Shopping basket price in Malaga province experiences biggest rise in a year

The cost of living in Malaga has been mixed. On the one hand, it is true that the general price index, i.e. the increase in the cost of the main products as a whole, has moderated from levels above 3% (December 2024) to 2.7% (May 2025). According to the latest data from Spain's national institute of statistics (INE), the province is no longer the one with the highest general inflation in Spain, having been exceeded by Castellón, where the general CPI (consumer price index) stood at 2.8%. Inflation in Malaga has hit the lowest level recorded since October 2024, when the rate of price rises was 1.7%.

On the other hand, grocery prices resumed increases this past May. The price of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 2.1% in Malaga, compared to April (1.3%). These basic goods have not been so expensive since August 2024. According to the INE, the increase recorded in May was mainly due to the rise in fruit prices. At the national level, they recorded an increase of 13%.

Also at the national level, what rose the most was chocolate (25.1% compared to a year ago), followed by coffee (19.8%), as well as eggs (18%) and beef (13.4%).

At the other extreme, olive oil (-43.8%) fell the most compared to the levels from a year ago, followed by sugar (18.2%).

How does the change of prices in Malaga compare with the rest of Spain? It is the second highest in terms of overall price rises, behind only Castellón. Moreover, as usual, its rate of increase is above the national average, which in May stood at 2%, representing a relaxation of two tenths of a percentage point compared to April. Within Andalucía, Cadiz (2.4%) follows Malaga, while the rest of the provinces in the region recorded price increases below the national average, with Almeria with the lowest rate (1.6%), although Murcia has the lowest inflation in the whole country, with 1.3%.

It is important to note that the increase of 2.1% in groceries recorded in May in the province is below the national average, which last month was 2.5%. The Spanish province with the smallest increase in grocery prices was Pontevedra (1.1%). In Andalucía, it was Cordoba (1.7%). At the other end was Guadalajara, with a price increase of 4.5%, while in Andalucía this position was occupied by Cadiz (2.8%).

The item that experienced the highest increase in Malaga province in May, was household supplies (water, electricity and gas), growing by 8.5% compared to 2024. The national average was 3.8%. The second most expensive item was restaurant and hotel offers, with a rise of 4.6% (4.3% in Spain), tied with clothing and footwear (at the national level the increase was limited to 0.5%). Alcoholic beverages and tobacco registered a rise of 3.6% last month; health, 2.9%; education, 2.6%, and communications, 2.3%. The only thing that dropped was transport (-2.6%), which is attributed to the decline in fuels and lubricants for personal vehicles and passenger air transport. At the national level, liquid fuels dropped by about 16%, petrol by 12.5% and diesel by 9.1%.

Alongside the latest CPI update, the reference index for housing leases was published, which must be applied to update monthly rent payments for contracts signed from mid-2023 onwards, instead of using the CPI, in accordance with the Housing Rights Law passed that year. It may also apply to contracts signed prior to the law, provided they included this tool as the formula for rent adjustments. This is a nationwide indicator that has been published since January 2, 2025, and it consistently comes in below the general price index. Specifically, for the month of May, it stood at 1.99%.