Large families face daily life with a heavy workload and the feeling of not being able to do everything, although they live it happily, despite the effort involved and the limited social recognition they receive.
By: Federación Española de Familias Numerosas
A Study on Large Families in Spain was presented by the Spanish Federation of Large Families (FEFN) , which was prepared with the support of the Ministry of Social Rights and the 2030 Agenda , to understand the needs and demands of large family households.
The study, conducted based on 1,800 surveys of families across Spain, confirms that work-life balance is the main concern for large families and that existing measures don’t work, according to an overwhelming majority of these households. Specifically, 94%, or 9 out of 10, believe that “work-life balance policies don’t fit the reality of their daily lives .” This explains why the issue of balancing work and family life is their greatest daily concern. 41% of families pointed to “work-life balance, with the feeling of not being able to do everything” as their main daily problem, ahead of the “physical and mental burden and work inside and outside the home that comes with raising and educating several children,” which is highlighted by 31% of families, and the economic issue of “making ends meet,” which is a concern for 28% of households.
Happy Despite the Effort
Despite the difficulties of balancing a family life with the financial and work-related effort of raising and educating several children, these families live their daily lives “with happiness,” a feeling shared by 50% of large families. This feeling increases as the number of children increases, reaching 70% among those with five or more. Fourteen percent do so “with pride,” while 20% acknowledge “difficulty” in their daily lives, due to the workload involved in having several children, and 16% speak of “normality” in being a large family.
There is a fair amount of agreement on the social value placed on large families, on how society perceives them: 91% of families, or 9 out of 10, believe that society places “little or no value” on large families and the contribution they make, especially in terms of “demographic contribution,” according to 45% of families. Another 30% believe that the value of these households lies in their role as an “economic and development engine” (consumption, entrepreneurship, etc.), and another 25% highlight the educational work they do in terms of values and social skills.
Regarding how others view them, most large families experience “surprise” when they share their children (39%), and 27% feel “admiration” when they reveal this information. One in five families (19%) also experience prejudice, but this is much more pronounced when they have more children (32% in families with four or more children).
Grandparents: The Main Support
For large families, the problem of work-life balance is directly related to economic issues and the dependence on family support, according to 41% of families, who consider this issue to be an “excessive expense.” In fact, more than half of families, 51%, turn to grandparents when they cannot afford everything, compared to other external resources, such as extracurricular activities (28%), babysitting (22%), etc., due to the cost. For this reason, when considering support measures, the majority of families, 46%, choose direct financial assistance—the universal benefit of 200 euros per month per child up to the age of 18, which they can use to cover costs arising from education or childcare-—over other less direct support, such as tax incentives, deductions, or tax relief.
Making ends meet
In economic matters, this year’s survey confirms once again the juggling act these families have to perform to cover all their expenses: 3 out of 4 families (75%) say they have difficulty making ends meet , the same percentage as in 2024. According to the vice president of the FEFN, Eduardo Galicia, who presented the study, “this reality is perfectly understood by analyzing the income these families have to cover food, education, basic supplies…” The study indicates that a third of large families, 33%, do not earn more than 2,500 euros per month and of these, 18% live on less than 2,000; 27% of families earn between 2,500 and 3,500 euros and 23% live more comfortably with incomes ranging from 3,500 to 5,000.
Access the 2025 Study on Large Families in Spain HERE .