South-east against south-west. Two large, affordable districts with the centre a quarter of an hour away, each with its own metro lines and its own kind of neighbourhood.
A first place of your own, or a shared flat, on an entry-level salary — when you want money left over at the end of the month.
People who want to stay in Madrid city, need room to work from home and don't want to pay the premium for living inside the M-30, the inner ring road.
It is big and uneven: between Numancia and Palomeras Bajas there are real differences in the state of the buildings and in price. The exact street matters more here than almost anywhere else.
Prices have risen faster than in neighboring districts, precisely because of all of the above. They are still below the Madrid city average, but the gap narrows every year.
Public transport, arriving before 9:00 on a weekday, from Puente de Vallecas (Portazgo) and from Carabanchel (Oporto). The faster one is in green.
| Destination | Puente de Vallecas | Carabanchel |
|---|---|---|
| Puerta del Sol | 14 minL1C4 | 19 minL5L2 |
| Nuevos Ministerios · AZCA | 20 minL1C4 | 26 minL6C5C10 |
| Cuatro Torres | 35 minL1C10L10 | 43 minL6L10 |
| Distrito TelefĂłnica | 47 minL1C10L10 | 55 minL5L10 |
| Atocha station | 9 minL1 | 18 minL6C5 |
| Airport T4 | 43 minL1C10L8 | 51 minL6C5C10L8 |
| IFEMA | 38 minL1C10L8 | 48 minL5L2C3L8 |
| Ciudad Universitaria (UCM · UPM) | 30 minL1C2L6 | 28 minL6 |
| Cantoblanco campus (UAM) | 50 minL1C4 | 57 minL6C5C4 |
| American School of Madrid | 39 minL1C10 | 31 minL5C10 |
| King's College, Soto de Viñuelas | No reasonable metro or rail | No reasonable metro or rail |
| Lycée Français de Madrid | 46 minL1C10L8L4 | 49 minL6L4 |
One of the few parts of Madrid city where rents are still comparatively low and the centre is fifteen minutes away. Metro line 1 does most of the work.
A first place of your own, or a shared flat, on an entry-level salary — when you want money left over at the end of the month.
Read the Puente de Vallecas guideThe district that has changed most over the last decade while staying affordable. Three Metro lines, artists' studios and a park few outsiders know about.
People who want to stay in Madrid city, need room to work from home and don't want to pay the premium for living inside the M-30, the inner ring road.
Read the Carabanchel guideAccording to rental contracts declared in 2024, Puente de Vallecas and Carabanchel are practically the same: indexes of 82 and 84 in price per square metre (city of Madrid = 100).
Puente de Vallecas has 9 stations inside the area with 3 lines (L1, C2, C7); Carabanchel has 13 stations inside the area with 3 lines (L5, L6, L11). To see which suits you, check how long each takes to your destination in the journeys table.
Within a kilometre of each area's centre, Puente de Vallecas has 22 supermarkets, 35 schools and 92 bars, cafés and restaurants; Carabanchel has 18, 39 and 142.
Rent: SERPAVI (2024). Journeys: CRTM GTFS Metro de Madrid (05-27-2025), CRTM GTFS Metro Ligero (07-22-2026), Renfe GTFS CercanĂas (09-23-2026). Services: OpenStreetMap (ODbL), extracto de Geofabrik del 2026-09-24. Shapes: OpenStreetMap (ODbL) vĂa Nominatim · INE (secciones censales de La Moraleja). Calculated on 2026-09-24.
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