Municipalities in the provinces of Madrid and Barcelona saw the strongest demand relative to the supply of homes for rent in the third quarter of 2026.
Terrassa once again topped the quarterly rental demand ranking compiled by idealista/data. Metropolitan municipalities dominated the third-quarter ranking, with the Madrid-area towns of Leganés and Móstoles taking second and third place. idealista/data
L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Getafe, Alcalá de Henares, Sabadell and Alcorcón were also among the highest-ranked towns, underscoring the strength of rental demand around Spain’s largest cities. Guadalajara and Vitoria-Gasteiz were the only provincial capitals in the top 10 for demand relative to the local supply of rental homes.
Madrid and Barcelona dominate the ranking
Madrid province had more municipalities among the most sought-after rental markets than any other province. The city of Madrid ranked 39th, while several surrounding towns placed much higher. Leganés (2nd) and Móstoles (3rd) led the way, followed by Getafe (5th), Alcalá de Henares (6th), Alcorcón (10th), Alcobendas (14th) and San Sebastián de los Reyes (19th). Other entries included Las Rozas de Madrid (40th), Majadahonda (52nd), Boadilla del Monte (74th), Pozuelo de Alarcón (98th), Villaviciosa de Odón (127th), Villanueva de la Cañada (138th) and La Moraleja (155th).
Barcelona province also had a strong showing. Terrassa took first place, while L’Hospitalet de Llobregat (4th), Sabadell (7th) and Badalona (15th) all ranked ahead of the city of Barcelona, which came 17th, 22 places above Madrid. Sant Cugat del Vallès (26th), Castelldefels (49th) and Sitges (83rd) also appeared in the ranking.
Towns outside provincial capitals lead the top 25
The article puts the tally at 15 towns outside provincial capitals and 10 provincial capitals in the top 25, reflecting the importance of mid-sized cities and metropolitan towns in the rental market.
Outside the provinces of Madrid and Barcelona, Salou (20th) in Tarragona province and Burjassot (23rd) in Valencia province also recorded strong rental demand relative to supply.
Beyond Guadalajara and Vitoria-Gasteiz in the top 10, the article lists Tarragona (11th), Pamplona (12th), Lleida (13th), Zaragoza (16th), Barcelona (17th), Girona (18th), Castellón de la Plana (21st), Palma (22nd), Valladolid (24th) and Logroño (25th) among the provincial capitals in the top 25.
Alicante, Málaga and Valencia show strong rental demand along the coast
After Madrid and Barcelona, Alicante stood out with 17 places in the ranking, reflecting strong interest in rentals across coastal and tourist markets. Among them were Elche (32nd), Alcoy (35th), Alicante (47th) and Benidorm (67th).
Málaga province had 11 entries. The city of Málaga (53rd), Torre del Mar (58th), Manilva (59th) and Torremolinos (73rd) all ranked ahead of other major Costa del Sol destinations such as Fuengirola (77th), Benalmádena (78th), Rincón de la Victoria (99th), Estepona (136th) and Marbella (147th).
Valencia was the third coastal province highlighted in the report. Demand was spread across the city of Valencia (51st) and nearby municipalities such as Burjassot (23rd), Gandía (42nd) and Paterna (45th).
