A total of 10 mayors of large Spanish cities, although the group also includes some small municipalities, receive salaries higher than those of the president of the government, Pedro Sánchez. According to data from the Information on Salaries of Administrative Positions (ISPA), published this Tuesday by the Ministry of Digital Transformation and Public Function, the salary of a dozen councilors in 2024 exceeded the 93,145 euros per year received in the same year by the head of the executive.
Madrid tops the list: its first mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, received 110,688 euros a year last year, a figure that makes him the highest paid mayor in the country. Followed by Juan Mari Aburto (Bilbao), with 105,557 euros, and Jaume Collboni (Barcelona), with 104,000 euros.
The list continues in northern cities. The recently replaced former city councilor of San Sebastián, Eneko Goia, received 96,965 euros last year, followed closely by Maider Etxebarria, from Vitoria-Gasteiz (96,016 euros). Among the large capitals of the south, Seville, with José Luis Sanz Ruiz, appears with 95,684 euros, while Francisco de la Torre, from Malaga, records 95,500 euros.
Also at the top of the list is the city of Marbella, the only one that is not the provincial capital. Its mayor, Ángeles Muñoz, received 95,464 euros. She is followed by Cristina Ayala, from Burgos, with 94,555 euros, and the Valencian María José Catalá, who pocketed 94,291 euros in 2024. All with an exclusive dedication.
In addition to surpassing the President of the Government, many of these councilors also surpassed the first vice-president and head of the Treasury, María Jesús Montero, whose salary reached 94,889 euros, according to data from the Transparency Portal. They also surpassed the second vice president and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz (87,547 euros), the former third vice president and head of the Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera (83,674 euros), and Ana Redondo, head of Equality, among others.
Only the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles (99,356 euros), and the head of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska (97,123 euros), come close to the highest salaries of councilors.
The salaries that mayors receive are the responsibility of each council, although there are maximum levels that they must respect and which are included in the Law regulating the basis of the local regime of 2013, when limits were introduced to limit public spending. The rule provides that the remuneration will be limited according to the parameters set each year by the General State Budget, for which the size of the locality is taken into account.
The 2023 public accounts (extended to 2024 and 2025) set a maximum ceiling of 46,464 euros for councilors of municipalities between 1,000 and 5,000 residents. The figure gradually increases depending on the inhabitants and reaches the maximum of 116,160 euros for cities that exceed half a million. In the middle there are 63,888 euros for a mayor with a population between 20,001 and 50,000 inhabitants or the maximum 92,928 euros for someone who governs a municipality between 150,001 and 300,000 inhabitants.
Mayors of municipalities with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants are prohibited from exclusive dedication. That is, they must combine their work as advisors with other tasks at a private level. However, depending on the degree of part-time commitment, they can charge a maximum of 34,848 euros.
The statistics updated Tuesday by the Ministry contain information on 6,858 municipalities across Spain. The vast majority, around 3,500 localities, have mayors without remuneration for their commitment, with an average salary of 1,660 euros which is explained by daily allowances and small payments. Another 1,656 councilors maintain part-time work and earn 19,560 euros a year, while 1,615 mayors dedicate themselves exclusively to this job, with an average salary of up to 44,118 euros. Another 1,271 municipalities did not send the corresponding information.
