08.09.2026
Teleworking from the Costa del Sol: why Axarquía is an alternative to Malaga capital
Teleworking from the Costa del Sol: why Axarquía is an alternative to Malaga capital
For a long time, choosing where to live was closely conditioned by the location of work. The distance to the office, daily trips and communications with the main business centers marked a good part of the residential decisions. The advance of teleworking has changed that scenario and has introduced a question that a few years ago many people could not even ask themselves: if I can work from anywhere, where do I really want to live?
This new freedom is making certain areas close to large cities gain attractiveness. In Malaga, Axarquía offers a particularly interesting combination: proximity to the capital, coast, municipalities with life all year round and an environment that allows you to better separate your professional space from the fast pace of a city.
It is not about replacing Málaga with Axarquía or deciding which is better. It is about understanding that, when going to an office daily is no longer essential, new ways of choosing where to establish your home appear.
Teleworking is now part of the labor market
Working from home stopped being an exceptional situation a long time ago. The latest data available from the National Statistics Institute show that in 2025, 14.8% of employed people between 16 and 74 years old had teleworked during the week prior to the survey. Among those who had the effective possibility of doing so, the proportion reached 47.7%.
Andalusia was also among the autonomous communities with the greatest presence of this modality, with 13.7% of its employees working remotely. Among those who telework, the average was 2.9 days per week and the experience obtained a rating of 8.9 points out of 10.
This depicts a work reality in which many people no longer need to be near their company five days a week. For some professionals, it is enough to travel occasionally; others can carry out their activity completely remotely. In both cases, the home takes on a different role.
When the home also becomes a workplace
Teleworking changes the relationship we have with our home. If we are going to spend several hours working from home, aspects that may have previously seemed secondary become much more important.
An additional room can be converted into an office. A terrace is no longer just a space for the weekend and becomes part of the daily routine. Natural light, silence, views or having outdoor areas can directly influence the quality of the work day.
It also changes the environment we look for when closing the computer. Being able to go for a walk, play sports, get close to the sea or simply disconnect in a quieter environment takes on a special value when home and workplace share an address.
In this context, many towns in Axarquía have characteristics that fit especially well with this new way of living.
Close to Malaga, but with a different rhythm
One of the main advantages of the Eastern Costa del Sol is that it allows you to change your surroundings without leaving Malaga.
Rincón de la Victoria is practically a residential extension to the east of the capital, while towns such as Chilches, Benajarafe or Torre del Mar allow you to gradually move away from the urban environment while maintaining a reasonable road connection.
This is especially interesting for hybrid models. Living outside of Malaga does not have to mean giving up an in-person meeting, a professional lunch, an event or an occasional day at the office.
The difference is that travel is no longer a mandatory part of each day.
For someone who only needs to go to Malaga once or twice a week, the map of places where it is reasonable to live expands considerably.
Benajarafe: working at a different pace without isolating yourself
Benajarafe represents this alternative especially well.
It maintains a residential and quiet character, has services for daily life and allows you to enjoy the Mediterranean all year round. At the same time, its connection with the A-7 facilitates travel to Malaga and other important centers in Axarquía.
For those who work from home, being able to finish a meeting and go for a walk by the sea a few minutes later may seem like a minor detail until it becomes part of the routine.
Also attractive is the possibility of finding types of housing different from those usual in the center of a large city: terraces, gardens, single-family homes or properties where it is easier to have a room dedicated exclusively to work.
Precisely for this reason Benajarafe is arousing interest among profiles that are looking for something more than a holiday residence and are beginning to consider this part of the coast as a place to establish their usual life.
Torre del Mar: services and urban life on a smaller scale
For those who want to leave Malaga but do not want to give up a dynamic environment, Torre del Mar offers another formula.
It has an important commercial and hospitality activity, sports facilities, educational and health centers and a daily life that continues beyond the summer months. All of this allows us to solve a good part of the usual needs without constantly traveling to Malaga.
Its promenade and the presence of the sea provide that quality of life component that many professionals look for when considering a change of residence, while the size of the town allows it to maintain an urban feeling without reaching the intensity of a capital.
For a teleworker, it can represent a particularly interesting intermediate point between services, leisure and tranquility.
Housing also enters the economic equation
Residential cost is another element that inevitably appears when comparing alternatives.
It is not advisable to simplify by stating that all of Axarquía is economic, because there are important differences between municipalities, neighborhoods and housing types. Real estate pressure has also increased in numerous parts of the Eastern Costa del Sol.
Even so, the data allow us to observe relevant differences within the province. In July 2026, idealista reports placed the rent offered at 13.1 euros per square meter in both Torre del Mar and Rincón de la Victoria, while certain areas of Málaga capital had higher levels.
More than simply looking for a cheaper home, the interesting reflection for those who telework is how much space and what quality of life they can get with their budget in different locations.
An additional room, a terrace or an outdoor area may justify extending the search radius by a few kilometers when there is no longer the obligation to travel daily.
Work where before we only thought about spending the summer
Perhaps the most interesting transformation is occurring in our perception of the coast.
For decades, many locations were primarily associated with vacations, second homes and summer. Remote work is helping to break that boundary between a place to work and a place to enjoy.
The beach no longer has to be reserved for August. It can be part of any Tuesday.
The same goes for going for a run by the sea before starting the day, eating at home instead of spending that time traveling or having a terrace from which to work for a good part of the year.
The climate of the Costa del Sol means that these outdoor spaces also have a much longer use than in other places.
A particularly interesting option for international professionals
This possibility of choosing where to work does not only affect Spanish professionals.
In recent years, Málaga has consolidated a business and technological ecosystem with a strong international dimension. Added to this is the connectivity offered by the Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport, an especially important element for professionals who work for foreign companies or need to travel periodically.
For this profile, living in Axarquía allows Malaga to be maintained as a reference city while home is in a different environment.
It is a combination that can be especially attractive for those who arrive from large European cities looking for climate, space and a Mediterranean pace of life without being disconnected from a capital.
Choosing where to live is starting to be a more personal decision
Teleworking has not eliminated the office or all travel, but something important has changed: for many professionals, living close to work is no longer the only possible option.
This allows other criteria to be introduced into the decision.
Space, tranquility, proximity to the sea, services, environment for a family, possibilities to practice sports or simply how we want to feel when our working day ends.
La Axarquía offers different answers according to each profile. Rincón de la Victoria allows us to maintain a very close relationship with Málaga; Benajarafe is committed to a quieter and more residential environment; Torre del Mar offers a greater concentration of services and activity; and other towns in the region allow us to explore ways of life even further removed from the urban model.
The key is finding the right balance for each person.
Maybe you no longer have to choose between working in Malaga and living by the sea
For a long time both decisions seemed to be necessarily linked. If the work was in Malaga, the home had to be in Malaga or close enough to allow for a daily commute.
The hybrid model and remote work have considerably expanded that radius.
For those who can organize a good part of their professional activity from home, the Eastern Costa del Sol appears as an alternative that deserves to be considered: close enough to maintain the connection with Malaga and different enough to offer another daily experience.
And that may be precisely its greatest advantage.
If you are thinking of moving to Axarquía and are looking for a home that adapts to both your personal life and your way of working, at Borja Báez Real Estate we can help you get to know the different areas and find the one that best suits you.
Sources consulted
National Institute of Statistics (INE) – Survey on Equipment and Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Homes. Year 2025:
https://www.ine.es/dyngs/Prensa/TICH2025.htm
National Institute of Statistics (INE) – Survey on the use of ICT and electronic commerce in companies. Year 2024 – First quarter of 2025:
https://www.ine.es/dyngs/Prensa/ETICCE20241T2025.htm
Idealista – Evolution of the price of rental housing in Malaga province:
Idealista – Evolution of rental prices in Torre del Mar:
Idealista – Evolution of rental prices in Rincón de la Victoria:
AENA – Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport:
https://www.aena.es/es/malaga-costa-del-sol.html
The real estate market data cited correspond to published offer prices and are not necessarily equivalent to final closing prices.