Madrid, Bilbao, and Barcelona topped Spain’s municipal salary lists in 2022, each reporting annual wages above 100,000 euros across more than 8,000 municipalities. Data from the Salary Information Management for Public Administration positions (ISPA) show José Luis Martínez-Almeida of the Madrid Ministry of Finance earning 108,157.80 euros in 2022. Local leader Juan María Aburto in Bilbao and the head of Barcelona’s council were also prominent, with Barcelona’s mayor posting around 100,000 euros. Following changes during Jaume Collboni’s 2023 oath as Barcelona’s mayor, a 4 percent pay rise for elected officials was approved, elevating the top mayor’s annual salary to about 104,000 euros.
On Monday, the Ministry of Finance refreshed its ISPA database, which covers salaries of elected officials and municipal employees across local governments and autonomous communities. The updated 2022 results show the top ten salaries among first-tier councillors and mayors in Spain, including Madrid, Bilbao, Barcelona, and other major cities such as Vitoria-Gasteiz (96,717.82 euros), Donostia-San Sebastián (91,849.62 euros), Seville (90,337.46 euros), Valencia (90,187.58 euros), Valladolid (89,347.58 euros), getxo (86,925.12 euros), and Malaga (85,195.32 euros).
The Catalan top earners list for 2022 includes Barcelona at the top with 100,000 euros, followed by Tarragona (76,015.44 euros), Terrassa (74,027.24 euros), Reus (73,687.80 euros), Llobregat-Prat (72,595.35 euros), Lleida (71,676.38 euros), Sabadell (69,465.99 euros), Castelldefels (67,353.44 euros), and Mataró (65,086 euros). Conversely, 87 Catalan municipalities reported no earnings for their mayors in 2022, as those mayors remained in office without compensation.
More than 8,000 municipal councils
The ISPA data for 2022 include salaries and remuneration for councilors and municipal officers, covering a total of 6,768 municipal councils. An additional 1,360 councils (serving a population just over 4.5 million) did not submit complete data or did not report for 2022.
The information reflects annual earnings without discounting year to year. Reported amounts include the base fee and any regular compensation. Expenses reimbursed for travel or similar costs are excluded and are not counted as part of the salary.
Special, partial, or no dedication
A subset of 1,578 mayors from 6,768 municipalities reported 2022 wage data as full-time positions; another 1,471 were in partial dedication, while 3,719 mayors (about 55 percent) fell into the non-dedicated category. This last group does not earn a salary through the mayoral post but may receive other benefits.
Mayors generally earn higher salaries, with notable variations in allowances—from the Madrid mayor’s 108,157 euros to minor annual sums in smaller towns. In the full-time category, 23 mayors earned less than 12,000 euros annually.
Among part-time mayors, annual salaries ranged from just over 50,000 euros in towns such as Archena, Salou, Calafell, and Sant Feliu de Guíxols to as low as 344.65 euros in La Febro and 25 euros in Alhambra. In the non-exclusive group, 2,414 councilors earned zero euros, while the remaining 1,305 mayors saw salaries cluster around 40,000 euros in 2022. Places like Benahavís, Salt, Girona, and smaller towns reported earnings at or below modest levels.
Of Catalonia’s total municipalities, 829 submitted wage data for 2022, while 118 did not submit or reported incompletely. Municipalities such as San Cugat del Vallès, Pineda de Mar, Vilassar de Mar, Sant Quirze del Vallès, Malgrat de Mar, Piera, Mollerusa, Cunit, Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, La Roca del Vallès, Cassà de la Selva, and Ripoll—each with populations above 10,000—appear in the non-reporting list.
Across Spain, average annual salaries for mayors vary widely, with totals ranging from about 90,000 to 106,000 euros. Madrid, Barcelona, and Bilbao together account for many entries in the higher bracket, while a broad distribution exists among municipalities nationwide, including some with modest or zero annual compensation for mayors.