Costa del Sol Ranked #4 Globally in the Prime Market Index 2025

The Costa del Sol has secured 4th place globally among the world’s most dynamic luxury property markets. This is not marketing, it is data.

The Global Prime Market Index 2025, published by JamesEdition, the world’s largest luxury real estate platform, with over two million monthly visits and 600,000 active listings daily, places the Costa del Sol fourth in the world, behind only Dubai, Mallorca, and the French Riviera.

At Engel & Völkers Marbella, we have advised international clients across every segment of this market for decades. We have watched the Costa del Sol grow steadily in stature on the global buyer’s radar, and we have seen that interest translate into transactions at every price point. This report validates with hard data what our market experience has long indicated: the Costa del Sol is no longer an emerging market. It is an established global reference.

In this article, we break down the most significant findings from the index, place them in context, and explain what they mean in practice for those buying, selling, or investing in luxury property on the Costa del Sol.

The JamesEdition Global Prime Market Index does not simply measure transaction volumes or headline prices. Its methodology analyses three independent dimensions, which are combined into a single composite score:

• Demand Scale Index: the overall depth of buyer interest in each market, measured through total enquiries, the share of enquiries above €3 million, and the ratio of enquiries per listing.
• Demand Momentum Index: how demand is evolving over time, not its absolute size, but the speed and direction of change.
• Luxury Supply Index: the depth and evolution of available luxury inventory within each market.

What sets this index apart is that it is based on observed buyer behaviour, searches, enquiries, and activity, rather than sentiment surveys or press coverage. When a market rises in this ranking, it means that sophisticated buyers are actively directing their attention and capital towards it, often before transactions are formally concluded.

The index covers 38 destinations worldwide, classified across three typologies: urban markets (global cities), coastal markets (such as the Costa del Sol), and alpine and lakeside markets. Europe accounts for 73.7% of the markets covered, followed by North America at 13.1%.

These are the direct figures from the report for the Costa del Sol in the overall index:

Global Prime Market Index score: 69.9 — 4th globally

Demand Scale: 89.9 — the second highest score among all coastal markets, behind only the French Riviera (90.8)

Demand Momentum: 34.3

Luxury Supply: 67.8Median price per sq m: $7,300/sq m ($680/sq ft)

A Demand Scale score of 89.9 out of 100 places the Costa del Sol as the second coastal market globally in terms of buyer depth. That reflects a genuine critical mass of active buyers, not a passing trend.

To put this in perspective: London (69.7), Los Angeles (60.9), Miami (59.2), Paris (55.7), New York (52.6), and Barcelona (41.6) all rank below the Costa del Sol in this index. These are not minor markets, they are global benchmarks. Yet the combination of demand, momentum, and supply conditions that the Costa del Sol presents outperforms all of them in this comparative analysis.

From our position in Marbella, this is consistent with what we observe in day-to-day buyer enquiries and transaction activity: the profile of international buyer choosing the Costa del Sol has become more discerning, better informed, and more committed than at any point in our history here.

One of the most striking findings in the report is the Costa del Sol’s performance when the data is broken down by price tier. In the entry-luxury segment, properties priced below one million dollars, the Costa del Sol achieves a Demand Scale score of 100.0: the maximum possible.

100 out of 100 for demand in the entry-luxury segment. No other market in the entire index records greater buyer depth at this price point.

What this tells us is that interest in the Costa del Sol is not confined to ultra-high-net-worth buyers. The market has genuine breadth: there is active demand from the first million upwards across all price brackets. This creates liquidity, turnover, and a market floor that holds more robustly than destinations where demand is concentrated exclusively in the ultra-premium tier.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, in the ultra-luxury segment (properties above $10 million), the Costa del Sol ranks 5th globally with a Demand Scale of 97.6 — again, near-perfect. Our advisors work across both ends of this spectrum daily, and the depth of demand at every level is something we experience directly in how quickly well-positioned properties move.

The figures speak for themselves when placed in comparative context:

• Costa del Sol: $7,300/sq m
• French Riviera: $12,600/sq m
• Ibiza: $11,000/sq m
• Mallorca: $8,200/sq m
• London: $23,000/sq m
• Zürich: $25,800/sq m

The Costa del Sol delivers the second highest demand score among all coastal markets at the most competitive price per square metre of any destination that ranks above or alongside it. That is a genuine value gap, and it is measurable.

This is not a ‘cheap’ market in any conventional sense. The median listing price confirms that we are firmly in the prime segment. But relative to comparable Mediterranean alternatives on a lifestyle-per-square-metre basis, the Costa del Sol continues to offer more for less. That differential is one of the most consistent points our international clients raise when comparing destinations.

The French Riviera, ranked 3rd globally, commands nearly double the price per square metre. For any international buyer comparing like for like in terms of quality of life, that differential is difficult to overlook, and in our experience, it is one of the clearest reasons buyers arrive in Marbella and decide to stay.

The report highlights a structural pattern that extends beyond Marbella: Spain has three markets in the global top six , Mallorca (2nd), Costa del Sol (4th), and Ibiza (6th). No other country achieves that concentration at the top of the ranking.

This is not coincidental. Several reinforcing factors underpin it:

• Legal certainty and institutional stability for international buyers
• World-class international air connectivity, Málaga Airport handled over 23 million passengers in 2024
• Fiscally attractive residency structures for EU and non-EU nationals
• Genuine quality of life: climate, gastronomy, private healthcare, and established international schools
• Mature, internationally recognised residential communities with decades of history

Within this context, the Costa del Sol, with Marbella as its epicentre, functions as the flagship market by virtue of its supply depth, infrastructure, and global brand recognition. This is not a seasonal destination. It is a permanent international residential platform, and the breadth of the communities our clients join here reflects exactly that.

A fair question arises: how does the Costa del Sol rank above London, Paris, New York, or Miami in a global prime market index?

The answer lies in both the methodology and a documented shift in the behaviour of high-net-worth buyers that the report captures clearly:

“Lifestyle drives value as much as investment. Buyers are weighing how a place supports the way they want to live, today and over time, alongside its financial performance.” – Eric Finnas Dahlstrom, CEO of JamesEdition

This shift is something we observe directly in how our clients frame their decisions. The conversation has moved well beyond return on investment. Buyers want to understand the school options, the healthcare infrastructure, the flight connections, the social environment, and increasingly, the residency landscape. The Costa del Sol answers all of these questions convincingly.

Structurally, the market holds advantages that major urban centres cannot replicate:

• Privacy without isolation: premium communities with access to first-class services, without the density or pace of a global city
• A year-round operational climate, supported by infrastructure designed for permanent residency, not just seasonal occupation
• A genuinely diversified buyer profile: Northern Europeans, Central Europeans, Latin Americans, Gulf nationals, and British buyers all active in the same market, reducing dependence on any single source of demand
• Residency efficiency: for significant wealth, the tax and lifestyle advantages of Spanish residency frequently compare favourably with alternatives in the United Kingdom or France

Major urban markets remain larger in absolute terms. But in the metric this index measures, the intensity and dynamism of luxury demand relative to available inventory, the Costa del Sol outperforms them. Our order book reflects the same conclusion.

Beyond the headline ranking, what are the practical implications of the Costa del Sol’s 4th place position for those active in this market?

For current owners:

Global recognition as a first-tier prime market reinforces the positioning of existing assets. The international comparables that now sit alongside the Costa del Sol, the French Riviera, Mallorca, Ibiza, command noticeably higher prices per square metre. That gap does not indicate weakness on the Costa del Sol’s part; it suggests documented appreciation potential relative to the benchmark set by its closest peers. If you are considering selling, our team can advise on how to position your property within this global context.

For investors evaluating entry:

The combination of a Demand Scale of 89.9, competitive pricing relative to direct comparables, and a top-five ranking in both the entry-luxury and ultra-luxury segments creates an unusually strong investment narrative. The market has depth across the full price spectrum, a characteristic that supports long-term capital security. We work with investors at every stage of this process, from market analysis through to acquisition.

For end-user buyers:

The data corroborates what a great many of our clients have experienced directly: Marbella and the Costa del Sol offer a world-class lifestyle at a price point that comparable markets cannot match. The index measures demand, and demand is an expression of perceived value. That value is now backed by independently verified data, and by the day-to-day reality of life here that our team knows intimately.

For years, the prevailing narrative in the sector was that the Costa del Sol had potential. The JamesEdition Global Prime Market Index 2025 changes that conversation. The Costa del Sol no longer has potential, it has a position.

Fourth place globally, a Demand Scale of 89.9 among coastal markets, a perfect score of 100 in the entry-luxury segment, and a top-five ranking in ultra-luxury: these figures place this market in the same tier as Dubai, the French Riviera, and Mallorca, at prices that do not yet fully reflect that standing.

At Engel & Völkers Marbella, we have been active in this market through every cycle. What this report confirms is what our advisors have been communicating to clients for some time: international capital of the highest calibre continues to choose the Costa del Sol, and it is doing so with increasing conviction and at greater scale. The data now says what the market has long been showing.

If you are considering buying, selling, or investing in prime property on the Costa del Sol, our team is here to help. Contact Engel & Völkers Marbella for market-driven advice tailored to your objectives.

Source: Global Prime Market Index 2025 – JamesEdition. All quantitative data cited in this article is drawn directly from this report.