Nearly half of the employed population in the Barcelona metropolitan area—49.2%—commutes to a different municipality for work, a clear indicator of the region’s deepening integration and complex daily mobility patterns. The figure comes from the 2025 Urban Cohesion Survey (ECURB), which highlights a growing process of “metropolitanization” where the lines between Barcelona city and its surrounding towns are increasingly blurred by daily life.


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The comprehensive survey was conducted by the Institut Metròpoli at the request of the Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB), the public body governing the city and its 36 adjacent municipalities. Researchers interviewed 3,838 residents over the age of 16 between May 5 and June 16, 2025. The trend of cross-municipality travel is not limited to work; the study also found that 40.9% of students travel to another locality for their education.

The Housing Paradox: High Satisfaction Amidst a Deepening Crisis

While residents are on the move for work and study, the primary catalyst for changing homes is the relentless pressure of the housing market. According to the survey, the high price of housing is the main reason people in the metropolitan area decide to move, cited by 23.9% of respondents. This finding, reported by 20 Minutos Barcelona, exists alongside a striking paradox: an overwhelming majority of residents are happy where they live. Overall, 85.8% of the population is satisfied or very satisfied with their current neighborhood.

This satisfaction is highest in the city of Barcelona (88.6%) and the second metropolitan ring (86%), while slightly lower in the first ring of municipalities immediately surrounding the capital (82.9%).

Despite this contentment, the struggle to find suitable housing is becoming universal. A staggering 79.1% of residents believe it is difficult to find an affordable home that meets their needs in their neighborhood. This perception has soared by 20.3% compared to 2022, signaling a rapidly worsening situation. In Barcelona city, the figure is even higher at 80.1%.

A Widening Problem

Sergio Porcel, head of the Social and Urban Cohesion Area at the Institut Metròpoli, explained that this feeling of difficulty has been climbing steadily and reflects a systemic issue.

“This perception has been increasing significantly between 2017 and 2025, which reflects the current housing crisis,” Porcel stated. He noted that while the problem was initially concentrated in the central city, the perception of difficulty has now spread across the entire metropolitan area. “In recent years, the levels of perceived difficulty in finding housing have equalized throughout the metropolitan area, extending the problem,” he added.

Looking for a Better Life

The housing crisis is prompting many to consider their future options. The survey found that 30.1% of the population plans to move within the next five years. While this intention has decreased slightly in Barcelona city (33.1%), it is on the rise in the outer metropolitan ring (28.1%).

Interestingly, the motivation for moving is shifting. While price remains a major factor, the primary driver for half of those planning a move is the desire for a better home or a better environment. This reason has surged from 30.7% in 2017 to 49.2% in 2025, continuing an upward trend that began in 1985. This suggests that residents are not just fleeing high costs but are actively seeking an improved quality of life, a search that often leads them across municipal boundaries, reinforcing the very mobility patterns the survey documents.