Foreign residents in Bologna
Bologna, in the province of Bologna, is home to 514 Russians — 0.13% of its 390,151 residents. That is the 623rd-highest concentration of Russians of any of the 5,872 Italian comuni with at least 1,000 residents, and 33rd within Emilia-Romagna.
Across the nationalities we track, Bologna counts 3,811 foreign residents in total, 0.98% of the population. The largest groups are Russians (514), Spaniards (420), French nationals (358).
Over the period 2019–2025, the number of Russians in Bologna has risen, from 426 to 514 (+21%).
Separately, ISTAT's census data shows 18.2% of Bologna's population was born outside Italy — 15.4% outside the EU and 2.8% elsewhere in the EU. ISTAT does not publish this broken down by specific country at comune level, so it isn't directly comparable to the per-nationality citizenship figures above.
Population over time
By nationality
| Nationality | Citizens | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Russia | 514 | 0.13% |
| Spain | 420 | 0.11% |
| France | 358 | 0.09% |
| Brazil | 356 | 0.09% |
| United States | 300 | 0.08% |
| Germany | 296 | 0.08% |
| United Kingdom | 288 | 0.07% |
| Greece | 275 | 0.07% |
| Japan | 146 | 0.04% |
| Portugal | 125 | 0.03% |
| Argentina | 117 | 0.03% |
| Venezuela | 89 | 0.02% |
| Netherlands | 85 | 0.02% |
| Mexico | 76 | 0.02% |
| Ireland | 62 | 0.02% |
| Belgium | 54 | 0.01% |
| Switzerland | 51 | 0.01% |
| Austria | 42 | 0.01% |
| Canada | 40 | 0.01% |
| Sweden | 29 | 0.01% |
| Denmark | 26 | 0.01% |
| Australia | 24 | 0.01% |
| South Korea | 22 | 0.01% |
| Finland | 10 | 0.00% |
| Norway | 6 | 0.00% |
Country of birth
| Group | Residents | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Born in Italy | 319,150 | 81.80% |
| Born elsewhere in the EU | 10,759 | 2.76% |
| Born outside the EU | 60,242 | 15.44% |
Russians over time
Quality of life in Bologna
Full BES profile for Bologna →Bologna on cost vs quality of life (province-level) →
Property prices
Buying in Bologna is well above the Bologna average of €2,143/m². Averaged across 30 OMI micro-zones, which can differ substantially within the same town.
20.6 years of rent here equal the purchase price, close to the national median of 22.2 years.
A ratio between two OMI prices, not a return on investment. It leaves out purchase taxes, IMU, maintenance, financing and the months a place sits empty — all of which push the real figure up. Useful for the question it does answer: whether this town looks expensive to buy relative to what renting in it costs.
Housing here in excellent condition costs 19% more than ordinary condition — €3,504/m² against €2,935.
That gap is what the market charges for a place you don’t have to work on. It is not what the work would cost you — OMI prices property, not builders.
A detached house here averages €3,033/m², against €2,935 for an apartment.
Compared street for street — houses and flats priced in the same neighbourhood — a house costs 14% more per square metre.
OMI prices “Ville e Villini” separately from the apartments every other figure on this page describes. Nationally a house costs about 14% more per square metre, but in 450 comuni it costs less — worth checking rather than assuming.