Italy’s population continuing to decline

Italy’s resident population currently stands at 58.93 million, down by 37,000, year-on-year, new data from Istat, the Italian statistics office, has found.

This decline continues the downward trend seen in the country since 2014, with the rate of decline (-0.6 per thousand) similar to that of recent years.

However, the decline is not uniform across the country, the data showed, with the North of the country seeing an increase in population (of +1.6 per thousand), while the Centre and Mezzogiorno recorded population declines equivalent to -0.6 per thousand and -3.8 per thousand, respectively.

At a regional level, the Trentino-Alto Adige and Emilia-Romagna regions reported the highest increases, of +3.1 per thousand in both cases, while the regions in which the population decline is sharpest include Basilicata (-6.3 per thousand) and Sardegna (-5.8 per thousand).

Fertility rate

Italy recorded its lowest fertility rate to date last year, with 370,000 births reported, a 2.6% decline compared to 2023. Although the number of deaths also fell, to 651,000 (marking a 3.1% decrease and a return to pre-pandemic levels), the natural balance remains negative at -281,000.

Migration is continuing to play a role in mitigating these losses – immigration remains strong, with 435,000 arrivals last year (just below that of the previous year), while emigration stood at 191,000, a rise of 33,000 on the previous year. The net migration balance therefore stands at 244,000.

Some 217,000 people residing in Italy were granted citizenship last year, exceeding the previous record of 214,000 recorded in 2023.

Also of note is the changing nature of the typical household structure, with the average household size continuing to shrink – over the last 20 years, the average household has fallen from 2.6 members to 2.2.

New developments

‘The year 2024 highlights a demographic dynamic in Italy that in many ways is in continuity with that of the recent post-pandemic years, although with some new developments,’ Istat said.

‘Among these, the lowest level of fertility ever recorded, the life expectancy at birth exceeding the pre-pandemic levels, the increase in the expatriations of Italian citizens, the new maximum in the number of people acquiring Italian citizenship and […] the relevant increase in the foreign resident population.’ Read more here.