As one of Europe’s most beautiful countries, it’s not surprising that many people would want to live like Italy digital nomads. The country enjoys good weather, stunning scenery, and vibrant culture and history.
You will find many beautiful places to stay as Italy digital nomads. While many have chosen to live in modern cities like Rome and Milan, others can live in small mountain villages and beachside towns. Regardless of where you will stay in Italy, you can enjoy decent internet speed, so you won’t have any problems keeping up with work deadlines while living there as a digital nomad.
The best part about living in as Italy digital nomads is that you’ll have no time to get bored. With so many fun things to explore in this incredible country, you can enjoy a healthy work-life balance while living in Italy. If you’re into culture and history, you’ll find several museums and archaeological sites to explore during your downtime. Those who love nature and adventures can visit beautiful islands where they can swim at the beach or hike mountain trails.
Many places in Italy are well-suited for digital nomads. And if you need help deciding where to stay, here are the top 12 most popular places to stay and work in Italy.
1. Rome
When it comes to the best digital nomad cities in Italy, the country’s capital city definitely tops the list. Although it’s famous for its impressive historical sights, Rome is also a modern and well-developed city offering everything you need as a digital nomad. This welcoming city has numerous co-working spaces where you can network with other creative nomads.
What draws most digital nomads to Rome is its abundance of historical sights, which you can explore in your free time. If you base yourself in the city centre, you can walk from one place to another since much of the city has pedestrian-friendly narrow lanes and alleyways. But if you want a more adventurous way of exploring Rome, rent a Vespa and drive around to places like the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon.
You will love being a digital nomad in Rome, given the endless entertainment and incredible attractions in this bustling city. While renting an apartment in the city centre can be expensive, you will find more affordable options outside the city if you’re on a budget. Rome has an efficient public transportation system, so you can get around with ease regardless of where you live.
2. Milan
Milan is another city famous for digital nomads in Italy. As the world’s fashion capital, it’s an inspiring city for digital nomads who are artists and creatives. Home to several financial headquarters and some of the world’s leading financial centres, Milan is a thriving city offering various investment opportunities.
Located on the northern side of Italy, Milan is home to impressive monuments, including fascinating buildings and churches. Digital nomads will find plenty to love in this sophisticated city. It has all the amenities you need to be productive at work, such as fast internet speed, excellent coworking spaces, and numerous accommodation options.
When you’re not working at your desk, you can spend your days exploring sights like the Duomo di Milano and Sforzesco Castle or shopping at Galleria Vittorio. When evening comes, visit the city’s best bars and clubs to experience its glamorous nightlife.
While Milan can be expensive in terms of the cost of living, there are many ways to save money living as a digital nomad in Milan. You can rent an apartment on the outskirts or cook food to minimize eating out.
3. Florence
Florence is famous for its arts and culture, another fantastic place for artists and digital nomads looking for inspiration. The entire city itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. As a digital nomad in Florence, you’ll live in a picturesque city home to Baroque buildings, centuries-old palaces, and some of the world’s best museums and art galleries.
As the capital of the Tuscan region, you’ll find numerous places to base yourself in Florence. Most digital nomads in Florence live in Santo Spirito, a lovely neighborhood with a bustling community of ex-pats. If you don’t mind splurging, you can stay in the city center, giving you easy access to famous attractions like the Uffizi Gallery, the Cathedral of Santa Maria de Fiore, and Piazzale Michelangelo.
As one of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations, Florence is very welcoming to foreigners. The city is safe and has many residential areas offering various accommodation options. Depending on your needs and preferences, you’ll find a studio apartment to rent for around $1,500 monthly.
You won’t have any issues connecting to the internet when living as a digital nomad in Florence. There are also coworking spaces and cafes with fast internet.
4. Palermo
Palermo is the capital city of Sicily, one of Italy’s most picturesque regions. Famous for its rich culture and history, fascinating architecture, and mouthwatering cuisines, Palermo is a fun place to live as a digital nomad in Italy.
Palermo has a fast internet speed, and you’ll find many apartments to rent in the city center at reasonable prices. If you look hard enough, you can find a studio in the city center for around $700 per month, where everything is within walking distance. Staying in the city center gives you easy access to cozy cafes where you can take up work if you want a change of scenery.
If you want a break from working, hop on a bus to Mondello Beach to enjoy a refreshing dip. During the weekends, you can take the train for a day trip to the lovely coastal city of Cefalu.
Living in Palermo is cheaper than many other major cities in Italy, and that’s the biggest reason why many digital nomads would live here. You can save even further if you cook in your apartment and shop for fresh produce at the city’s bustling farmer’s markets.
5. Cagliari
Another great option if you want to live in a lovely coastal city while being a digital nomad in Italy is Cagliari, the capital city of Sardinia. Cagliari is a picturesque city famous for its medieval walled quarter perched high above the town. Cagliari may not be as popular as Rome or Milan as a digital nomad hub, but digital nomads will find many things to love about this city. Aside from being safe, it has everything digital nomads need, including fast internet.
The cost of living in Cagliari is a bit high, but you’ll find many places where the rent is cheap. If you live in the city centre, you can spend up to $1,000 monthly for a studio apartment. But you will find more affordable places to rent outside the city.
Cagliari is a fantastic place to visit all year round, and digital nomads who love history and culture will find many attractions to explore, such as the 13th-Century Cagliari Cathedral. The Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Cagliari is another fun place to visit during your downtime. It showcases fascinating collections of bronze objects and Roman artefacts from the Byzantine era.
6. Turin
Turin is the capital city of the Piedmont region, which lies in the north western part of Italy. It’s a lovely cosmopolitan city offering a fascinating mix of fascinating architecture, art galleries, and ancient-old churches and palaces.
Turin is also home to some of Italy’s best colleges and universities, and you can expect a bustling crowd of students in the city. Being a university city, Turin has a more affordable cost of living and an incredible nightlife scene. As a digital nomad in Turin, you can rent apartments for as low as $800 monthly, cheaper than most major cities in Italy. You can base yourself in Vanchiglia, a quiet neighbourhood in the city centre with various accommodation options geared towards digital nomads.
When living as a digital nomad in Turin, you can expect a healthy work-life balance since you’ll find many fun activities to enjoy if you feel like taking a break from work. You can spend the day museum-hopping, indulging in delectable aperitifs, or chilling at Piazza Castello. There’s now a growing community of digital nomads in Turin, so you will find plenty of opportunities to network and socialize with fellow nomads.
7. Trieste
If you prefer to live in smaller towns, away from the busy tourist crowds, consider living in Trieste, in the northeast part of the country. A charming port city, Trieste occupies a small strip of land along the Adriatic Coast and is home to some of Italy’s most beautiful beaches.
You’ll enjoy living as a digital nomad in Trieste, given the many fascinating places you can explore during your free time. It’s a historical town boasting stunning architecture featuring Austro-Hungarian and Slovenian influences. Although it exudes a medieval feel, it is a modern city with all the amenities you need to live and work as a digital nomad. There’s fast internet all over the city and a growing digital nomad community.
Trieste offers various accommodation options for digital nomads. Expect to pay more than $1,000 monthly for an apartment in the city centre. You can choose to live outside the city if you’re looking for more affordable places to stay. But the best thing about staying in the city centre is you can simply walk to the waterfront to relax in the evening and soak up the pleasant Mediterranean atmosphere.
8. Naples
Naples is the third largest city in Italy, established by the Greeks during the 9th Century BC. Famous for being the birthplace of pizza, Naples appeals to digital nomads who are foodies at heart. Between working, you can spend your time gorging on mouth watering pizzas, gelato, pasta, and delectable wines.
There are numerous fascinating historical sights to see in the streets of Naples. Therefore, it’s not only a place for foodies but also for history buffs. With a history dating back to 2,000 years, you can spend your free time discovering historical sites, such as the nearby Pompeii and Herculaneum , a vast archaeological site once buried after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.
While the cost of living in Naples is a bit more expensive for the average digital nomad in Italy, the city offers budget accommodation options for those with a limited budget. Naples has fast internet, so you won’t have any issues catching up on work while living as a digital nomad in Naples. You will also find plenty of cafes that offer free internet and coworking spaces with fast Wi-Fi and a comfortable working environment.
9. Bologna
Bologna is a mid-sized city famous for its mouth watering cuisine, rich culture, and history. Digital nomads in Bologna will enjoy living in a safe place with fast internet and several coworking spaces. In addition, Bologna is not too crowded with tourists, making it an ideal option for digital nomads looking for a more tranquil environment to live and work in.
You can stay at the city’s historic centre and spend your free time exploring the city’s top attractions. Piazza Maggiore, a sprawling square home to arched colonnades, great restaurants, and medieval Renaissance structures, is a fun place to explore. You will also find lovely cafes in Piazza Maggiore, where you can take up work if you want a change of scenery.
You won’t encounter any issues with the internet when living as a digital nomad in Bologna. If you find the city center a bit too expensive to live in, the neighborhood of La Dotta is a better alternative. It’s where you will find some of the oldest university buildings and a bustling community of young students.
10. Amalfi
Amalfi is the main town of the Amalfi Coast along the west coast of Southern Italy. If you want to live and work in a place with easy access to the beach, Amalfi is the perfect place for you. It has picturesque streets, white-washed villages, and narrow steps leading to beautiful beaches. Digital nomads in Amalfi will enjoy fast internet, good air quality, and a safe place to live.
As one of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations, you will find many accommodation options in Amalfi. You can live in the lodging houses or apartments tucked away in the quiet streets, far from the crowds of tourists but only a walking distance from the town center. While it’s not the cheapest place to live as a digital nomad in Italy, Amalfi has everything you need as a digital nomad.
The best part about living in Amalfi is that it offers a healthy work-life balance. When you’re not at your desk working, you can spend your days chilling out at the beach, exploring picturesque villages, or indulging in delectable seafood dishes at one of the restaurants by the beach. You can also take day trips to the nearby towns of Positano, Sorrento, Naples, or Capri.
11. Verona
Verona is one of the most stunning cities in Italy, offering an abundance of fun attractions to explore. The city lies along northern Italy’s Veneto region and is famous for being the setting of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” Digital nomads who want to live in a romantic city surrounded by the idyllic views of nature will find Verona a fantastic place to live.
Verona is home to lovely neighbourhoods with residential apartments that you can rent for the long term. If you look hard enough, you’ll find some really good ones that you can rent at reasonable prices. The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Verona is around $700 per month. Veronetta is a fantastic neighbourhood for digital nomads. It has a large influx of ex-pats and international students, with a friendly atmosphere exuding a bohemian vibe and lined with cool bars and restaurants.
During your downtime, you’ll find many fun attractions to explore in Verona. Check out the Verona Arena, a Roman amphitheater built around 30 AD. If you want to unwind in the evening after a day of work, head to Piazza Delle Erbe, a lovely square with cool cafes, where you can enjoy refreshments while people-watching.
12. Genoa
Genoa is a picturesque port city in the Liguria region of northwest Italy. Rich in architectural treasures with a varied food and wine culture, it’s slowly becoming a popular place for digital nomads in Italy. Aside from being the region’s economic centre, Genoa has a rich cultural heritage, giving digital nomads plenty to discover.
While the digital nomad scene in Genoa is not yet fully developed, the city offers everything that digital nomads seek. It’s very safe, has fast internet, and lots of fun things to explore. In the old town of Genoa, you’ll find the stunning Romanesque Cathedral of San Lorenzo, famous for its distinct black and white striped facade. Stroll through the city’s narrow lanes and into Piazza de Ferrari, where you’ll find the iconic bronze fountain and the Teatro Carlo Felice opera house.
The cost of living in Genoa is cheaper than in many other cities in Italy, and you can find affordable apartments to rent in the city centre. A studio apartment could cost an average of $800 to rent.
Italy Digital Nomad Visa
Do you dream of staying longer in Italy beyond the 90 days per 180 days of a Schengen Visa. At the start of April 2024 Italy launched its long-awaited Italy Digital Nomad Visa. You can read more about it here:
Italy Digital Nomad Visa – Requirements and Application Process
