Food shopping and eating out

Food shopping in Spain is easy to get used to: one big chain leads, discounters are growing, and every city has covered markets. The bigger adjustment is the clock, with lunch as the main meal and dinner late.

The main shops

Own brands (marca blanca) keep gaining ground across the big chains.

What a shop costs

The consumer organisation OCU checks the price of a basket of 244 everyday products every year. In its September 2026 study:

• The basket cost €6,602 a year on average (about £5,595), roughly €127 a week. It is a fixed list of products, not what a household actually spends
• Prices rose 1.8% in a year, the smallest rise in 5 years, but OCU says food prices are up 39.5% over 5 years
• Choosing the cheapest shop saved €1,310 a year on average (about £1,110), and up to €4,381 in Madrid, where the gap between shops is widest
• The cheapest chains were Supermercados Dani, Family Cash, Tifer, Alcampo and Supeco; the dearest Hipercor, El Corte Inglés, Supercor and Sánchez Romero. Mercadona, Lidl, Aldi, Consum and Carrefour Market lowered prices
• The Valencian Community and Murcia were the cheapest regions

For a full budget, use the cost of living calculator and Cost of living in Spain.

IVA (VAT) on food in 2026

Prices on shelves and menus include IVA. OCU points out that if a restaurant’s prices don’t include it, the menu must say so clearly.

Meal times and the menú del día

Lunch (la comida) is the main meal, usually eaten around 2 or 3pm, and many restaurants only serve lunch between about 1pm and 3pm and dinner from about 9pm. Arrive at 5pm and you may only get a drink. A mid-morning snack and an afternoon snack (merienda) fill the gaps.

On weekdays, many restaurants offer a menú del día: a fixed price for the whole meal, chosen from the day’s dishes. The hospitality association Hostelería de España put the average at €14.10 in 2024, up 6.1% in a year. Valencia was among the cheapest cities at €13, Madrid about €14.80 and Barcelona about €15.10.

Your rights when eating out

OCU lists these as illegal:

• Charging for “table service” or a cover charge
• Charging for tap water: it must be served free if you ask for it
• Adding a terrace supplement that isn’t clearly shown on the menu
• Refusing cash. A place can refuse cards, but only if it warns you before you order
• Not having a paper menu (a QR code alone isn’t enough), or listing “market price” without a reference such as a price per kilo
• A bill that doesn’t list each item

OCU calls charging extra for nibbles, milk for your coffee or ice “legal but inconsiderate” when the menu shows the price.

Tipping

No rule obliges you to tip: OCU says the decision is voluntary. Restaurant staff in Spain are usually employed on a contract with at least a living wage. A Spanish hotel group’s guide suggests that at a set lunch, around €1 a person is a kind extra, and at dinner 5% to 10% if you were happy with the service, preferably in cash. Rounding up at a bar is common but not expected.

Alcohol

• Selling or serving alcohol to anyone under 18 is banned by law in every region and autonomous city
• Drinking in the street is illegal in some areas and can bring an on-the-spot fine. Drinks in Spanish bars are often stronger than in the UK
• Some resort areas in the Balearic Islands, such as parts of Magaluf, limit happy hours, open-bar offers and alcohol sales

Tap water

Mains water is tested under national rules. In the Ministry of Health’s 2024 report, 99.3% of test results were graded fit for drinking (apta para el consumo); Madrid scored 99.7%. Taste varies by area. See Laws and customs that catch people out.