Ruvo di Puglia: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Bari, Puglia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Ruvo di Puglia
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 Scarlatti Alessandro 0, Ruvo di Puglia.
Ruvo di Puglia, a Romanesque cathedral below the Murgia
Ruvo di Puglia lies inland from Bari, where the olive country starts climbing towards the limestone plateau of the Murgia. The landmark of the old town is its Romanesque cathedral, one of the best known in Puglia, and nearby the Jatta museum holds a large collection of ancient painted vases found in local excavations. Part of the municipality lies within the Alta Murgia National Park.
The economy is still tied to the land, mostly olive oil and wine. Housing splits between the old town, with stone houses on narrow streets, the districts built around it in recent decades and country houses scattered among the olive groves. Some of these began as farm shelters and were enlarged later, so check their planning permits with care. For Bari there is the local Bari to Barletta railway, which stops at Ruvo, as well as the main road through Bitonto.
The population is slowly shrinking, as in many inland towns of Puglia: 24,350 residents at the end of 2023, down 5.1% on 2011, according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age is 45.3, close to the metropolitan area's 45.8, and foreign nationals make up 3.5%. Declared incomes are below the provincial average. Healthcare sites (30) are more numerous per resident than average.
Ruvo is in seismic zone 3, like 33 other municipalities in the metropolitan area of Bari, while the 7 further south-east are in zone 4. Expected ground acceleration is about 0.149 g. The hazard is moderate, but masonry houses in the centre have often had storeys added over time, so it is worth knowing whether any structural work has been done.
On the Murgia limestone, landslides matter less than the lame, natural gullies that carry water after heavy rain. Near them flood hazard has to be read for the exact address. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps here, and the report finds the land parcel.
Key points
- Romanesque cathedral, the Jatta museum and part of a national park.
- Local Bari to Barletta railway with a stop in town.
- 24,350 residents, down 5.1% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.149 g.
Overview
Ruvo di Puglia is a municipality in the province of Bari, in Puglia. At the end of 2023 it had 24,350 residents, ranked 16 of 41 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Ruvo di Puglia is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (34 of 41) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.149 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 5.1%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 3.5% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Ruvo di Puglia declared an average taxable income of 19,764 euros, below the provincial average (21,788 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Ruvo di Puglia is in climate zone D, with 1,579 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 256 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Ruvo di Puglia has 17 schools and 8 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 15 grocery shops and supermarkets, 30 healthcare facilities, 16 sports facilities and 5 parks and green areas.
There are 1.2 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more 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 5.0% of the land in Ruvo di Puglia, compared with 9.7% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.4 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
Ruvo di Puglia is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Puglia in 2025. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is low. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list no open contaminated sites in Ruvo di Puglia; 2 have been cleaned up or closed.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Ruvo di Puglia: 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 Ruvo di Puglia 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 241 inhabited census areas in Ruvo di Puglia. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 72 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 0.6%
- fair 12.9%
- good 78.0%
- very good 8.5%
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.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Puglia, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2025.
- 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 072038. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.