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Share of the population aged 65 and over, 2021: 19.8%
Share of the population aged 65 and over, 2050: 30.8%
Share of the population aged 80 and over, 2021: 6.1%
Share of the population aged 80 and over, 2050: 11.2%
Adults aged 65 and over rating their own health as good or very good, 2021: 44%
Adults aged 65 and over rating their own health as poor or very poor, by income, 2021
– Lowest quintile: 24%
– Highest quintile: 11%
– Total: 19%
Proportion of adults aged 65 and over reporting limitations in daily activities, 2021
– Some Limitations: 37%
– Severe Limitations: 12%
Share of adults aged 65 and over receiving long-term care, 2021: 12.4%
Estimated prevalence of dementia per 1,000 population, 2021: 16.9
Estimated prevalence of dementia per 1,000 population, 2040: 24.0
Total long-term care spending as a share of GDP, 2021: 1.0%
Long-term care workers per 100 people aged 65 and over, 2021: 4.9
Share of informal carers among the population aged 50 and over, 2019
– Daily carers: 8%
– Weekly carers: 4%
– Total: 12%
Share of long-term care workers who work part time or on fixed contracts, 2021
– Part-time: 22.8%
– Fixed-term contract: 30.5%
Average hourly wages of personal care workers, as a share of economy-wide average wage, 2018
– Residential (facility-based) care: 63%
– Home-based care: 60%
Long-term care beds in institutions and hospitals per 1,000 population aged 65 years and over, 2021
– Institutions: 43.4
– Hospitals: 2.0
Long-term care recipients aged 65 and over receiving care at home, 2021: 83%
Total long-term care spending by provider, 2021
– Nursing home: 52%
– Hospital: 17%
– Home care: 21%
– Households: 8%
– Social providers: 0%
– Other: 1%

Source: OECD (2023), Health at a Glance 2023: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, doi.org/10.1787/7a7afb35-en.

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Formal Long-Term Care Workers At Home (FTE) (2018): NA
Formal Long-Term Care Workers In Institutions (FTE) (2018): NA
Long-Term Care Recipients In Institutions Other Than Hospitals (2018): 240,131
Long-Term Care Recipients At Home (2018): 1,080,528

Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. OECD.Stat. Last accessed Oct. 7, 2020.

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Population, Midyear 2022: 47,558,630
Population Density (Number of Persons per Square Kilometer): 94.67
Life Expectancy at Birth, 2022: 83.91
Projected Population, Midyear 2030: 47,076,573
Percentage of Total Population Aged 65 and Older, Midyear 2022: 20.27%
Projected Percentage of Total Population Aged 65 and Older, Midyear 2030: 24.67%
Projected Percentage of Total Population Aged 65 and Older, Midyear 2050: 36.55%

Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2023). Data Portal, custom data acquired via website. United Nations: New York. Accessed 12 May 2023.

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“Spain’s population aged 65 and older rose from 16.5 % in 2000 to 20 % in 2020 – a slightly lower share than the EU average (21 %). This proportion is projected to increase to 33 % by 2050. In 2020, 65-year-old women in Spain could expect to live a further 22.4 years (about 1.4 years above the EU average), while men could expect to live a further 18.4 years (1 year above the EU average).In addition to enjoying life expectancies above the EU averages, both men and women in Spain can expect to spend a greater proportion of their lives after 65 years free from disabilities compared to EU averages (Figure 4). However, as in other countries, Spanish women aged 65 and over are more likely than men to report multiple chronic conditions and limitations in daily activities, so the gender gap in healthy life years is almost nil.

“In Spain, 40 % of men and 44 % of women aged 65 and over report having multiple chronic conditions, which is higher than the EU averages of 32 % (men) and 40 % (women). Older people in Spain also report a slightly higher prevalence of disabilities resulting in limitations in their basic activities of daily living compared to the EU average, based on the SHARE survey.”

Source: OECD/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (2023), Spain: Country Health Profile 2023, State of Health in the EU, OECD Publishing, Paris/European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, Brussels.

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“Long-term care can take the form of inpatient care in dedicated longterm hospital beds or “single-specialty” geriatric hospitals, or as part of the services provided in the context of Law 39/2006 for the Promotion of Personal Autonomy and Assistance for Persons in a Situation of Dependency, namely SAAD [National System for the Assistance of Dependent People].

“When it comes to dedicated long-term hospital beds, the SNS [National Health System] has 10,899 long-term care beds that represent 9% of public beds, and 77% of long-term care beds in the country, according to 2015 data (MSSSI, 2017m). Additionally, private hospitals (usually, not-for-profit) hold 3,102 beds that might be used to complement public supply (MSSSI, 2017m). Typically, hospital long-term beds cover palliative care needs, either in chronic patients or patients with cancer.

“When it comes to SAAD, services are provided through a network of social centres and services available in the ACs [Autonomous Communities], including regional public institutions, services provided by the municipalities, national reference centres for support of specific causes of disability, as well as accredited partner private centres. ACs have total freedom to set up this network of providers where nongovernmental organizations and not-for-profit institutions are considered as priority partners (compared with for-profit providers). Priority in access to services is determined by the assessment of the applicants’ degree of dependency and financial assets. Services are co-paid according to the type of service required and the ability to pay.”

Source: Bernal-Delgado E, García-Armesto S, Oliva J, Sánchez Martínez FI, Repullo JR, PeñaLongobardo LM, Ridao-López M, Hernández-Quevedo C. Spain: Health system review. Health Systems in Transition, 2018;20(2):1–179.

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World Health Systems Facts is a project of the Real Reporting Foundation. We provide reliable statistics and other data from authoritative sources regarding health systems and policies in the US and sixteen other nations.

Page last updated March 6, 2025 by Doug McVay, Editor.