Taranto: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Taranto, Puglia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
Search for an address in Taranto
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 Dante 7, Milan.
Taranto, the city of two seas
Taranto faces two seas: the Mar Grande, open to the gulf, and the Mar Piccolo, an inner basin. They are separated by the island of the old town and linked by a navigable channel spanned by a swing bridge. Founded by the Spartans, Taranto was one of the most important cities of Magna Graecia, as its National Archaeological Museum shows. In the twentieth century the economy grew around the Italian Navy's arsenal, the port and the large steelworks.
Resident numbers are falling. At the end of 2023 there were 187,025, 6.6% fewer than at the 2011 census, making up 33.8% of the province. The estimated average age is 47.1, and over-65s account for 26.2%, above the Puglia average of 24.2%. Foreign residents are just 2.8% of the population.
Seismic hazard: most of the province is in zone 4, the lowest class (19 of 29 municipalities), while Taranto is one of the 10 in zone 3. The expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.076 g, a moderate value. For buyers, asking about the building still makes sense, especially for older properties: the design date and the condition of the structure.
On services, Overture Maps data show less recorded green space than in the province (0.06 per 1,000 residents against 0.14) and fewer supermarkets (0.41 against 0.62). The Ministry of Health lists 60 pharmacies, 0.32 per 1,000 residents, just below the provincial average. There are 100 healthcare facilities on record.
The report can trace the sheet and parcel (foglio and particella) from an address, because the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes Taranto's cadastral maps. Between the two seas, the old town on its island and the districts stretching across the mainland, flood hazard and the local price range vary widely and are checked address by address.
Key points
- City of two seas, founded by the Spartans.
- Population down 6.6% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 3; 19 of the province's 29 municipalities are in zone 4.
- Little recorded green space per resident.
Overview
Taranto is the capital of the province of Taranto, in Puglia. At the end of 2023 it had 187,025 residents, the most populous municipality in the province. 34% of the province's residents live here.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Taranto is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Only 10 of 29 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.076 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.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood risk changes from one street to the next, even within the same municipality: for this reason we do not summarise it as a single figure for the whole of Taranto.
The report checks the exact address against the ISPRA national maps and tells you in plain words whether the building falls within an at-risk area. The official map is also available on IdroGEO.
House prices
We do not publish price tables by municipality. The report gives the minimum and maximum price per square metre for the address's zone, from the Revenue Agency's OMI valuations, with the reference half-year. It is a range for the zone, not the value of a specific home.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 6.6%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 26% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 2.8% of the population. On average, a household has 2.2 members.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Taranto has 120 schools and 60 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 77 grocery shops and supermarkets, 100 healthcare facilities, 122 sports facilities and 11 parks and green areas.
There are 0.4 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.6).
This data is gathered from several providers: services may be missing or closed businesses may still appear. The report counts services within 500 metres and 1 kilometre of the address.
Public transport
We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.
Land registry
The Revenue Agency publishes the cadastral maps for Taranto: the report finds the building's parcel, that is its sheet and parcel number, starting from the address.
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 2026-08-19.0.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 073027. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.