stats ine.es · checked 2026-07-14
- Official INE municipal population by country of nationality; foreign total derived as Total nationality minus España. ine.es · checked 2024-01-01
- OpenFlights — routes.dat OpenFlights · raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-07-14
- OurAirports — airports.csv OurAirports · davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-07-14
- SETELECO Cobertura Banda Ancha España 2021-2025 digital.gob.es · checked 2025-06-30
- www.ign.es ign.es · checked 2026-08-30
- Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
- Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
- Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
- Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
- Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
- SEPE — registered unemployment by municipality, June 2026 SEPE · sepe.es · checked 2026-07-26
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.