The table illustrates the number of people from five European countries — the UK, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain — living in each other’s countries in 2011.
Overall, the largest group of expatriates was the Germans living in Spain, totaling 1,198,000, while the smallest group was the Poles residing in Italy, numbering only 170. In general, Spain and Germany appear to host the highest number of foreign residents from these countries.
Looking at individual countries, the UK had the most nationals living in Spain (1,037,000) and fewer in Germany (119,000) and Italy (50,000). Germans mostly moved to Spain (1,198,000) and, to a lesser extent, the UK (104,000) and Italy (112,000). Italian expatriates were relatively evenly distributed, with the largest numbers in Germany (426,000) and Spain (196,000). Poland showed the least mobility, with very small numbers in all countries. Spanish nationals were mostly found in the UK (391,000) and Germany (196,000).
In summary, Spain and Germany were the most popular destinations, while Poland had the fewest expatriates living abroad.