The best Italian cities in 2023

For Italians, it's already difficult to determine which region has the best food, let alone choose the best city in the country. La Sapienza University of Rome tried to do that, and determined that in 2023, the best quality of life was found in Bolzano, Milan, and Bologna. Compared to last year, Milan has moved up two places in the ranking, while Crotone, Messina, and Caltanissetta continue to occupy the bottom positions. The quality of life survey was conducted in collaboration with ItaliaOggi-ItalCommunications, which compiled a ranking based on various criteria, such as business and employment, environment, education, population, crime, income and wealth, social security, healthcare system, and leisure time. Over the past year, some cities have gained several positions: Turin and Rome, ranked 31st and 33rd respectively, while Milan and Bologna have finally reached the podium.

The list published by ItaliaOggi-ItalCommunications and La Sapienza University reflects a continuous and clear difference between northern and southern Italy. While the first 63 provinces in the ranking, predominantly from the central-north, show a defined acceptable quality of life, the remaining ones, deemed insufficient, mostly belong to southern Italy. The best city in southern Italy is Teramo, ranking 61st.

The positioning that continues to surprise everyone in this ranking is Milan's, a city that has received criticism from all sides in recent years but finds itself on the podium of the best provinces in Italy in 2023. From expensive rents - speculations about a possible real estate bubble burst that makes the life of out-of-town students impossible to damage from bad weather that has ruined the greenery in the city center, from the latest releases of Mayor Beppe Sala appearing in a music video by Club Dogo to the continuously rising cost of living, the Lombard capital does not, in fact, represent the benefits it boasts in La Sapienza University's ranking. While it may seem like a city with a myriad of possibilities, where careers take off, and where one can build from scratch, on the other hand, a chat with anyone living there reveals that, ultimately, business isn't everything.