🇪🇸
Barcelona
Spain
Architecture, beaches and an international vibe.
🇪🇸
Malaga
Spain
Costa del Sol sunshine with a growing creative scene.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇪🇸 Barcelona
€1,100–1,500 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇪🇸 Malaga
€850–1,150 / month
Best for
🇪🇸 Barcelona
- Students looking for an international and multicultural city
- Those who want to travel frequently around Europe
- People interested in highly prestigious universities
Best for
🇪🇸 Malaga
- Students who prioritise climate and beach
- Those who want excellent quality of life
- People who want to travel frequently around Europe
Category profile
How each city tends to feel across the things students care about — different, not better or worse.
Expensive
Cost of Living
Moderate
Very High
Nightlife
Moderate
Very Good
Weather
Excellent
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
High
Very Active
Student Life
Very Active
Very Tight
Housing
Tight
Top-Tier
University Reputation
Well-Regarded
Student insights
🇪🇸 Barcelona
- Excellent nightlife
- Top-tier international connections
- Highly recognised universities
Student insights
🇪🇸 Malaga
- Exceptional climate all year round
- Direct access to urban beaches
- Very good international flight connections
Student voice — 🇪🇸 Barcelona
“Barcelona was the greatest experience of my life.”
Student voice — 🇪🇸 Malaga
“I did my Erasmus in Málaga and went to Madrid. Málaga was much better.”
🇪🇸 Barcelona
Pros
- Excellent nightlife
- Top-tier international connections
- Highly recognised universities
- Large international community
- Unique combination of beach, culture and urban life
Cons
- Extremely expensive accommodation
- High cost of living
- Mass tourism in some areas
- Strong competition for rooms and residences
- Less sense of student community than in smaller cities
🇪🇸 Malaga
Pros
- Exceptional climate all year round
- Direct access to urban beaches
- Very good international flight connections
- Modern and increasingly international city
- Excellent quality of life
Cons
- Expensive and competitive housing
- Strong tourist pressure
- Less university atmosphere than other Erasmus destinations
- Higher cost of living than Granada or Seville
- Less feeling of a unified student community
Have you studied in one of these cities?
Share your experience and help future students make better Erasmus decisions.