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Student eats · November 2026
Studying abroad in Madrid
Every meal here costs €10 or less.
About $12 US. Typical prices, checked November 2, 2026.Madrid eats cheaply standing at a bar: calamari sandwiches, cod croquetas, tortilla by the slice, and a beer that comes with a free tapa. Students go out late and finish with churros.
A day of eating for €17
- Breakfast, €5: Casa Dani, a slice of tortilla and a café con leche
- Lunch, €7: El Brillante, the bocadillo de calamares
- Dinner, €5: El Tigre, a beer or a cider. The huge plate of free tapas comes with it
Breakfast, lunch and dinner: €17, about $20.
Eat for €10 or less
1A photo like it
€5Breakfast
Casa Dani
Get: A slice of tortilla and a café con leche
A market bar that keeps winning best-tortilla prizes. It's runny in the middle, the way Madrid likes it.
2A photo like it
€7Lunch
El Brillante
Get: The bocadillo de calamares
The famous calamari sandwich across from the Reina Sofía museum. Cheap, big, and very Madrid.
3A photo like it
€5Snack
Casa Labra
Get: A tajada de bacalao (fried salt cod) and a croqueta
Since 1860, two counters by the Puerta del Sol: one for the cod, one for the drinks. Eat standing.
4A photo like it
€5Dinner
El Tigre
Get: A beer or a cider. The huge plate of free tapas comes with it
Order a drink, get a mountain of tortilla, croquetas and patatas bravas. A student legend for a reason.
5A photo like it
€7Dinner
Takos al Pastor
Get: Three tacos al pastor and a quesadilla
Tacos for about a euro each, a short walk from Sol. The line moves fast.
6A photo like it
€6Late
Chocolatería San Ginés
Get: Churros con chocolate
Since 1894, and open nearly around the clock. The way every night out in Madrid ends.
The market
Monday to Saturday
Mercado de Antón Martín
Calle Santa Isabel, Lavapiés
Get: Produce and cheap counters inside: Japanese, Mexican, a bakery
San Miguel is pretty and expensive. Antón Martín and San Fernando (Lavapiés) are the markets locals actually use.
The supermarket to find
Mercadona, Día or Lidl
- A ready-made tortilla for a couple of euros
- Chorizo, Manchego and bread for picnics in the Retiro
- Gazpacho in a carton, cheap and good
Día is the cheapest on most corners. Supermarkets close on many Sundays.
How students save in Madrid
- The menú del día (lunch, two courses, bread, a drink) is around €13 to €15 and the best value of the day.
- In some bars a free tapa comes with every drink. Ask '¿pone tapa?'
- Get the Abono Joven travel pass if you're under 26: unlimited metro and buses for very little.
More for Madrid
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Prices are typical, checked November 2, 2026, and move; places with branches all over (chains) are named so you can use any of them. "A photo like it" is the same kind of food, not from that place. Chef Amazing is not paid by any place on this page.
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