What were the similarities between the Spanish and American colonies?

Both colonies relied on forced labor. The Spanish enslaved native Mexicans in gold and silver mines, and the American colonies used slave laborers and indentured servants to work in plantation agriculture.
Both the Spanish and American colonies were at times very loosely governed by the mother country. The Spanish sent officials to the New World, as did the British, but neither one ruled the new nation with an iron fist. This allowed for independence movements to eventually form in Latin America and the American colonies, as these places sought more local rule rather than taking orders from a Crown official who had no idea what life was like in the colonies.
Both colonies adopted many cultural traits from the mother country that are still prevalent today. Latin Americans speak Spanish, while citizens of the United States speak English. Both also retain close ties with their mother countries even to this day.