The latest PYMNTS Global Cash Index™ Spanish Edition (a Cardtronics collaboration) is packed with figures about Spain's cash use, including the number of ATMs and bank branches per 100,00 people.

Despite the country's decline in cash use, Spain’s cash share in 2016 accounted for 22.9% of the country’s GDP. 

Excerpt from PYMNTS Global Cash Index™ Spanish Edition (page 2)

One of the biggest contributors to the high cash usage in Spain is the country’s large rural population. Rural Spain, which is heavily reliant on cash to complete small, everyday transactions, accounts for as much as 20.2 percent of the nation’s total population...

Key findings include:

  • Spain boasts an average of 107 ATMs per 100,000 people, one of the highest in Western Europe.
  • The country has an average of 67 bank branches per 100,000. Meanwhile, in Western Europe, the average is 38 bank branches per 100,000. The worldwide average is 28 per 100,000.
  • Spain’s cash share in 2016 accounted for 22.9 percent of the country’s GDP.
  • Spain scores 41 out of 100 on the ATM Availability Index. That’s greater than the Western Europe score of 33 out of 100 and the worldwide average of 28 out of 100.
  • Overall, approximately €253 billion in cash was spent in Spain in 2016.