Girona vs Madrid: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Madrid edges ahead of Girona on higher occupancy (36% vs 24%), stronger RevPAR (£27 vs £11).

Head-to-head metrics

	Girona	Madrid
Median occupancy	24%	36%
Median daily rate	£105	£94
Median RevPAR	£11	£27
Active listings	13,313	16,015
YoY occupancy	—	—
YoY daily rate	—	—
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Girona vs Madrid

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — Madrid finishes decisively ahead of Girona. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 141.1% higher in Madrid: £27 against £11. Madrid sells 12 more points of its calendar — 36% median occupancy against 24% in Girona. That is not a rounding difference, and it compounds over a hold period.

The two markets reach their revenue by different routes, which is what makes this pairing worth reading rather than just tabulating. Girona is the rate market: £105 a night against £94, some 11.7% more, but it converts fewer of those nights at 24% occupancy. Madrid is the volume market, filling 36% of its calendar at a lower headline price. Revenue per available night settles it: £27 in Madrid against £11. Rate is what you advertise; RevPAR is what you bank.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Girona is not simply the weaker market of the two. Girona's calendar is the flatter of the two — 13 points between its best and worst month against 25.8 in Madrid — which makes debt service easier to underwrite. Its strongest submarket, Vallfogona de Ripollès, clears £134 RevPAR on its own — city medians hide that kind of spread. If your model leans on that dimension, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Girona nor Madrid currently has a verified short-term rental regulation record in our register, so the comparison above is a yield comparison only. Regulation is the single largest source of downside in this asset class — an unverified market is an unpriced risk, not an absent one.

The two calendars also behave differently. Girona peaks in December at 53.3% and bottoms in May at 40.3%; Madrid runs from 71.3% in September down to 45.5% in February. Girona is the steadier of the two at 13 points peak-to-trough against 25.8 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Madrid concentrates its return into a shorter window and rewards operators who price the peak aggressively instead of holding a flat rate all year.

Who each suits, then. Girona suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry and who can hold rate through the shoulder season rather than discounting to fill the calendar. Madrid answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal: it is the market for an owner whose economics survive high turnover — more bookings, more cleans, more guest contact per pound of revenue. Every figure above comes from the same Inside Airbnb snapshot pipeline on both sides, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 11,424 active Girona listings and 7,469 in Madrid.

Frequently asked questions

Is Girona or Madrid better for Airbnb investment?

Madrid, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£27 vs £11), higher occupancy (36% vs 24%), and higher median annual revenue (£9,792 vs £4,070). Girona is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on a flatter season (13-point swing vs 25.8).

Which has higher occupancy, Girona or Madrid?

Madrid, at 36% median occupancy against 24% in Girona — a gap of 12 points. That is a wide spread by short-term rental standards and usually reflects a structural demand difference rather than better hosting.

Which has higher nightly rates, Girona or Madrid?

Girona, at £105 a night against £94 in Madrid — roughly 11.7% more. The nightly rate is not the whole story, though. On revenue per available night — rate multiplied by how often the room actually sells — Madrid comes out ahead at £27 against £11, so Madrid's cheaper nights are more than repaid by how often they fill.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Girona or Madrid?

Madrid, with 16,015 active listings against 13,313 in Girona. Size cuts both ways: a deep market gives you comparables, contractors and an exit, while a thinner one means fewer near-identical rivals competing for the same search results.

How much can you earn from an Airbnb in Girona vs Madrid?

Madrid earns more: roughly £9,792 a year for a median listing against £4,070 in Girona. Those are gross booking revenues before cleaning, management, platform fees, furnishing amortisation and tax — budget for a meaningful share of them, and note that a median listing is a median operator, not a good one.

What is the best time of year to rent out an Airbnb in Girona or Madrid?

Girona peaks in December at 53.3% occupancy and troughs in May at 40.3%; Madrid peaks in September at 71.3% and troughs in February at 45.5%. Because the peaks fall in different months, the two markets are partly complementary — a portfolio holding one of each has a flatter combined calendar than either alone.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Girona →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Madrid →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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