Roma: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Roma, Lazio. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
Liveability index free for any address
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Search for an address in Roma
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: Via Casilina 1, Roma.
Rome, a city the size of a province
With 2,751,747 residents at the end of 2023, Rome (Roma) on its own accounts for 65.1% of the population of its metropolitan city, the body that replaced the old province. Its municipal area, the largest in Italy, runs from the UNESCO-listed historic centre out to the coast at Ostia and the farmland of the Roman countryside, and it surrounds Vatican City. For a home buyer, this means that talking about Rome in general gets you only so far: services, transport links, prices and ground conditions all change from one part of the city to another.
The population has grown by 5.1% since the 2011 census. The estimated average age is 46.4, and 23.7% of residents are over 65, slightly above the Lazio average. Foreign residents make up 12.8%, and the average household has 2.04 people.
The seismic classification reflects the city's size as well. The Lazio Region divides its territory into sub-zones, and Rome's area includes three of them: 2A, 3A and 3B. The expected ground acceleration, a weighted average across the inhabited areas, is about 0.121 g, but it differs between parts of the municipality. Across the metropolitan city, 97 municipalities are in zone 2 and 24 in zone 3. For a historic palazzo or a block from the post-war building boom, ask about the design date and any structural work.
Services run into the thousands. The Ministry of Health lists 832 pharmacies, 0.30 per 1,000 residents, the same as the metropolitan average. Overture Maps data record 13,903 cafés, bars and restaurants, and 787 supermarkets, or 0.29 per 1,000 residents, fewer than in the rest of the metropolitan area (0.35).
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps cover the whole municipality, and the report finds the building's plot from the address. In a city this vast, stretching from the Tiber to the hills and the sea, landslide and flood hazard and the local price range only make sense at the level of the individual address, which is how the report checks them.
Key points
- 2,751,747 residents, 65.1% of the metropolitan city.
- Population up 5.1% since 2011.
- Municipal area split across seismic sub-zones 2A, 3A and 3B.
- 832 pharmacies on the Ministry of Health list.
Overview
Roma is the capital of the province of Roma, in Lazio. At the end of 2023 it had 2,751,747 residents, the most populous municipality in the province. 65% of the province's residents live here.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Roma is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2A-3A-3B. Most municipalities in the province (97 of 121) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.121 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Roma, the building matters a great deal: ask for the design year, whether it met the 2008 seismic standards, and whether any seismic retrofit has been carried out.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 5.1%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 12.8% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Roma declared an average taxable income of 31,223 euros, above the provincial average (28,682 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Roma is in climate zone D, with 1,415 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 20 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Roma has 1,838 schools and 832 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 787 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2,732 healthcare facilities, 2,459 sports facilities and 554 parks and green areas.
There are 0.3 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.4).
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 23.7% of the land in Roma, compared with 13.2% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 53.6 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
Official databases list 98 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Roma, and 125 more have been cleaned up or closed. 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 Roma: 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 Roma 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 14,757 inhabited census areas in Roma. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 70 or more.
Residents by band
- poor 0.0%
- modest 1.2%
- fair 24.0%
- good 70.7%
- very good 4.1%
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
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 058091. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.