What are the biggest pros and cons of living in Mallorca/Majorca?

You did not say how old you are, if you have a family, etc. You did say you are a software developer, which means you are used to (and probably enjoy) long periods of solitude. This is an advantage, if you are going to live in Mallorca. Pros of living in Mallorca: good weather most of the time (it can get a bit chilly in the winter) good food (fruit & veg markets, restaurants) many beautiful beaches amazing beautiful hikes lots of history (old monasteries, churches, houses) good airline connections to anywhere in Europe if you like cycling, challenging and lovely rides throughout the island and a lot of avid cyclists you can ride with if you enjoy solitude (i.e. if you are a writer, software developer, artist), Mallorca is a great place to finish your work Cons: (1) You complained about crowds in October, but that's nothing compared to crowds in July and August. However, that's Palma, and a few really touristy places like Magaluf. You can easily escape crowds anytime of the year, including August, so maybe you don't want to live right in Palma, but in one of the smaller towns. Mallorca is small; you can drive easily to anywhere. Since you seem to be able to deal well with solitude, living in the countryside won't be a problem for you. However in the winter (January-February), it does feel dead and isolating, and most of the people left are retirees. A lot of young single people will not be able to survive in Mallorca in the winter for that reason. (2) High price of real estate: I really don't think Mallorcan real estate will continue to be priced at the levels you see today. There's so much instability in the financial markets; a lot of people are not selling their property (even though they are not making regular mortgage payments) because in Spain, many mortgages are "recourse", that is, you still owe the full amount of the outstanding loan even though the bank takes your house back from you; there's a chance that Spain will not be in the eurozone. Plus there is recession looming. I would not count on Spanish real estate, even in Mallorca, retaining its value. Many Northern European retirees can no longer afford to retire early or even to retire at all to a place like Mallorca. Moreover, as austerity and recession reduce the travel budgets of many families, fewer people will be holidaying in Mallorca. So who is going to keep the property values rising? **If you decide to move, RENT, at least for the first year. (3) Although Mallorca has good airline connections, it's not Amsterdam or Paris or London. If you like to travel frequently outside Europe, you will need to fly to Madrid, then get a connecting flight. (4) Lack of decent ethnic food: if you need regular access to Asian cuisine, Mallorca is not the place. There are a few Thai and Indian restaurants, but they are far from authentic. (5) You basically need to be self-employed because there is no vibrant tech industry in Mallorca. Or you can work as a consultant to a company based in other countries and work from Mallorca. (6) There is a stable community of people living on the island, outside of Palma, but it's mostly older people. (7) A lot of English people also live in Mallorca, not just Germans. You will need to learn Spanish but you can get by speaking English for a while.

Pros: Lifestyle: Weather, Nature, Security, High Quality Services, Flight Connections, make its lifestyle very hard to beat and the main reason why so many wealthy europeans have a permanent residency on the island. Cons: Limited professional growth opportunities: I have been living here all my life and done all my online business from here (I run a seed and incubator fund called http://Mola.com), and I realize i would have much more successful If i had been in other tech-hubs such as London, Berlin, San Francisco, New York, where there is more access to talent, funding and likeminded individuals.

I am from Mallorca, let me make some corrections: - outside of Palma is not plenty of older people, that could be your impression, not reality. - Palma is the biggest city, by difference, so it's becoming multi-ethnic. - in my opinion, real life is in towns. Most of german people I've known here enjoy and are very happy to live in a town and to be in contact with local people. People tend to be kind in towns, not in cities. - you have to learn Spanish but you must learn or at least understand Catalan (Mallorquín), which is the native language, if you plan living here. I'm sure you feel so happy when someone from another country speaks to you in your native language, a good way of making friends. - I am also a software developer. There are job opportunities here. Depends on your skills. - Never lived outside of Mallorca, but I think cost of living here is pretty close to other countries like Deutschland. - Other good things which are vastly known are: sunny weather, unique (not mainstream) beaches, cycling routes, hiking, swimming, relax, food, people:).

Microsoft have a travel tech centre, Trivago have a tech centre, and TUI run the worlds biggest hotel database and systems here, so not a bad place for tech jobs if you have the right skills

I was born and live in Palma. It is not "like living in a resort" at all. Well if you live in some places around the town, yes. I can't find many cons. People around Europe choose Mallorca to live. http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/style/homes_and_gardens/best_places/article1533629.ece I lived in Barcelona a handful of years and despite is fame, it can't compare with my hometown.