ImmigrationDBVerified immigration data
On this page

Living in Palmela

Population density was 135.1 people per km² in 2021. There were 350 physicians per 100,000 residents in 2024. The unemployment rate was 3.03% in June 2026. Palmela, a city in Portugal, had a population of 62,831 in 2021. The nearest airport was LIS, 31.4 km away, with 103 listed destinations in June 2026. The city covered 465.1 km² in 2021.

Higher unemployment than 80% of Portuguese cities that publish it and more recorded crime than 76% of Portuguese cities that publish it.

Which Portugal-wide rules apply when you move to Palmela?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in PortugalNational rates and thresholds that apply in Palmela.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

No city-level rent or cost figure is published for Palmela yet. Portugal has country-level context; it is not substituted for this city.

Net rent across major citiesPalmela highlighted among comparable cities
Net rent across major cities with Palmela highlighted€16.50Cascais€15.42Oeiras€13.43Almada€13.00Amadora€11.98Matosinhos€11.73Loures€11.33Seixal€11.24Sintra€10.61Vila Nova de Gaia€10.15Porto€8.82Gondomar€8.57Braganet rent, € / m² / month

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in Palmela?

The unemployment rate is about 3 % (June 2026).

  • Unemployment rate: 3.03 % · IEFP — registered unemployment by municipality, June 202611
Unemployment across cities in PortugalUnemployment in Palmela is 3.0%. Of 251 cities with data, 118 have unemployment of 2 to under 3%.
unemployment rate, % · measured cities in Portugal per band6 cities: 0% to under 1%60–176 cities: 1% to under 2%761–2118 cities: 2% to under 3%1182–341 cities: 3% to under 4%413–4Palmela 3.0%4 cities: 4% to under 5%44–52 cities: 5% to under 6%25–61 city: 6% to under 7%16–71 city: 7% to under 8%17–81 city: 9% to under 10%19–101 city: 12% to under 13%112–13

Unemployment rate (%)

MetricValuePeriodSource
Unemployment rate3.03 %country median 2.3%30 Jun 2026IEFP — registered unemployment by municipality, June 202611Independent

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Palmela. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional — Public employment service

Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional (IEFP)

Job SearchRegistrationTraining
Register Search jobs
Open the Portugal service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Palmela. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Healthcare

MetricValuePeriodSource
Physicians per 100,000 residents350 per 100,0002024Official INE Statistics of Health Personnel indicator 0012837: physicians per 1,000 inhabitants by municipality of residence. Exact municipality row selected by INE DICO geocod; value converted to the requested per-100k unit.6Official

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Palmela when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.

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 guide
Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Safety

How safe is Palmela?

Police recorded 3,310 incidents per 100,000 (2022). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source.

  • Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents: 3,310 incidents per 100k · INE — Taxa de criminalidade (‰) por Localização geográfica (NUTS 2013) e Categoria de crime; Anual, indicador 0008074, categoria Total, ano 20222
Recorded crime across major citiesPalmela highlighted among comparable cities
Recorded crime across major cities with Palmela highlighted5,240Porto3,580Almada3,330Amadora3,310Palmela2,910Matosinhos2,800Loures2,700Cascais2,640Sintra2,570Vila Nova de Gaia2,440Braga2,380Oeiras2,170Seixalrecorded incidents per 100k residents
MetricValuePeriodSource
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents3,310 incidents per 100kcountry median 2,71531 Dec 2022INE — Taxa de criminalidade (‰) por Localização geográfica (NUTS 2013) e Categoria de crime; Anual, indicador 0008074, categoria Total, ano 20222Official

Mobility and administration

MetricValuePeriodSource
Destinations from nearest airport103 count13 Jun 2026OpenFlights — routes.dat7Official
Nearest airportLIS13 Jun 2026OurAirports — airports.csv8Official
Distance to nearest airport31.4 km13 Jun 2026OurAirports — airports.csv8Official

Language courses and integration

No exact city-level course record is currently published for Palmela. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.

Country-level information

PLA search route through Portal da Oferta Formativa — State Language Course

AIMA / Portal da Oferta Formativa

For migrants seeking Portuguese as a non-native language.

Portuguesevaries
Open official information

Português Língua de Acolhimento (PLA) — State Language Course

AIMA / DGEstE public-school network / IEFP / Centros Qualifica

For migrants aged 16 or older whose mother tongue is not Portuguese, residence-permit holders, people with pending residence/protection/NISS evidence.

PortugueseCEFR A1–B2varies
Open official information
Open the full Portugal section
National programme information is not treated as proof of a course location in Palmela.

Climate and air quality

Annual PM2.5 was 5.32 µg/m³ in 2024. Annual NO₂ was 4.59 µg/m³ in 2024.

Is the air quality good in Palmela?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 5.3 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³.

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

  • PM2.5 — annual mean: 5.32 µg/m³ · official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found12
Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C
Palmela average monthly daytime high and night-time low temperature, °C0°10°20°30°40°JFMAMJJASOND31°5°Daytime highNight-time low
Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm
Palmela average monthly precipitation, mm0306090120916768645415233199107103JFMAMJJASONDmm
Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits
Palmela annual air pollutant levels against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limitsCity valueWHO guidelineEU limit5255.3PM2.5154016.6PM1010404.6NO₂µg/m³

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in PortugalAnnual PM2.5 in Palmela is 5.3 µg/m³. Of 70 cities with data, 26 have annual PM2.5 of 8 to under 9 µg/m³.
annual PM2.5, µg/m³ · measured cities in Portugal per band1 city: 1 µg/m³ to under 2 µg/m³11–24 cities: 2 µg/m³ to under 3 µg/m³42–34 cities: 3 µg/m³ to under 4 µg/m³43–49 cities: 4 µg/m³ to under 5 µg/m³94–514 cities: 5 µg/m³ to under 6 µg/m³145–6Palmela 5.35 cities: 6 µg/m³ to under 7 µg/m³56–75 cities: 7 µg/m³ to under 8 µg/m³57–826 cities: 8 µg/m³ to under 9 µg/m³268–92 cities: 9 µg/m³ to under 10 µg/m³29–10

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

MetricValuePeriodSource
NO₂ — annual mean4.59 µg/m³country median 10.52024official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found12Independent
PM10 — annual mean16.61 µg/m³country median 18.62024official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found12Independent
PM2.5 — annual mean5.32 µg/m³country median 6.22024official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found12Independent
Average daytime high by monthJan 15.5 · Feb 16.8 · Mar 19.5 · Apr 21.1 · May 24.2 · Jun 27.9 · Jul 30.2 · Aug 30.7 · Sep 28.1 · Oct 23.8 · Nov 18.8 · Dec 16.1 °C31 Dec 1991IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 — IPMA estação SETÚBAL (Estação de Fruticultura) (nº 770)5Official · nearest-station reading
Average night-time low by monthJan 5.2 · Feb 5.6 · Mar 7.6 · Apr 9.3 · May 11.8 · Jun 14.3 · Jul 16.2 · Aug 16.5 · Sep 14.8 · Oct 12.5 · Nov 8.9 · Dec 6.3 °C31 Dec 1991IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 — IPMA estação SETÚBAL (Estação de Fruticultura) (nº 770)5Official · nearest-station reading
Average temperature by monthJan 10.3 · Feb 11.2 · Mar 13.6 · Apr 15.2 · May 18 · Jun 21.1 · Jul 23.2 · Aug 23.6 · Sep 21.4 · Oct 18.1 · Nov 13.8 · Dec 11.2 °C31 Dec 1991IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 — IPMA estação SETÚBAL (Estação de Fruticultura) (nº 770)5Official · nearest-station reading
Average precipitation by monthJan 90.6 · Feb 66.6 · Mar 67.6 · Apr 64.2 · May 53.8 · Jun 15.2 · Jul 2.1 · Aug 3.2 · Sep 31.2 · Oct 99.2 · Nov 107.2 · Dec 102.5 mm31 Dec 1991IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 — IPMA estação SETÚBAL (Estação de Fruticultura) (nº 770)5Official · nearest-station reading
Annual PM2.5 over time10 published observations, 2015–2024
Annual PM2.5 in Palmela by year, µg/m³4.28.111.915.8201520172019202120245.3µg/m³

Annual PM2.5 fell 62.0% between 2015 and 2024, from 14.0 to 5.3.

Cities of a similar size in Portugal

Closest published populations, for a like-for-like comparison.

All Portugal cities
Póvoa de Varzim63,408 residentsSantarém62,200 residentsFigueira da Foz62,125 residentsMoita66,029 residentsFelgueiras58,065 residentsOliveira de Azeméis68,611 residents

Population and city profile

How many people live in Palmela?

The published population was 62,831 people in 2021. Source: INE — Portal municipal (quadro)1

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population
Palmela residents by nationalityBy nationalityNational passport92%Foreign residents 8%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

MetricValuePeriodSource
City area465.1 km²2021INE — Portal municipal (quadro)1Official
Foreign residents4,998 people2023Foreign population with legal resident status at 31 December; Total Nacionalidade; annual municipality value.10Independent
Population density135.1 people/km²2021Reproducible derived density from the same-period INE populationTotal divided by areaKm2; no external density number was substituted.9Official
Population62,831 people2021INE — Portal municipal (quadro)1Official

International community in Palmela

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Resident population at the 19 April 2021 Census reference date; total sex (HM) and total age; source-native indicator universe · 2021-04-19

Published groupPeopleShare
Total68,852100.0%
Portuguesa61,45189.3%
Estrangeira7,40110.7%
África2,7063.9%
América2,0483.0%
Europa2,0022.9%
Brasil1,8732.7%
Angola1,3702.0%
União Europeia 27 (s/ PT - a partir de 2020)1,2641.8%
Outros países - Europa7381.1%
Ásia6390.9%
Show 47 more groups
Published groupPeopleShare
Moçambique5630.8%
França4740.7%
Cabo Verde3130.5%
Roménia2560.4%
Ucrânia2360.3%
Moldávia2190.3%
Alemanha2030.3%
Índia1800.3%
Nepal1600.2%
Reino Unido1540.2%
Guiné-Bissau1520.2%
São Tomé e Príncipe1280.2%
China1100.2%
Outros países - África1050.2%
Espanha1000.1%
Outros países - Ásia870.1%
África do Sul750.1%
Bangladeche740.1%
Venezuela630.1%
Suíça620.1%
Outros países - América520.1%
Países Baixos (Reino dos)510.1%
Federação da Rússia510.1%
Itália430.1%
Bélgica370.1%
Canadá310.0%
Paquistão280.0%
Bulgária260.0%
Estados Unidos da América210.0%
Luxemburgo180.0%
Outros160.0%
Argentina80.0%
Áustria70.0%
Dinamarca70.0%
Lituânia70.0%
Polónia70.0%
Suécia70.0%
Oceânia60.0%
Austrália50.0%
Hungria50.0%
Irlanda40.0%
Letónia40.0%
Finlândia30.0%
Croácia30.0%
Outros países - Oceânia10.0%
Chipre10.0%
Grécia10.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source4

Citizenship

Resident population at the 19 April 2021 Census reference date; total sex (HM) and total age; source-native indicator universe · 2021-04-19

Published groupPeopleShare
Total68,852100.0%
Portuguesa65,08194.5%
Estrangeira3,7675.5%
América1,4372.1%
Brasil1,3752.0%
Europa1,0711.6%
União Europeia 27 (s/ PT - a partir de 2020)7161.0%
África6721.0%
Ásia5850.8%
Outros países - Europa3550.5%
Angola2860.4%
Show 47 more groups
Published groupPeopleShare
Roménia2710.4%
França1610.2%
Nepal1610.2%
Índia1590.2%
Cabo Verde1380.2%
Ucrânia1380.2%
China1300.2%
Reino Unido870.1%
Moldávia820.1%
Guiné-Bissau780.1%
Bangladeche750.1%
Itália660.1%
Outros países - África590.1%
Espanha590.1%
São Tomé e Príncipe550.1%
Moçambique510.1%
Alemanha370.1%
Outros países - Ásia330.0%
Países Baixos (Reino dos)310.0%
Outros países - América280.0%
Paquistão270.0%
Suíça240.0%
Bélgica210.0%
Federação da Rússia180.0%
Bulgária170.0%
Venezuela140.0%
Estados Unidos da América120.0%
Dinamarca100.0%
Lituânia90.0%
Polónia90.0%
Suécia70.0%
Canadá60.0%
Outros60.0%
África do Sul50.0%
Apátrida40.0%
Áustria40.0%
Finlândia30.0%
Hungria30.0%
Oceânia20.0%
Argentina20.0%
Croácia20.0%
Luxemburgo20.0%
Letónia20.0%
Outros países - Oceânia10.0%
Austrália10.0%
Grécia10.0%
Irlanda10.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source3

Is Palmela 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.

Try your profile
Remote worker61%strong on work, weak on housing · range 52–70%
Skilled employee68%strong on work, weak on education · range 59–77%
Student50%strong on legal route, weak on education · range 40–60%
Family49%strong on family, weak on education · range 40–58%
Retirement57%strong on air quality, weak on admin · range 47–67%
Foreign residents4,998 people2023Independent source · Foreign population with legal resident status at 31 December; Total Nacionalidade; annual municipality value.
Population62,831 people2021Official source · INE — Portal municipal (quadro)
Unemployment rate3.03 %30 Jun 2026Independent source · IEFP — registered unemployment by municipality, June 2026
NO₂ — annual mean4.59 µg/m³2024Independent source · official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found
PM10 — annual mean16.61 µg/m³2024Independent source · official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found
PM2.5 — annual mean5.32 µg/m³2024Independent source · official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found
Every value keeps its source, geographic scope and verification date · Last checked 2026-07-31

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Palmela?

The published population was 62,831 people in 2021. Source: INE — Portal municipal (quadro).

Is the air quality good in Palmela?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 5.3 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found.

How safe is Palmela?

Police recorded 3,310 incidents per 100,000 (2022). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: INE — Taxa de criminalidade (‰) por Localização geográfica (NUTS 2013) e Categoria de crime; Anual, indicador 0008074, categoria Total, ano 2022.

What is the unemployment rate in Palmela?

The unemployment rate is about 3 % (June 2026). Source: IEFP — registered unemployment by municipality, June 2026.

How many foreign residents live in Palmela?

4,998 people residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Foreign population with legal resident status at 31 December; Total Nacionalidade; annual municipality value..

Is Palmela a good place to live?

Palmela 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.

How many people born in Europa live in Palmela?

The official country of birth distribution records 2,002 people (2.9%) in the source-defined population for 2021-04-19. 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, September 12). Palmela, Portugal: jobs, safety, air quality [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/pt/palmela/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_palmela-portugal-jobs-safety-air-quality_9b5e5ece0830,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Palmela, Portugal: jobs, safety, air quality},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-09-12},
  version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/pt/palmela/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}
Markdown citation
[Palmela, Portugal: jobs, safety, air quality](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/pt/palmela/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.

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

JSON Markdown
  1. INE — Portal municipal (quadro) INE · ine.pt · checked 2026-07-14
  2. INE — Taxa de criminalidade (‰) por Localização geográfica (NUTS 2013) e Categoria de crime; Anual, indicador 0008074, categoria Total, ano 2022 INE · ine.pt · checked 2026-07-31
  3. Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE), Portugal Censos 2021 indicator 0014632 nationality ine.pt · checked 2026-09-01
  4. Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE), Portugal Censos 2021 indicator 0014633 country of birth ine.pt · checked 2026-09-01
  5. IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 — IPMA estação SETÚBAL (Estação de Fruticultura) (nº 770) IPMA Normais Climatológicas 1991-2020 · ipma.pt · checked 2026-07-31
  6. Official INE Statistics of Health Personnel indicator 0012837: physicians per 1,000 inhabitants by municipality of residence. Exact municipality row selected by INE DICO geocod; value converted to the requested per-100k unit. ine.pt · checked 2026-07-15
  7. OpenFlights — routes.dat OpenFlights · raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-07-14
  8. OurAirports — airports.csv OurAirports · davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-07-14
  9. Reproducible derived density from the same-period INE populationTotal divided by areaKm2; no external density number was substituted. ine.pt · checked 2026-07-15
  10. Foreign population with legal resident status at 31 December; Total Nacionalidade; annual municipality value. pordata.pt · checked 2026-07-15
Show 2 more sources
  1. IEFP — registered unemployment by municipality, June 2026 IEFP · iefp.pt · checked 2026-07-26
  2. official validated air-quality station bulk; no exact target station-period input found aqportal.discomap.eea.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-15

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.