Richest regions in Italy: the 2024 ranking

• There Lombardy confirms itself as the richest region in Italy thanks to its average per capita income which is higher than that of other national territories.
• Only Lazio, among the regions of central-southern Italy, is among the top places in the ranking, while the top positions are occupied by areas of Northern Italy.
• It is confirmed rift between North and South and despite the increase in Italians’ income, wealth remains concentrated in the hands of 1% of taxpayers.

The Northern regions are the richest in Italy according to Mef data relating to the latest tax returns for the 2022 tax year, while the economic gap with Southern Italy is confirmed in the regions classified in the last positions. However, the average earnings of Italians are growing (+4.9%), which now corresponds to 23,650 euros per year.

There Lombardy firmly maintains its primacy as the richest regionjust as Calabria is in last position in the 2024 ranking. Valle D’Aosta was the region that recorded the greatest growth in average per capita income in the last year.

Richest regions in Italy: the ranking

Taking into consideration the data published by the Mef on Italians’ tax returns, INTWIG¹a data intelligence company, has created a series of rankings, including that of Richest regions in Italy.

This year too, the primacy goes to several areas of the North, which have recorded a four-digit increase in the average per capita income, while the regions of Southern Italy continue to occupy the second half of the ranking. Many regions have not changed their position compared to previous years, as we can see from the following table.

There Lombarda confirms itself as the richest region in Italy (with an average per capita income of 25,698 euros), but not the one with the highest increase in income in the last year: in fact, it is the Valle d’Aosta the region that grew more in this sense, with an improvement of over 1,500 euros on average.

In second place we find Trentino Alto-Adige with an average per capita income of 23,876 euros, which knocks Emilia Romagna into third place (with 23,713 euros).

Interesting to note the position of Lazio, in fourth placewhich despite being typically considered a region of central-southern Italy, achieved an average per capita income of 23,345 euros (increasing by +1,061 euros compared to the previous year).

Fracture between Northern and Southern Italy

Italians’ incomes have been increasing steadily since the post-Covid period, as shown by the latest data released by the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Italians’ tax returns for 2023 (fiscal year 2022), but the differences at the territorial level continue to be marked.

The Southern regions Italy continue to register lower wealth than those of the North, as the data demonstrate: Calabria, among all, remains the region with the lowest per capita incomes (equal to 16,108 euros), followed by Molise (with 17,049 euros) and Puglia (with 17,230 euros).

Sardinia is the first region in Southern Italy to appear in the ranking, in fourteenth place, with a per capita income of 18,441 euros.

How wealth is distributed in Italy

Not only is national wealth concentrated in the hands of 1% of taxpayers, but there are also differences according to income brackets and above all at regional level, confirming aItaly that travels at two speeds.

To these economic differences which have historical roots, we add another emphasized in the Covid period: theincrease in inequalities.

In the table we have reported, according to MEF data²we can see how 1% of the Italian population holds over 120,000 euros on their current account, while the majority of the national population occupies the so-called medium range, i.e. between two brackets: 15,000 – 26,000 euros and 26,000 – 55,000 euros.

It should also be underlined how approximately a quarter of the population national (more than 25%) can live on an income of less than 10,000 euros per year, which translates into an average of 833 euros per month.