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Copparo: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Copparo

The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.

For example: Viale Idris Ricci 1, Copparo.

Copparo, reclaimed farmland east of Ferrara

East of Ferrara the land is low and was won from marshes over centuries of drainage work, and Copparo is the main town for the farming belt running from the city towards the Po delta. The town centre is only a few metres above sea level, surrounded by flat fields divided by canals and ditches, with hamlets and scattered houses in the countryside.

Buyers here are really choosing between two ways of living. In central Copparo, shops, schools and services are within walking distance. In the hamlets there are old farmhouses, detached houses and bigger plots, but you cannot get around without a car. Ferrara is close, less than half an hour by road, and remains the city many people rely on for work, hospital care and university.

Copparo is shrinking and ageing. In 2023 it had 15,739 residents, down 7.5% since 2011. The average age is 52.1, against 49.2 in a province that is already old, and over-65s make up 33.7%, compared with 28.9% provincially. Households are small, 2.07 people on average, and foreign nationals account for 7.4%. Incomes are slightly below the provincial average.

The earthquakes of May 2012 were a reminder that the Ferrara plain does shake. Copparo is in seismic zone 3, like 20 of the 21 municipalities in the province, with expected ground acceleration of about 0.092 g. On soft river soils like these, for an old brick house it is worth asking whether checks or strengthening were carried out after 2012 and whether any cracks have been repaired.

Water is the other issue. The area depends on the drainage canals and pumping stations of the land reclamation boards, and flood likelihood changes over a few hundred metres. The report reads it for the exact address, using the cadastral maps of the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate), which are published for the whole municipality.

Key points

  • Reclaimed plain between Ferrara and the Po delta.
  • Population down 7.5% since 2011, older than the province.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.092 g.
  • Canals and flood risk to be checked address by address.

Overview

Copparo is a municipality in the province of Ferrara, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 15,739 residents, ranked 5 of 21 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Copparo is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (20 of 21) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.092 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 7.5%. The estimated average age is 52 years, higher than the province average (49). 34% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 7.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Copparo declared an average taxable income of 22,530 euros, below the provincial average (24,414 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Copparo is in climate zone E, with 2,322 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 5 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Copparo has 9 schools and 6 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 9 grocery shops and supermarkets, 12 healthcare facilities, 14 sports facilities and 4 parks and green areas.

There are 0.6 schools per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.8).

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 6.1% of the land in Copparo, compared with 7.2% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 6.5 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Copparo is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Emilia-Romagna in 2026. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list 4 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Copparo. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Copparo: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.

House prices

The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.

Land registry

The cadastral maps for Copparo are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.

Liveability area by area

The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 143 inhabited census areas in Copparo. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 72 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 30.5%
  • good 44.9%
  • very good 24.6%

Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.

The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out

Data sources

ISTAT code 038007. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.