European countries have been long time favorites for moving abroad for Americans, with Italy, Spain, and France at the top of the list for decades. But the most recent Google Trends data reveals the spectacular rise of a new star: Portugal spiked in popularity in recent months, surpassing all other major European destinations in searches for the term “moving to” for the first time in recorded Google Trends history.

Hand in hand with this evolution, searches online from the United States for “real estate in Portugal” are following a strong upward trend, rivaling Italy for the first time, thanks to stronger purchasing power for Americans interested to invest in Europe, and Portugal offering some of the most attractive housing prices in Western and Southern Europe. The median price of a home in Portugal was $138 per square foot in the first quarter of 2022, according to Statistics Portugal, having recorded a sharp 17.2% increase from a year prior, but well below the median price of a home in the United States of $202 per square foot, according to data released by the U.S. National Association of Realtors.

Online Searches for “Moving to Portugal” by Americans Spike, Topping All-Time Favorites for Moving to Europe

We analyzed Google Trends data for the search terms “moving to” and “real estate in” for the top ten European countries that attract the highest number of monthly Google searches made from the United States by people who are interested in moving to Europe and/or are looking to buy property in Europe. We looked at how the interest over time has changed, going back to 2004, the earliest data available from Google Trends, through July 2022, and zooming in to the past twelve months, August 2021 to July 2022, for a closer monthly view.

A spectacular spike in searches for “moving to Portugal” is visible starting with May 2022 and continuing through July 2022 (blue line on the chart), clearly outnumbering searches for Italy, Spain and France, the top three countries with consistently higher interest from Americans looking to relocate to Europe up to this point.

1. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Italy

Searches for “moving to Portugal” surpassed “moving to Italy” for the first time ever according to Google Trends data, May, June and July 2022 representing a breakthrough for Portugal, who finally managed to win the hearts of Americans.

This is remarkable given that, historically, Italy has always been a much more popular country than Portugal among Americans looking to move or retire abroad, a fact confirmed by historical data from Google trends going back to 2004. The average number of Google searches for “moving to Italy” was at its highest in the 2000s and holding consistently strong throughout the 2010s, while those for Portugal were significantly lower. However, since 2020 Portugal started to rise in popularity to finally rival Italy in 2022, all the while Italy itself continuing to attract a strong interest for moves abroad among American citizens.

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

2. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Spain

The ever-popular Spain has been a darling destination for retirement and overseas moves for Americans for decades, much more so than its smaller, lesser known next door neighbor. However, in the last three months, Portugal managed to rally more interest from Americans than Spain for the first time since 2004, as per Google Trends data, which is no small feat for this tiny country often overlooked by wannabe expats in favor of Spain.

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

3. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to France

The admirable rise of Portugal of the last few months has led to the dethroning of another relocation powerhouse – France – an exquisite destination much favored by Americans moving abroad for decades. Throughout the 2000s, “moving to France” was a top search term for Americans interested to move to Europe, declining slightly in interest in the 2010s, while “moving to Portugal” enjoyed more interest in the 2020s to finally surpass France in May, June and July 2022.

Google trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

4. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Germany

Germany is a top destination for moves abroad from the United States, with reportedly over 100,000 Americans living in Germany. The country has maintained a significant number of monthly Google searches for the term “moving to Germany” in the last couple of decades. As is the case with Italy, Spain and France, it was only in May of this year that interest in moving to Portugal surpassed that for relocations to Germany, as the most recent Google data shows.

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

5. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Switzerland

Switzerland was ranked as the top country to live and work abroad in a comprehensive 2021 survey conducted by HSBC. But in spite of all the good things Switzerland has going for itself, Americans are much preferring Portugal, according to Google Trends, which show that searches for Portugal have been outnumbering those for Switzerland since April this year and are holding at significantly higher levels through July 2022.

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

6. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Austria

The prestigious Economist Intelligence Unit has named Vienna, Austria the most livable city in its 2022 Global Livability Index. Nonetheless, Americans are not persuaded by the study, as Portugal has been drawing more interest than Austria for moving abroad since the mid 2010s and has greatly outpaced it in the last few months, as Google Trends data reveals.

Google trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

Following the same upward trend, Portugal also tops Sweden, Norway, Netherlands and Denmark in online searches performed by Americans:

7. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Sweden

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

8. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Norway

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

9. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Netherlands

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

10. Moving to Portugal vs Moving to Denmark

Google trends 2004-July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

Real Estate in Portugal Is Now the Number One Favorite in Europe for American Buyers

For the first time ever, Americans are more interested in buying Portuguese homes than Italian, Spanish, or French homes. Portugal’s growing popularity among foreign buyers is reflecting in how fast housing costs are rising compared to other European countries. The prices of homes in Portugal have jumped 17.2% since one year prior, according to Statistics Portugal (INE), reaching $138 per sq.ft. What’s driving prices? Inflation, rising interest rates and heightened interest from foreign buyers are the main culprits blamed for the skyrocketing prices. The data from INE reveals that foreign buyers are purchasing more expensive homes than locals. Homebuyers with the tax residence abroad purchased homes with an average price per square foot of $209, compared to $138 for those with Portuguese tax residence, spending about 5o% more.

1. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Italy

Spring 2022 was the first time ever when American interest for real estate in Portugal was stronger than that for Italian real estate, according to Google data. The trend became more pronounced starting with May 2022. In spite of getting more expensive by the day, homes in Portugal still have the price advantage over Italian houses, which cost on average $183 per square foot, according to Immobiliare.it, 32% more expensive. However, this might not be the case for long, given that home prices are stagnating in Italy at the moment, the high demand for Portugal real estate might shrink the price difference between the two countries sooner rather than later.

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

2. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Spain

Real estate is no longer caliente, it is now muito quente (very hot in Portuguese). After trailing in interest behind Spain for decades, Portuguese real estate is now drawing more Google searches from Americans than ever before, surpassing the most desired of all European countries by Americans ever: Spain. What’s giving Portugal the upper hand is that it offers a similar climate and quality of life, while home prices are about 20% cheaper than in Spain, with the average price of a Spanish home at $174 per square foot, according to Indomio.es, having increased 7.44% from a year prior.

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

3. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in France

Although agency inquiries from U.S.-based buyers have reportedly increased in recent months, overall online searches for real estate in Portugal in the first months of 2022 have consistently outranked those for French real estate. French houses and apartments are among the most expensive in Europe, with the average price per square foot above $700 in the central region of Ile-de-France, according to the  La Chambre des Notaires de Paris, making Portuguese homes that much more attractive in comparison.

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

4. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Switzerland

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

According to Google Trends, since around 2016 interest for “real estate in Portugal” has been consistently higher than the interest for real estate in the colder climate countries of Sweden, Germany, Austria, Norway, Netherlands and Denmark and has remained stronger ever since.

5. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Sweden

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

6. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Germany

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

7. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Austria

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

8. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Norway

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

9. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Netherlands

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

10. Real Estate in Portugal vs Real Estate in Denmark

Google Trends 2004 – July 2022

Google Trends August 2021 – July 2022

Methodology: 

The search terms analyzed are “Moving to [Country]” and “Real estate in [Country]” for Portugal, Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, from Google Trends for searches performed from the United States as of July 31, 2022.

Home prices are reported in U.S. dollars per square foot converted from euros per square meter, using currency conversion rates valid as of August 6, 2022.

Home prices sources: Statistics Portugal, U.S. National Association of Realtors, Immobiliare.it, Indomio.es, La Chambre des Notaires de Paris.

Source: https://mydolcecasa.com/2022/08/08/portugal-tops-online-searches-moving-abroad-europe/