Türkiye vs Spain for a software or game company
Spain is the cheapest country in western Europe on this list, about 28% above Türkiye on living costs, and one of the few with a credit that reaches creative production: 30% on the first million euros of an audiovisual project, alongside a research credit of 25% that climbs to 42% above a company's two-year average. Its corporate rate matches Türkiye's 25% and dividends leave at 19%.
The short verdict
01Where each one wins, 5 measures to 2
Where Türkiye wins
- Dividends at 15%, against Spain's 19%.
- Advertising, hosting and platform fees, reimbursed at 50% to 70% where Spain reimburses nothing.
- A cost base about 28% below Spain's, on a corporate rate that matches.
- Income from customers abroad, untaxed under the export regime.
Where Spain wins
- A research credit of 25%, rising to 42% on spend above the two-year average, with a further 17% on research staff.
- An audiovisual production credit of 30% on the first million euros, one of the few European schemes that reaches creative production directly.
- The cheapest cost base in western Europe here, about 28% above Türkiye rather than the 70% to 80% typical further north.
- The Barcelona cluster, which is the largest concentration of studios in southern Europe.
02How do Türkiye and Spain compare, line by line?
Of 9 measures, Türkiye takes 5 and Spain takes 2, with 2 level. Every figure links to its source and carries the date we last checked it.
Public money
| Measure | Türkiye | Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Cash back on ads, hosting and platform fees | better for the company50% of what you spend, rising to 70% when the customers you are targeting are in one of the twenty countries on Türkiye's target listsource | Nothing comparablesource |
| Support for development costs | Yes, through two separate programmes: TÜBİTAK, which funds defined research projects, and teknopark status, which removes corporate tax on software developed inside a technology parkBoth are applied for separately from the export refund, and a company can hold them at the same time.source | better for the companyA 25% research credit rising to 42% above a company's two-year average, plus 30% on the first million euros of an audiovisual productionsource |
What it costs to live there
| Measure | Türkiye | Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living index | better for the company40.2Numbeo index, mid-2026.source | 51.4, 28% higher than Türkiyesource |
| Rent index | better for the company12.3source | 22.3, 81% higher than Türkiyesource |
| Local purchasing power index | 71.8Salaries buy less locally, which is the other side of a low cost base.source | better for staff96.8, 35% higher than Türkiyesource |
Tax
| Measure | Türkiye | Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate tax on ordinary profit | 25%source | 25%source |
| Tax on income from software sold abroad | better for the company0% under the IT export regimeApplies to income earned from customers outside Türkiye.source | Taxed the same as any other profitsource |
| VAT or equivalent, standard rate | 20%Exported services are outside the scope, so this matters less to an exporter than the headline suggests.source | 21%source |
| Withholding tax on dividends to a foreign parent | better for the company15%A double tax treaty can reduce it.source | 19%source |
03What is it like to run a company in Spain?
Madrid is two hours behind Istanbul and about four by plane. Spain has spent a decade building a games industry around Barcelona and Madrid, and the audiovisual credit has pulled in production work that would otherwise have gone elsewhere. Regional variations matter: the Canary Islands and the Basque Country run their own enhanced rates on top of the national scheme.
04What does the Turkish programme pay back, and what are the limits?
| What you spend it on | Programme item | Paid back | Annual cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ads and player acquisition | Digital product promotion: ads & marketing (up to 10 products/yr) | 50% to 70% | 50 000 000 ₺ ≈ $1,043,841 |
| App store and platform commissions | App store & platform commissions (up to 10 products/yr) | 50% | 20 000 000 ₺ ≈ $417,537 |
| Hosting and servers | Hosting costs | 50% | 5 000 000 ₺ ≈ $104,384 |
What Türkiye would pay back on your spending
Türkiye runs a government programme that refunds part of what a software company or game studio spends on reaching customers abroad. It covers advertising, app store and platform commissions, and hosting. The refund is paid in cash against invoices the company has already settled, so it does not depend on the company making a profit. The standard rate is 50%, and it rises to 70% when the customers being targeted are in one of the twenty countries on the Turkish Ministry of Trade's target list.
Put your own yearly figures in below. The rates and the annual caps come from the same file as our full calculator, and the total updates as you type.
05Questions we get asked
Does the audiovisual credit cover video games?
Spain has extended audiovisual support to interactive production, and the practical question is always whether a specific project qualifies under the certification rules. It is a project-by-project route with a certification step in front of it.
Is Spain cheap compared with Türkiye?
No, but it is the closest of the western European countries here, about 28% above on living costs where Germany and the Netherlands sit 70% to 80% above. Rents are about 81% above Türkiye's.
How does the 42% research rate work?
The base credit is 25% of qualifying research spend, and the higher 42% rate applies to the amount by which the year's spend exceeds the average of the two years before it. It rewards a company that is scaling its research, not one holding it steady.
Where this comparison comes from
CyberScope Solutions is an Istanbul consultancy that manages Türkiye's IT export incentive claims for software companies and game studios. We build these comparisons because clients ask for them before deciding, and we keep the rows where the other country wins because a comparison nobody believes is worth nothing.
- Every figure is sourced. Each number links to the page it came from and carries the date we last checked it.
- These pages get rebuilt, not left. Rates and caps come from the same file as our calculator, so when one changes the page changes with it.
- You find out early if it is not for you. The first call is thirty minutes and we will say plainly if your spend pattern does not suit the programme.
Turn that number into money
Send us the rough shape of your spend. You get back what it is worth, what setting it up involves, and how fast the first claim can go in. Companies already operating here treat this as routine, and the six month window means the clock is running on invoices you have already paid.
- A reply from a person within one working day
- No mailing list, no drip sequence
- Thirty minutes, and you keep the numbers either way
Got it.
We will read it properly and reply within a working day. If you would rather get it over with now, pick a time that suits you.
Book a 30 minute call06Where these numbers come from
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/turkey/corporate/taxes-on-corporate-income checked 2026-08-21
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/quick-charts/corporate-income-tax-cit-rates checked 2026-08-21
- https://cyberscope.solutions/blog/zero-percent-tax-on-it-exports/ checked 2026-08-21
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/quick-charts/value-added-tax-vat-rates checked 2026-08-21
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/turkey/corporate/withholding-taxes checked 2026-08-21
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/quick-charts/withholding-tax-wht-rates checked 2026-08-21
- https://cyberscope.solutions/guides/ checked 2026-08-21
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/spain/corporate/tax-credits-and-incentives checked 2026-08-21
- https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/rankings_by_country.jsp checked 2026-08-21