--- title: "Madrid vs Mexico City: Class A office comparison" description: "Side-by-side Class A office comparison for Madrid and Mexico City — rent, vacancy, talent, tax, lease norms, transit, and top submarkets." canonical: https://classa.info/compare/madrid-vs-mexico-city pageType: comparison lastUpdated: 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z license: "CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info)." --- > Madrid ($41/sqft, 8.6% vacancy) and Mexico City ($34/sqft, 22.6% vacancy) compete on different axes: Madrid on talent depth and Mexico City on talent depth. ## TL;DR - Class A rent: Madrid $41/sqft vs Mexico City $34/sqft. - Vacancy: Madrid 8.6% vs Mexico City 22.6%. - Talent index: Madrid 78 vs Mexico City 78. - Corporate tax: Madrid 25% vs Mexico City 30%. - Premium flex/seat/month: Madrid $780 vs Mexico City $380. # Madrid vs Mexico City: Class A office comparison **Madrid ($41/sqft, 8.6% vacancy) and Mexico City ($34/sqft, 22.6% vacancy) compete on different axes: Madrid on talent depth and Mexico City on talent depth.** ## TL;DR - [Class A](/glossary/class-a) rent: Madrid $41/sqft vs Mexico City $34/sqft. - Vacancy: Madrid 8.6% vs Mexico City 22.6%. - Talent index: Madrid 78 vs Mexico City 78. - Corporate tax: Madrid 25% vs Mexico City 30%. - [Premium flex](/topics/lease-vs-flex)/seat/month: Madrid $780 vs Mexico City $380. ## Market data side-by-side | Metric | Madrid | Mexico City| | Region | EMEA | Americas| | Country | Spain | Mexico| | Class A rent (USD/sqft/yr) | $41 | $34| | Class A rent (local) | 38 EUR | 580 MXN| | Vacancy | 8.6% | 22.6%| | Trend | rising | flat| | Prime yield | 4.6% | 7.4%| | Premium flex / seat / month (USD) | $780 | $380| | Submarkets covered | 5 | 5| | Corporate tax | 25% | 30%| ## Lease norms | Metric | Madrid | Mexico City| | Typical term | 7 yrs | 5 yrs| | Typical rent-free | 14 mos | 6 mos| | Lease norms | Standard 5-year lease with 5-year extension option (5+5). Rent indexed to CPI annually. Service charges billed separately. Tenant typically pays IBI (real estate tax) and basura (waste tax). Bank guarantee of 3-6 months standard. | Net leases. 5-7 year terms with renewal options. Free rent of 4-9 months and TI of MXN 1,200-2,200/sqm typical. Most trophy leases are USD-pegged for international tenants.| | Tax note | Headline corporate tax 25%. Madrid region offers some of Spain's most competitive personal income tax rates. | 30% Mexican corporate income tax (ISR). 16% VAT (IVA). IMMEX (maquiladora) program offers temporary import duty deferrals for export-oriented manufacturing tenants.| ## Talent | Metric | Madrid | Mexico City| | Talent index (0–100) | 78 | 78| | Talent note | Iberian peninsula's deepest financial-services and tech talent pool. Average all-in compensation indexes 78. | Deep banking, professional services, and engineering talent. Strong feed from UNAM, IPN, ITAM, Tec de Monterrey. Spanish-English bilingual professional base growing rapidly.| ## Transit & commute **Madrid:** Madrid Metro covers all Class A clusters. AVE high-speed rail to Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, and Lisbon. Madrid-Barajas Airport is 12-25 minutes from CBD by Metro. **Mexico City:** Mexico City Metro (12 lines, the second-largest in the Americas), Metrobús BRT (7 lines), Tren Suburbano. Mexico City International Airport (MEX) connected via Line 4 BRT; new Felipe Ángeles International (NLU) bus-served. ## Top submarkets — Madrid - [**Cuatro Torres**](/cities/madrid/cuatro-torres) — [trophy tier](/topics/trophy-asset-selection) · €50/sqft/yr · ≈ $54 PSF/yr USD - [**Castellana & AZCA**](/cities/madrid/castellana-azca) — trophy tier · €45/sqft/yr · ≈ $48.6 PSF/yr USD - [**Méndez Álvaro / Atocha**](/cities/madrid/mendez-alvaro) — prime tier · €32/sqft/yr · ≈ $34.6 PSF/yr USD ## Top submarkets — Mexico City - [**Paseo de la Reforma**](/cities/mexico-city/paseo-de-la-reforma) — trophy tier · MX$700/sqm/mo · ≈ $40.6 PSF/yr USD - [**Polanco**](/cities/mexico-city/polanco) — trophy tier · MX$680/sqm/mo · ≈ $39.4 PSF/yr USD - [**Santa Fe**](/cities/mexico-city/santa-fe) — trophy tier · MX$560/sqm/mo · ≈ $32.5 PSF/yr USD ## Decision criteria ### Pick by cost Mexico City is the cheaper Class A market on a USD basis. ### Pick by talent depth Talent data not available for comparison. ### Pick by tax Madrid has the lower headline corporate tax (25% vs 30%). Local incentives can change the effective rate materially. ### Pick by lease optionality Madrid typical term is 7 years with 14 months free; Mexico City runs 5 years with 6 months free. ### Pick by transit Madrid: Madrid Metro covers all Class A clusters. AVE high-speed rail to Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, and Lisbon. Madrid-Barajas Airport is 12-25 minutes from CBD by Metro. Mexico City: Mexico City Metro (12 lines, the second-largest in the Americas), Metrobús BRT (7 lines), Tren Suburbano. Mexico City International Airport (MEX) connected via Line 4 BRT; new Felipe Ángeles International (NLU) bus-served. ## Run a 4-city comparison Score Madrid, Mexico City and up to two more markets side-by-side on Class A rent, vacancy, talent, corporate tax, and premium flex pricing — all in USD. [**Run a 4-city comparison →**](/tools/city-comparator) ## Frequently asked questions ****Is Class A office cheaper in Madrid or Mexico City?**** : Mexico City is cheaper on a USD basis: $34/sqft vs $41/sqft. ****Which has better talent depth, Madrid or Mexico City?**** : Roughly comparable. ****Which has more sublease availability, Madrid or Mexico City?**** : Mexico City carries higher vacancy (22.6% vs 8.6%) and therefore typically more [sublease](/topics/sublease-strategy)">sublease overhang. ****What lease term should I expect in Madrid vs Mexico City?**** : Madrid typical term is 7 years with 14 months rent-free; Mexico City typical term is 5 years with 6 months rent-free. ****How does transit and commuter access compare?**** : Madrid: Madrid Metro covers all Class A clusters. AVE high-speed rail to Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, and Lisbon. Madrid-Barajas Airport is 12-25 minutes from CBD by Metro. Mexico City: Mexico City Metro (12 lines, the second-largest in the Americas), Metrobús BRT (7 lines), Tren Suburbano. Mexico City International Airport (MEX) connected via Line 4 BRT; new Felipe Ángeles International (NLU) bus-served. ## Editorial provenance Reviewed by [**Samuel Okafor**](/about/authors/samuel-okafor) — EMEA contributing editor. Last updated 2026-04-15. See our [methodology](/about/methodology) and [editorial standards](/about/editorial-standards). ### Primary sources for this page - [CBRE Marketview reports](https://www.cbre.com/insights) — CBRE - [JLL Office Insight](https://www.jll.com/en/trends-and-insights) — JLL - [Cushman & Wakefield Marketbeat](https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights) — Cushman & Wakefield - [Savills World Research](https://www.savills.com/research_articles/) — Savills - [Colliers Global Office Outlook](https://www.colliers.com/en/research) — Colliers [Full sources index](/about/sources) · [Submit a correction](/about/corrections) --- Citation: Source: Class A Atlas (https://classa.info/compare/madrid-vs-mexico-city), updated 2026-04-15T00:00:00.000Z.