MigrantoItalian Diaspora
2.9M Italians live abroad — the #27 largest diaspora in the world
Where emigrants go
The top 3 countries receive 39% of all emigrants
↑↓ — change vs 2020
| Country | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| Germany | 436759 |
| USA | 360987 |
| United Kingdom | 342143 |
| France | 303685 |
| Switzerland | 273822 |
| Canada | 183368 |
| Spain | 167387 |
| Australia | 151684 |
| Belgium | 116143 |
| Romania | 87680 |
| Argentina | 53584 |
| Netherlands | 48307 |
| Venezuela | 45934 |
| Brazil | 39836 |
| Austria | 38913 |
| Poland | 24380 |
| Luxembourg | 21807 |
| Ireland | 17508 |
| Sweden | 16955 |
| Denmark | 13051 |
| Uruguay | 11274 |
| Malta | 8204 |
| Albania | 7928 |
| Libya | 7548 |
| Mexico | 7359 |
| Hungary | 7298 |
| Greece | 6826 |
| Peru | 6538 |
| Israel | 6174 |
| Monaco | 6091 |
| Czech Republic | 5867 |
| Norway | 5604 |
| Bulgaria | 5492 |
| Japan | 5245 |
| Sri Lanka | 5226 |
| Slovenia | 5114 |
| San Marino | 5000 |
| Ecuador | 4800 |
| Dominican Republic | 4719 |
| China | 4682 |
| Egypt | 4458 |
| Chile | 4352 |
| Slovakia | 4259 |
| South Africa | 4255 |
| Finland | 3558 |
| Portugal | 3516 |
| Colombia | 3511 |
| New Zealand | 3256 |
| Costa Rica | 3087 |
| Serbia | 2983 |
| Croatia | 2813 |
| Moldova | 2567 |
| Tunisia | 2464 |
| Panama | 2421 |
| Morocco | 2219 |
| Russia | 2099 |
| Bolivia | 1773 |
| Estonia | 1275 |
| Haiti | 1255 |
| Paraguay | 1010 |
| Liechtenstein | 921 |
| Namibia | 915 |
| Iceland | 793 |
| Algeria | 751 |
| Hong Kong | 692 |
| Lithuania | 677 |
| Cameroon | 655 |
| Botswana | 575 |
| Tanzania | 555 |
| Andorra | 523 |
| Taiwan | 522 |
| Cyprus | 506 |
| Cape Verde | 450 |
| Guatemala | 433 |
| Guadeloupe | 328 |
| Ghana | 302 |
| Latvia | 302 |
| New Caledonia | 291 |
| El Salvador | 289 |
| Honduras | 270 |
| Cuba | 263 |
| Montenegro | 206 |
| Nicaragua | 205 |
| French Guiana | 197 |
| Maldives | 190 |
| Bahamas | 178 |
| French Polynesia | 148 |
| Mauritius | 147 |
| Seychelles | 125 |
| Cayman Islands | 110 |
| Bermuda | 110 |
| Bosnia | 100 |
| Martinique | 92 |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 76 |
| Central African Republic | 75 |
| Guinea | 75 |
| Puerto Rico | 74 |
| Mauritania | 62 |
| Curaçao | 38 |
| North Macedonia | 36 |
| Liberia | 35 |
| Mongolia | 22 |
| Belarus | 22 |
| Georgia | 16 |
| Cambodia | 15 |
| Bhutan | 12 |
| Saint Lucia | 12 |
By destination region
Europe is the leading destination region at 68%
2M
544.5K
194K
155.4K
25.7K
16.6K
6.7K
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Interesting facts
Notable statistics about emigration from Italy.
Romania is the fastest-growing major destination
Emigration to Romania has increased by 160% since 2015, rising from 33.7K to 87.7K in 9 years.
Top emigration destinations have shifted significantly since 1990
5 new countries have entered the top 20 destinations: Romania, Poland, Ireland — Romania rose from outside the top 20 to rank #10.
The share of emigrants going to Europe has grown since 1990
The share of emigrants going to Europe has shifted from 44.2% to 67.9% since 1990.
How emigration changed over time
Total emigrant population by year
| Year | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 3354372 |
| 1995 | 3154012 |
| 2000 | 2998648 |
| 2005 | 2751018 |
| 2010 | 2666862 |
| 2015 | 2756727 |
| 2020 | 2886481 |
| 2024 | 2941444 |
Top destinations over time
Emigration to the 5 largest destination countries
| Year | Germany | USA | United Kingdom | France | Switzerland |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 354483 | 697267 | 89882 | 507447 | 266625 |
| 1995 | 385002 | 628114 | 97552 | 449474 | 257127 |
| 2000 | 416103 | 573020 | 105774 | 401918 | 249113 |
| 2005 | 357276 | 449642 | 120428 | 373623 | 250428 |
| 2010 | 336507 | 447401 | 138174 | 340016 | 243157 |
| 2015 | 390678 | 424505 | 193121 | 323277 | 260982 |
| 2020 | 439709 | 389417 | 279194 | 318801 | 269298 |
| 2024 | 436759 | 360987 | 342143 | 303685 | 273822 |
Fastest-changing destinations
How emigration to each country has changed since the selected year
Italy as an emigration source
Share of immigrants in each country who originate from Italy
Data source: International Migrant Stock 2024 (UN DESA, Population Division)
Frequently asked questions
Where do Italians move to?
Most Italians have moved to Germany, USA and United Kingdom — these three countries account for about 39% of all Italians living abroad.
How many Italians live abroad?
Around 2.9M Italians live abroad, making it the #27-largest emigrant population in the world.
What share of the population of Italy lives abroad?
About 5% of the population of Italy lives abroad — that's 2.9M out of a total population of 59M.
How has emigration from Italy changed over the past decade?
Over the past decade, the emigrant population from Italy has grown from 2.8M to 2.9M people, a growth of about 7%.
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