In 2023, more than 30 million people in Spain shopped online, according to a report from Red.es. While physical products still top the list of most purchased items (indeed, 78.9% of people in Spain bought at least one piece of clothing, footwear, or other accessory online in 2023), digital products are steadily becoming more popular each year.

Data from the 2024 edition of the “Online Shopping in Spain” report by the National Observatory of Technology and Society (ONTSI) shows that the three most common types of digital products purchased in Spain in 2023 were streaming services (purchased by 25.5% of people in the country), online training (24.8%), and ebooks (17.4%).

This article covers key factors that businesses selling digital products in Spain should consider, including legal and tax considerations.

What’s in this article?

• What are digital products?
  
• What are the advantages of selling digital products?
  
• Disadvantages of selling digital products in Spain
  
• How can businesses sell digital products in Spain?
  
• Frequently asked questions about selling digital products in Spain
  

What are digital products?

Digital products are goods or services that exist solely online and are used through electronic devices. Since they don’t rely on physical formats, they allow businesses to deliver content, features, or services with greater speed, flexibility, and scalability.

Here are some examples of digital products:

• Ebooks
  
• Digital magazines and newspapers, such as the online edition of “Le Monde”
  
• Online publications distributed through content monetization platforms
  
• Online courses and workshops
  
• Multimedia, such as music, photographs, and videos
  
• Software, apps, and video games
  

What are the advantages of selling digital products?

Selling digital products has several benefits.

Lower initial investment

Selling digital products involves a smaller up-front investment when compared to physical products. Typically, the only up-front expenses are for the servers and computer equipment needed to create, host, and deliver the products online. Since there’s no need for physical storage space, business expenses are lower and delivery is easier. This makes digital product sales one of the easiest businesses to start, both in terms of cost and logistics.

Logistics cost savings

Without shipping fees, ongoing logistics costs can practically be eliminated. A simpler logistics scheme makes it easier for businesses selling digital products to expand into markets beyond Spain.

Ongoing revenue

Selling digital products can bring in ongoing revenue, particularly through subscription-based business models. While developing products can eat up time and resources at first, the day-to-day workload drops significantly once they’re released to the market. This helps keep cash flow stable and frees up resources for the business to develop new products or enter new markets.

Process automation

When selling digital products, certain processes can be automated, such as the delivery of the product right after a sale or the generation of invoices once payment is confirmed. By removing the wait time between purchase and delivery, these steps can all happen almost simultaneously.

Disadvantages of selling digital products in Spain

Though there are advantages, there are also challenges associated with selling digital products in Spain. Firstly, it can lead to more returns, since the process is easier for customers—they don’t have to send anything back or arrange a pickup with the business. Secondly, digital products are more prone to piracy—an illegal industry that already reaches nearly €34 billion a year in Spain—because they’re much easier to copy than physical goods.

How can businesses sell digital products in Spain?

To start a digital product business in Spain, it’s important to be aware of the specific steps involved. Let’s take a step-by-step look at the process.

Create a website to sell digital products

You’ll start by creating a website—alternatively, you can use an ecommerce platform to simplify the process. If you choose to build your own custom online store, you’ll have more control over your site, though this typically requires a much larger up-front investment. An ecommerce platform lets you build a website without needing to code it yourself. Here are some of the most popular options:

• Shopify: This all-in-one ecommerce platform lets you set up a website to sell digital products worldwide without any coding. As of 2025, Shopify is used by over 43,000 online stores in Spain—more than twice as many as at the start of 2022.

• PrestaShop: This open-source platform provides a wealth of customization features. But that also means PrestaShop has a slightly steeper learning curve compared to other options.

• WooCommerce: WordPress’s proprietary ecommerce plugin WooCommerce is now used by millions of businesses around the world. This plugin lets you build highly customizable online stores, but it does require a bit more technical know-how.

If you’d rather use an external platform instead of building your own website to sell digital products, there are several popular options in Spain, including:

• Marketplaces: Online marketplaces let companies sign up to sell digital products through their platforms. The most popular example of an online marketplace in Spain is Amazon, which can be used to sell or buy ebooks, for example. There are also specialized platforms for certain digital products, such as Thinkific or Kajabi for educational content, and Substack for paid newsletters.

• Social media: You can sell your digital products directly from a social media profile by using hosted payment pages, such as a link generated via Stripe Payment Links.

• Buying and selling apps: Platforms such as Etsy are designed for individuals and businesses to sell digital products.

Set up a payment gateway

If you choose to sell digital products through a website or an ecommerce platform for small businesses, you’ll need to set up a payment gateway that meets current regulations and gives your customers a sense of trust and security. Stripe offers the functionality of a payment gateway via Stripe Payments. With Payments, your customers get a smoother shopping experience, since it lets you accept their preferred payment methods for ecommerce. Stripe also works with all of the platforms mentioned previously, so once a payment is confirmed, the customer can instantly download the digital product they bought.

Establish business policies

Customers should be able to review your business’s digital product policies before completing their purchases. Here are some of the most important things to include:

• Refunds: You must clearly outline the situations in which your business will provide a refund if the customer requests one. For instance, if the digital product doesn’t meet the customer’s expectations or isn’t delivered by the promised date in cases where delivery isn’t automatic.

• Updates: Digital products often change and improve over time. For example, if you’re selling a recipe ebook, customers should know whether they’ll get future editions with new recipes. Or, consider the example of a mobile app: customers should be informed about any price increases for extra features.

Comply with legal and tax obligations

Before your first sale, it’s essential to make sure you meet all the legal and tax requirements for selling digital products in Spain.

First, you need to register in the census of entrepreneurs, professionals, and withholders by submitting Form  036 and obtaining a VAT taxpayer certificate.

Your website must also follow Organic Law 3/2018 on Personal Data Protection and Guarantee of Digital Rights, the Law on Information Society Services and Electronic Commerce (LSSI), and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which, among other things, require that customers’ rights when buying digital products online are protected. In this context, some of the requirements include clearly displaying your business’s information on your website, getting explicit consent to use cookies, and making sure payments are secure.

Finally, you need to apply the correct value-added tax (VAT) rates, based on the type of digital products you sell and where your customers are located. For example, ebooks are subject to the super-reduced VAT rate of 4% (just like printed books), and any formal training that follows content from the official education system of Spain is VAT-exempt; however, online courses that don’t meet these criteria are taxed at the standard VAT rate of 21%.

If customers buy digital products from a country outside the European Union (EU), Spain’s VAT export rules apply, and the sales are exempt from this tax.

Frequently asked questions about selling digital products in Spain

Do I need to register as self-employed or set up a business to sell digital products in Spain?

Yes, to legally sell digital products in Spain, you need to register as self-employed or establish a business, as this is the only way to issue VAT invoices for each sale. While there are a few exceptions that allow online sales without being self-employed, these are rare and typically don’t apply to someone looking to sell digital products in Spain.

Can customers use their right of withdrawal for digital products?

Yes, the right of withdrawal applies to digital products as well, but there’s an important exception: if the customer gives explicit consent to start downloading or accessing the digital product right away, they forfeit their right to withdraw. In this case, as stated in Article 103 of the General Law for the Protection of Consumers and Users, the business must inform the customer that by confirming their consent, they are waiving their right of withdrawal.

Can digital products sold online be protected?

Yes, a digital product sold online can be protected through Spain’s Intellectual Property Registry, watermarks, and clear notices warning customers about the legal actions that will be taken if unauthorized distribution is found.