Spain

Last update: September, 2026

Promoting cultural participation and access has become an increasingly important objective of Spanish cultural policy, particularly in recent years through the growing emphasis on cultural rights, inclusion, and audience development. These policies are implemented within Spain’s multilevel governance system and involve cooperation among the Ministry of Culture, the Autonomous Communities, local authorities, and civil society organisations.

Earlier policy frameworks, such as the Culture Plan 2020, sought to broaden participation through the modernisation of cultural infrastructure and the implementation of initiatives aimed at attracting new audiences to museums, cinemas, and performing arts institutions. Since then, programmes focused on cultural mediation, audience development, and access to culture have become increasingly integrated into broader cultural policy strategies.

One of the most significant recent initiatives at the national level is the Bono Cultural Joven [Youth Cultural Voucher], introduced in 2022 to encourage cultural participation among young people reaching adulthood through financial support. Initially covering books, performing arts, cinema, music, audiovisual products and digital cultural content, the programme has become one of Spain’s most visible measures for reducing economic barriers to participation. In May 2026, a new regulatory framework consolidated the programme as a permanent policy instrument. While maintaining the individual allocation of 400 euro, the reform expanded eligible uses to include cultural training, artistic education and creative materials, reflecting a shift from supporting cultural consumption towards encouraging active participation and creative practice.

In parallel, the Ministry of Culture has reinforced audience development through educational initiatives such as Cine Escuela [School Cinema] programme, which promotes cinema attendance among young audiences while fostering audiovisual literacy and critical thinking through school-based activities.

Complementary policies have also been developed for older populations. The Cine Sénior programme, now in its third edition, allows people aged 65 and over to attend cinema screenings at reduced prices, supported by public subsidies to exhibitors (Royal Decree 390/2025). By combining sectoral support with accessibility measures, the programme links cultural participation to active ageing, inclusion and wellbeing.

Public institutions have also strengthened links between culture and education, with museums, libraries and cultural organisations expanding mediation programmes and partnerships with schools. National initiatives such as the Plan Nacional de Educación Patrimonial [National Heritage Education Plan] aim to connect cultural heritage, education and citizenship, reinforcing participation from an early age.

At regional and local levels, numerous programmes promote access through vouchers, subsidies and audience-development schemes. Examples include Cultura Jove [Youth Culture] in Catalonia, offering reduced‑price tickets (€5–€20) to young people; JOBO – Joven Bono Cultural [JOBO – Youth Cultural Voucher] in Madrid, offering free access to cultural activities for young people; and the Bizkaiko Kultur Txartela [Bizkaia Cultural Card] in the Basque Country. These initiatives aim to stimulate participation while fostering long-term cultural habits.

Particularly noteworthy is Apropa Cultura [Close to Culture], initially developed in Catalonia and subsequently extended to other regions. Through partnerships between cultural institutions and social organisations, it facilitates access for vulnerable and socially excluded groups, illustrating the growing role of participation policies in promoting inclusion and social cohesion.

Territorial access remains another key dimension of public policy. Initiatives supporting rural areas, decentralised cultural provision and circulation networks—such as touring programmes for performing arts and cinema dissemination schemes—contribute to reducing geographical inequalities in access to culture.

Digital participation has also become increasingly important. Public cultural institutions have expanded online collections, virtual exhibitions, streaming services and hybrid formats, extending access beyond physical infrastructures. These developments, accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, have become structural components of cultural programming and have enabled engagement with more diverse audiences.

More broadly, policy debates have shifted towards understanding participation not only in terms of attendance but as a matter of cultural rights and democratic inclusion. Issues such as minimum cultural provision, territorial inequalities and unequal participation patterns have gained prominence in public debate.

This perspective is reinforced by the Cultural Rights Plan 2025-2030, which introduces measures to reduce structural barriers, including studies on participation inequalities, targeted programmes for vulnerable groups, cultural initiatives in prisons, anti-discrimination measures in cultural institutions and the development of a Network of Culture Points, inspired by international models such as Brazil’s Pontos de Cultura and Cultura Viva [Living Culture] programme.

Overall, cultural participation policies in Spain increasingly connect access to culture with broader objectives of citizenship, social cohesion and democratic engagement. Programmes such as Cultura y Ciudadanía [Culture and Citizenship] and Spain’s participation in IberCultura Viva further emphasise the role of culture as a space for community development, participation and cultural democracy.

Last update: September, 2026

Receptive cultural participation

The 2024-2025 Survey on Cultural Habits and Practices, based on 16,000 interviews with individuals aged 15 and over, reports the highest levels of cultural consumption in Spain in recent decades, confirming a strong recovery after the decline observed during the COVID-19 pandemic (2021–2022 edition).

With few exceptions—such as music listening, radio consumption, television viewing and reading of daily or sports press—most indicators show higher participation levels than in the previous period.

Watching audiovisual content and listening to music remain the most frequent cultural activities, with monthly participation rates of 81% and 77.8%, respectively. Around 64.9% of the population reported reading at least one book during the year. Visits to heritage and cultural institutions were also significant: 52.1% of the population visited monuments or archaeological sites, while 47.6% attended museums, exhibitions or art galleries (40.6%, 33.9% and 18.5%, respectively). Library use, including digital access, reached 28.6%, whereas visits to archives remained comparatively limited (7.6%).

Attendance at live cultural performances reached 47.1%, with contemporary music concerts (32.1%) and theatre (24.7%) being the most popular. Participation in other forms of performing arts remained lower, including classical music concerts (9.7%), dance (7.2%), circus (6.7%), opera (3.9%) and operetta (1.7%). Cinema attendance stood at 48.5%, exceeding participation levels recorded for most live performance formats.

Compared with the previous edition (2021–2022), recovery has been particularly notable in live performances and cinema, increasing from 19.9% to 47.1% and from 27.7% to 48.5%, respectively. Reading also showed moderate growth, rising from 61.7% to 64.9%, while digital reading continued its upward trend.

Digital consumption has become an increasingly central component of cultural participation. The proportion of households subscribing to digital cultural content platforms reached 74.1%, representing an increase of 14.7 percentage points compared to 2021–2022 and over 20 points compared to 2018–2019. 

Table 3: People who participated in or attended a certain cultural activity during the last 12 months in Spain, in % of the population, period 2018-2025

Source:   Ministry of Culture (several years) Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices in Spain.

Note: Usually means at least once a month

With respect to participant characteristics, the latest survey confirms patterns observed in previous editions. Cultural participation continues to vary significantly by sex. Women report higher levels of engagement in reading (with the exception of professional and press reading), library use—both physical and online—and visits to museums, exhibitions, and art galleries. Men, by contrast, show higher rates of visits to monuments and archaeological sites. Age also remains a key determinant of participation. Young people display the highest levels of engagement across most cultural activities, including visits to heritage sites, attendance at live performances, reading, library use, and the purchase of cultural goods. Participation, however, declines progressively with age. Educational attainment continues to be the most influential variable, with levels of cultural participation increasing significantly among individuals with higher educational qualifications.

While these findings provide a detailed picture of socio-demographic inequalities in cultural participation, an important limitation concerns the lack of data on the population’s country of origin. The Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices does not include this variable, restricting the ability to analyse participation patterns among migrant and culturally diverse populations. Although earlier studies examined cultural participation among migrant communities, more recent research on this issue remains limited.

Active cultural participation

The survey also examines the extent to which individuals engage in creative and artistic activities, referred to as active cultural participation. These practices provide important insight into the role of culture beyond consumption, highlighting participation as a form of expression, creativity and everyday cultural engagement.

As shown in Table 4, activities related to the visual arts stand out for their frequency. Photography is the most widespread activity (19.6%), followed by painting or drawing (14.3%) and video creation (9.3%). Writing as a hobby is reported by 6.9% of the population. Participation in musical activities is relatively more limited, with 8.5% of individuals reporting that they play a musical instrument and 1.8% participating in choir singing. In the field of performing arts, 3.8% of the population report practising dance, ballet or similar forms, while 1.3% engage in theatre activities.

As in receptive cultural participation, active practices show significant socio-demographic differences. Sex differences are particularly evident: women report higher participation in activities such as writing (7.9% compared to 5.8% among men) and in visual arts practices such as painting and drawing. In contrast, activities such as playing a musical instrument and video gaming are more prevalent among men. Age also remains a key factor, with younger individuals showing higher levels of participation across most creative activities.

Public support for active cultural participation—particularly in the performing arts—takes place mainly at the local level. Municipalities, non-profit associations and local cultural organisations play a central role in promoting amateur artistic practices, often offering free or low-cost opportunities for participation.

Across Spain, various initiatives support the visibility and circulation of amateur performing arts. These include the Federación de Teatro Amateur de la Comunidad Valenciana [Federation of Amateur Theatre of the Valencian Community], which brings together more than one hundred theatre groups and receives public support for activities and sector development, and Red de Teatro Amateur de Madrid (RED-TAM) [Madrid Amateur Theatre Network], which connects municipalities and amateur companies to facilitate programming and improve access. At the national level, the Confederación EscenAmateur [EscenAmateur Confederation] coordinates regional federations and represents the interests of the amateur theatre sector.

Table 4: People who have carried out artistic activities in Spain in the last 12 months by type of activity, in % of total population, period 2010-2025)

Source:   Ministry of Culture (several years) Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices in Spain.

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Last update: September, 2026

Figures on cultural consumption are drawn from a specific exploitation of the Household Budget Survey carried out by the Ministry of Culture. Since 2024, the statistical framework has been adapted to the COICOP 2018 international classification system.

Table 5: Household cultural expenditure by expenditure purpose, 2024

Source:   Specific exploitation of the Ministry of Culture (2025) from the Household Budget Survey Base 2006 of the National Statistics Institute.

In 2024, household expenditure on cultural goods and services amounted to 14 341.9 million euros, representing 2.2% of total estimated household expenditure on goods and services. Average household expenditure on culture stood at EUR 739.7, while average per capita expenditure reached EUR 296.1.

Among the main components of cultural expenditure were books (11%), periodicals (2.8%), performing arts and cinema (16.7%), audio-visual and sound equipment (10.9%), and mobile and Internet services (14%). In 2024, expenditure on video games and consoles was included as a separate category for the first time, accounting for 4% of total cultural expenditure.

Average per capita cultural expenditure was highest in municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. Expenditure levels were also above the national average in the Autonomous Communities of Aragón, Castile and León, Catalonia, the Valencian Community, the Community of Madrid and La Rioja, with Catalonia recording the highest levels.

Last update: September, 2026

Civic centres, municipal cultural centres and Casas de Cultura [Houses of Culture] constitute key local infrastructures for cultural participation and community life in Spain. Managed predominantly by municipalities, these spaces organise a wide range of activities—including workshops, exhibitions, performances, educational programmes and neighbourhood initiatives—aimed at diverse and inclusive audiences. Beyond their strictly cultural functions, they play an important role in fostering social cohesion, facilitating intergenerational exchange and supporting community development at the local level.

According to the Survey of Cultural Habits and Practices in Spain conducted by the Ministry of Culture, visits to cultural centres declined from 19.9% of the population in 2014–2015 to 15% in 2024–2025, reflecting broader transformations in cultural participation patterns.

Alongside these infrastructures, community arts and participatory cultural projects have expanded significantly over the past decade. Many initiatives emphasise co-creation, mediation and inclusion, often involving collaboration between local authorities, cultural institutions and civil society organisations. Examples include Art i Part [Art and Part], promoted by the Barcelona City Council, as well as numerous local and regional programmes focused on community arts, cultural education and artistic mediation.

Civil society organisations continue to play a central role in Spain’s cultural ecosystem through associations, neighbourhood groups, foundations and grassroots initiatives. Although there is no unified official register, the sector is extensive and highly decentralised, with a large number of organisations operating at local, regional and national levels and contributing to cultural production, participation and community engagement.

Recent policy debates increasingly link cultural participation with cultural rights, democratic engagement and community development. In this context, the Cultural Rights Plan 2025–2030 emphasises the strengthening of local cultural ecosystems, participatory governance and community-based initiatives. It promotes cooperation between public institutions and civil society while recognising citizens not only as audiences but also as active cultural agents involved in cultural creation and community life.