Simon Wade
SPAIN comes a respectable third in research done by Send My Bag, showing the top UN destinations for Brits looking to move abroad.
The USA and Canada were top, with the far more accessible Spain, Germany and Ireland coming next.
The luggage delivery service researched 15 factors that Brits consider when making such a big move, rating each issue from 0-1.
The factors were cost of living, happiness, average flight time to the UK, unemployment, average annual wage, average house price, weather, crime, pollution, cost of rent, difficulty of language, GDP per capita, cost of a takeaway meal, cost of a pint of lager and cost of shipping luggage.
The Top 10 United Nation countries chosen for the survey were: –
- USA
- Canada
- Spain
- Germany
- Ireland
- Australia
- New Zealand
- South Africa
- Italy
- France
Cost of housing
Spain was just behind South Africa for having the best value in property for both renters and buyers.
France is the most expensive to buy, with Ireland having the dearest rent, 48% higher than the UK average.
Job prospects
Spain also fares poorly in this respect with an unemployment rate of almost 15%, but South Africa had an unemployment rate exceeding 27% before the Coronavirus pandemic, so job-hunting there would be the biggest challenge.
Germany has the most job opportunities with an unemployment rate of only 3.2% – although the language barrier proved to be a negative.
Climate
If you’re looking for sun, South Africa is the leading UN destination with an average of 3141 hours of sunshine per year, with Australia and USA second and third, respectively.
Spain was fourth, with Ireland and Germany considered to have the poorest weather.
Cost of living
Spain proved second cheapest with everyday prices 17% cheaper than the UK, still way behind South Africa’s where the cost of living is 43% lower.
Ireland appears to be the dearest place to live, with cost of living 17% higher.
Interestingly, although Spain fared well by coming third in the research, it only exceeded in one category – it has the lowest crime rate.
The combination of short flight times, a high happiness factor, good property prices and great cost of living still means that Spain is a fantastic place for Brits to move to.
Adam Ewart, CEO and founder of Send My Bag, said: “This inaugural ‘Expat Index’ aims to help people considering relocating or considering a holiday home, by pitting the top ten most popular global destinations against each other for the first time.”
| Aus | USA | Can | Spn | Ire | NZ | Fra | SA | Ger | Italy | |
| Cost of living | 0.05 | 0.13 | 0.3 | 0.57 | 0 | 0.16 | 0.03 | 1 | 0.28 | 0.23 |
| GDP per Capita | 0.67 | 0.82 | 0.56 | 0.33 | 1 | 0.48 | 0.5 | 0 | 0.56 | 0.37 |
| Happiness | 0.97 | 0.86 | 0.97 | 0.64 | 0.92 | 1 | 0.74 | 0 | 0.91 | 0.64 |
| Flight time | 0.12 | 0.72 | 0.74 | 0.96 | 0.99 | 0 | 1 | 0.41 | 0.98 | 0.95 |
| Unemployment | 0.92 | 0.97 | 0.9 | 0.52 | 0.91 | 0.93 | 0.76 | 0 | 1 | 0.72 |
| Average wage | 0.81 | 1 | 0.71 | 0.51 | 0.69 | 0.58 | 0.62 | 0 | 0.73 | 0.48 |
| House prices | 0.31 | 0.7 | 0.48 | 0.63 | 0.45 | 0.36 | 0 | 1 | 0.25 | 0.58 |
| Weather | 0.82 | 0.8 | 0.34 | 0.7 | 0 | 0.35 | 0.47 | 1 | 0.11 | 0.43 |
| Crime | 0.79 | 0.66 | 0.81 | 1 | 0.69 | 0.78 | 0.67 | 0 | 0.94 | 0.73 |
| Pollution | 1 | 0.56 | 0.86 | 0.49 | 0.67 | 0.99 | 0.4 | 0 | 0.82 | 0.04 |
| Cost of rent | 0.3 | 0.08 | 0.47 | 0.75 | 0 | 0.42 | 0.6 | 1 | 0.55 | 0.76 |
| Language | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Takeaway cost | 0.21 | 0.26 | 0.36 | 0.19 | 0.09 | 0.3 | 0 | 1 | 0.09 | 0.09 |
| Cost of a pint | 0.24 | 0.35 | 0.46 | 0.79 | 0.23 | 0.18 | 0 | 1 | 0.57 | 0.34 |
| Sending luggage | 0.1 | 0.51 | 0.31 | 0.94 | 1 | 0 | 0.97 | 0 | 0.97 | 0.94 |
| RESULT | 8.31 | 9.42 | 9.27 | 9.02 | 8.64 | 7.53 | 6.76 | 7.41 | 8.76 | 7.3 |
