Sarteano: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Siena, Toscana. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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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: Corso Garibaldi 1, Sarteano.
Sarteano, between Monte Cetona and the Val di Chiana
Sarteano sits on the slopes of Monte Cetona, at around five hundred metres, looking down on the Sienese part of the Val di Chiana. The town has a castle, a walled old centre and an important Etruscan past: in the Pianacce necropolis archaeologists found the Tomb of the Infernal Chariot, with wall paintings that can be visited. Just outside the centre there are swimming pools fed by thermal springs.
Chiusi and Chianciano Terme are close by, and the Chiusi-Chianciano exit of the A1 motorway and Chiusi station make travel to Florence and Rome easy. The property market is shaped by tourism and demand from foreign buyers: farmhouses with land, flats in the old town, holiday homes in the surrounding countryside. For an isolated farmhouse, check the access road, water supply, drainage and the state of the roof.
In 2023 there were 4,542 residents, down 4.2% since 2011. The average age is 48.6, against 47.6 for the province of Siena, over-65s make up 28.9% and foreign residents 12.5%, a high share for a Tuscan hill town. Declared incomes are below the Siena average.
Sarteano is in seismic zone 3 of the Civil Protection classification, like 30 other municipalities in the province. The expected ground acceleration is about 0.145 g. In stone houses in the old town and in farmhouses, check how walls and floors are tied together and the condition of the roof. On the slopes of Monte Cetona and the clay hills towards the valley there can be landslides, and on the plain there are the drainage ditches of the reclaimed Chiana. The report checks the official maps for the address.
Key points
- On the slopes of Monte Cetona, with a castle and painted Etruscan tombs.
- 4,542 residents, foreign residents at 12.5%.
- Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.145 g.
- Close to the A1 exit and Chiusi station.
Overview
Sarteano is a municipality in the province of Siena, in Toscana. At the end of 2023 it had 4,542 residents, ranked 18 of 35 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Sarteano is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (31 of 35) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.145 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 4.2%. The estimated average age is 49 years, in line with the province. 29% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 12.5% of the population. On average, a household has 2.2 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Sarteano declared an average taxable income of 21,447 euros, below the provincial average (25,404 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Sarteano is in climate zone E, with 2,237 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 525 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Sarteano has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 3 sports facilities and 2 parks and green areas.
The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
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 3.3% of the land in Sarteano, compared with 4.0% in the province and 6.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
Sarteano is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Toscana in 2025. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Sarteano. 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 Sarteano: 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 Sarteano 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 47 inhabited census areas in Sarteano. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 77 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 4.8%
- good 68.8%
- very good 26.5%
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 Toscana, 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 052031. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.