In 2024, the Spanish economy grew remarkably compared to other countries in the region, registering 3.2% GDP growth — almost double the Eurozone average — driven mainly by factors such as domestic consumption, tourism, and investment.
Despite the momentum of Spain’s macroeconomy, highlighted by the international media, in recent years Spanish families have had to face challenges such as inflation, a housing crisis, financial instability, among other challenges that make 30% of Spanish households think that their economy will worsen this year.
Faced with these challenges, the reuse of items has emerged as an alternative that combines their desire to consume more sustainably with the need to maintain the domestic economy.
This new reality is exhibited in the new study “La Red del Cambio 2025” prepared by Wallapop, the conscious consumption platform, in collaboration with ISDI, the digital business school. The study aims to understand in depth the tangible value that the second-hand economy brings to Spanish households.
According to the report, the purchase and sale of reused products in Spain annually accounts for 13 billion euros, equivalent to 0.86% of the national GDP, in addition to other key data that highlight the impact of this market on Spanish families.
Figures on the impact of second-hand buying and selling on families
Specifically, the study developed by Wallapop and ISDI reveals that, thanks to the purchase and sale of reused products, each person generates an average annual additional income of about €1,112, the equivalent of an extra pay compared to an average salary in Spain of 20,767 gross per year.
In the current context, this additional amount generated through the use of platforms for buying and selling reused products such as Wallapop represents a tool for Spanish households to optimize their economic resources and alleviate their financial stress.
Even this fifth edition of the study La Red del Cambio found that 65% of Spaniards consider that this practice definitely helps them to alleviate their finances by either buying or selling second-hand products.
If we compare the average amount of €1,112 per person per year, each household could cover the equivalent of 15 months of electricity bills, a year and a half of mobile phone or internet bills, 10 months of petrol or transport costs or three months of shopping baskets, according to the report.
“At a time when every household is looking for ways to anticipate and adapt to a changing economic reality, the second hand is revealed as a financial planning strategy rather than a simple one-off solution,” said Jesús Tapia, director of Impact Accelerator at ISDI. “This research has allowed us to quantify the real impact of the circular economy on people’s wallets, confirming that second-hand is an integral part of the economic strategy of many Spanish families”.
While the impact of the second-hand market on the Spanish economy is clear, it could be even greater if we consider that, on average, Spaniards claim to have products at home that they do not use and could sell for €404.
Although some of us keep items with a special sentimental value, in other cases the difficulty of finding a buyer could end up archiving thousands of objects that could be integrated into the circular economy.
The role of these types of technological platforms such as Wallapop, Facebook Marketplace, Back Market, among others dedicated to promoting sustainable consumption, ends up being of great value as a driver of the circular economy, benefiting the environment, sellers, buyers and the national economy itself.