City · País Vasco · All places
Bilbao's big, ex-industrial neighbour across the estuary: a major hospital, a trade-fair centre, a Metro to the centre and a lot of rain.
Barakaldo sits on the left bank of the Nervión estuary, directly opposite Bilbao, and is the largest city in the Bilbao area outside Bilbao itself. For more than a century it was one of Spain's great industrial towns, with blast furnaces and shipyards on the river, and it is still a working city rather than a polished one.
The steelworks have gone, and the land they left has been rebuilt with shopping centres, an exhibition centre and a concert arena, with offices and new housing creeping in. The city has a very large hospital, a Metro line to Bilbao, an airport nearby and Basque public services. It is also one of the rainiest places in Spain.
The city has 102,986 residents (2025). It suits people who work in Bilbao or on the fair circuit and want a practical base with good infrastructure, and it suits those who come for charm or sunshine far less.
Data as of · the latest figures cover Dec 2025
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What the data says
Barakaldo stands out for prosperity, connectivity and digital; it is weaker on safety. A typical 70 m² rental costs about €733 a month (2024).
Who it suits, 0 to 100
Practical conclusions we draw from Barakaldo’s figures. They are inferences, not official statistics: each says what it rests on.
Few residents come from English-speaking or northern European countries, so daily life runs in Spanish. Contracts, the town hall and most doctors work in Spanish or Basque.
Basque is an official language alongside Spanish. Expect it on signs, at the town hall and in state schools.
People born abroad are in work less often than people born in Spain across País Vasco. Remote income or a job offer makes the move far easier.
Almost every home can get gigabit fibre, so working from home is not a gamble on the flat you pick.
Pintxo bars in the neighbourhood squares, Basque grills and the full Bilbao menu a short Metro ride away.
Busy and practical by day, with people heading in and out of Bilbao.
Neighbourhood bars and a theatre in Barakaldo, with Bilbao's old town for bigger nights.
Cruces, Rontegi and the centre are the lived-in districts, with older industrial zones beside the estuary.
Spanish in the street and Basque in schools and signs, with many families choosing Basque-medium education.
Each barrio runs its own summer fiestas, with a Basque mix of music, food and sport.
Working-class roots, frank and warm, and mostly Basque or from other parts of Spain.
Barakaldo is a practical city. The centre, around the Plaza de San Vicente, is a grid of shopping streets and bars, busy at lunchtime and early evening. Cruces and Rontegi are lived-in residential districts with parks, markets and a settled community. Along the estuary, older industrial zones sit beside new developments, so the streetscape is mixed.
Food is Basque and affordable: pintxos in the neighbourhood bars, cod, grilled meat, txakoli wine and cider in the season. For the full Bilbao menu, the Casco Viejo and Calle Ledesma are a Metro ride away, and for many people Bilbao is the weekend and Barakaldo is the home base.
The Bilbao Exhibition Centre brings trade fairs, congresses and concerts, so the area fills with visitors on some weekdays. The Barakaldo theatre, the municipal library and the football club give the city its own cultural life. Every barrio has its own summer fiestas, with music, food and sport.
Spanish is the street language, and Basque is increasingly present in schools, signage and local government. People are direct, warm and loyal to their neighbourhood. There is no sizeable expat scene, but Bilbao has a growing international community, and the Metro makes it easy to reach.
Barakaldo's history is the history of Basque heavy industry. Iron ore from the nearby mountains, the river and the port of Bilbao brought the steelworks Altos Hornos de Vizcaya and a string of shipyards and engineering firms here, and workers arrived by the thousand from the rest of Spain. The factories closed from the 1980s, and the city has spent the decades since reinventing the riverside.
That past explains the numbers. Prosperity comes out strong, and household income per person is €17,345 a year (2024). Connectivity is also strong, thanks to the airport only 8 km away (2026), a Metro and commuter rail, and the motorways. Digital infrastructure comes out strong, with fibre to 100% of homes (2025).
Housing follows Bilbao's lead. A typical 70 m² flat rents for about €733 a month (2024), and buying costs €2,875 per square metre (Q2 2026), cheaper than in central Bilbao but not cheap. House prices rose 10.7% over the last year (Q2 2026).
The city has 10.8 per 1,000 people hospital beds (2025) because it hosts Cruces University Hospital, the largest hospital in the Basque Country. On safety, the city comes out weak, driven by a homicide rate of 3.88 per 100k people (2025) and theft at 1,538 per 100k people (2025). The small numbers behind homicide make that figure jumpy, and most streets feel like the rest of the Bilbao area, but some districts have the problems of a big industrial city.
Figures for Barakaldo itself, not its region. Each shows the period it covers.
Each card uses Barakaldo data only and compares it with similar cities. Open “Why this score?” to see the measures behind it.
Prosperity is strong: in the top quarter of Spanish cities above 50,000.
Household income per person: 17,345 € a year per person — better than 79% of Spanish cities above 50,000
Strong: 79 out of 100, where 50 is typical for the comparison group. These are the measures behind it.
| Measure | Value | Compared with peers |
|---|---|---|
| Household income per personBarakaldo · 2024 | 17,345 € a year per person | better than 79% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
Connectivity is strong: in the top 10% of major European cities.
Distance to the main airport: 8.10 km — better than 78% of major European cities
Strong: 78 out of 100, where 50 is typical for the comparison group. These are the measures behind it.
| Measure | Value | Compared with peers |
|---|---|---|
| Distance to the main airportBarakaldo · 2026-10-21 | 8.10 km | better than 78% of major European cities |
Digital is strong: in the top quarter of Spanish cities above 50,000.
Homes that can get gigabit internet: 99.7% — better than 89% of Spanish cities above 50,000
Strong: 76 out of 100, where 50 is typical for the comparison group. These are the measures behind it.
| Measure | Value | Compared with peers |
|---|---|---|
| Homes that can get gigabit internetBarakaldo · 2025 | 99.7% | better than 89% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| Homes with fibre to the doorBarakaldo · 2025 | 99.7% | better than 86% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| 5G coverageBarakaldo · 2025 | 100.0% | better than 45% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
Climate is above average: in the top quarter of major European cities.
Pleasant days (18–28 °C, dry): 107 days a year — better than 82% of major European cities
Above average: 67 out of 100, where 50 is typical for the comparison group. These are the measures behind it.
| Measure | Value | Compared with peers |
|---|---|---|
| Pleasant days (18–28 °C, dry)Barakaldo · 2015-01-01..2024-12-31 | 107 days a year | better than 82% of major European cities |
| Days above 35 °CBarakaldo · 2015-01-01..2024-12-31 | 0.10 days a year | better than 73% of major European cities |
| Nights above 20 °CBarakaldo · 2015-01-01..2024-12-31 | 23.2 nights a year | better than 28% of major European cities |
Safety is weak compared with similar cities.
Not ranked: too little comparable evidence yet.
Homicides: 3.88 per 100k people — worse than 98% of Spanish cities above 50,000
Weak: 19 out of 100, where 50 is typical for the comparison group. These are the measures behind it.
| Measure | Value | Compared with peers |
|---|---|---|
| HomicidesBarakaldo · 2025 | 3.88 per 100k people | better than 2% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| RobberiesBarakaldo · 2025 | 104 per 100k people | better than 40% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| BurglariesBarakaldo · 2025 | 147 per 100k people | better than 29% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| TheftsBarakaldo · 2025 | 1,538 per 100k people | better than 27% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
| Vehicle theftsBarakaldo · 2025 | 30.1 per 100k people | better than 79% of Spanish cities above 50,000 |
What we cannot score for Barakaldo yet
Highs around 24° in August, lows around 9° in January. 107 pleasant days a year (dry, 18–28 °C).
| Month | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 12.0°C | 8.5°C | 148 mm |
| February | 12.9°C | 8.8°C | 117 mm |
| March | 13.7°C | 9.4°C | 97 mm |
| April | 15.3°C | 10.9°C | 77 mm |
| May | 17.6°C | 13.4°C | 62 mm |
| June | 20.7°C | 16.5°C | 76 mm |
| July | 23.2°C | 18.8°C | 40 mm |
| August | 24.1°C | 19.5°C | 46 mm |
| September | 22.4°C | 18.1°C | 82 mm |
| October | 20.0°C | 15.4°C | 100 mm |
| November | 15.9°C | 12.0°C | 163 mm |
| December | 14.0°C | 10.1°C | 136 mm |
Barakaldo has a wet Atlantic climate. Rain falls on 153 a year (2015–2024), adding up to 1,146 mm a year (2015–2024), and pleasant days, mild and dry, number only 107 a year (2015–2024).
Summers are warm rather than hot: days above the heat threshold are 0 a year (2015–2024), and the sea breeze keeps the estuary mild, though humid nights are not unknown: 23 a year (2015–2024). Winters are mild and grey, with frost essentially absent (0 a year, 2015–2024), and a drizzle that locals call sirimiri can last for days.
It is a year-round city with no real dry season, and it suits people who like cosy interiors, hiking when the sun appears and the Basque habit of going out whatever the weather. The best months are May to September, when Basque beaches and mountains are close.
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10.7% in Q2 2026
€2,875 per m² in Q2 2026
Facts about the people who live in Barakaldo. Shown as context only: none of this changes a score.
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Fit from the data, 0 to 100, against other Spanish cities. Open a group to see the figures behind it.
The exhibition centre, the port, the airport and industrial services make this a logical base for trade, logistics and industry.
Nothing stands out.
Not measured yet: Adults with a university degree, Jobs, Jobs in high-tech sectors, Regulatory quality, Residents born abroad.
Fibre almost everywhere, an airport minutes away and Bilbao's coworking and cafés on the Metro line.
Not measured yet: Cost of Living, Fixed broadband penetration, Housing, Lifestyle, Residents born abroad.
Good private healthcare and Basque public services, but the city is not the area's prestige address, which lies across the estuary or on the coast.
Not measured yet: Average dwelling size, Education, Environment, Healthcare, Housing, Income tax and social security, average earner, Total tax on labour, average earner.
Hills and the Basque coast are close, but it is a rainy base and the city itself has few trails.
Better nearby for beach, mountains and the outdoors: Bilbao (69)
Not measured yet: Environment, Fine-particle pollution (PM2.5), Lifestyle, Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), Strong-wind days.
Excellent healthcare on the doorstep, but a wet, grey climate and hills.
Better nearby for retirees: Bilbao (66), Getxo (64), Vitoria-Gasteiz (62)
Not measured yet: Cost of Living, Doctors, Environment, Healthcare, Housing, Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂).
Parks, schools in Basque, Spanish and mixed models, and a children's hospital close by, with Bilbao's activities a Metro ride away.
Not measured yet: 15-year-olds' maths (PISA), Average commute (one way), Average dwelling size, Childcare availability, Education, Environment, Healthcare, Housing, Jobs, Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), Pre-primary participation, Recorded crime.
A practical base for a job in Bilbao, with rents close to the city's but a quieter social life.
Not measured yet: Commute by public transport, Housing, Jobs, Jobs in high-tech sectors, Lifestyle, Median age, Median gross salary, Residents born abroad, Transport, Unemployment, Youth unemployment (15–24).
Close to the University of the Basque Country and Deusto in the Bilbao area by Metro, but the student scene is on the other bank.
Not measured yet: Adults with a university degree, Commute by public transport, Cost of Living, Cycle most, Education, Housing, Lifestyle, Median age, Price level vs EU average, Transport, Walk most, Youth unemployment (15–24).
Cheaper than central Bilbao, but not a cheap city by Spanish standards.
Not measured yet: Cost of Living, Households spending >40% of income on housing, Housing, Jobs, Price level vs EU average, Unemployment.
The city has its own theatre and festivals, and Bilbao's museums and Basque culture are a Metro ride away.
Nothing stands out.
Not measured yet: Adults with a university degree, Commute by public transport, Lifestyle, Median age, Residents born abroad, Transport, Walk most.
Taxes, residency and the wider economy are set nationally, so they are the same in Barakaldo as anywhere in Spain.
Compared with Barakaldo; each card says where it is better or worse for someone living there.
70 m²: €794 a month
Compare with Barakaldo70 m²: €806 a month
Compare with Barakaldo70 m²: €645 a month
Compare with Barakaldo70 m²: €979 a month
Compare with Barakaldo70 m²: €692 a month
Compare with BarakaldoGuide written 2026-10-22. Figures are refreshed as new official data is published; the period beside each number says what it covers. “Our read” cards are our inferences from those figures. How we score
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