Foreign residents in Donato
Donato, in the province of Biella, is home to 2 Russians — 0.29% of its 688 residents. That is notable for a comune of its size.
Across the nationalities we track, Donato counts 7 foreign residents in total, 1.02% of the population. The largest groups are Russians (2), Brazilians (1), Britons (1).
Over the period 2019–2025, the number of Russians in Donato has risen, from 0 to 2.
Separately, ISTAT's census data shows 5.2% of Donato's population was born outside Italy — 3.2% outside the EU and 2.0% 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 | 2 | 0.29% |
| Brazil | 1 | 0.15% |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 0.15% |
| Greece | 1 | 0.15% |
| Ireland | 1 | 0.15% |
| Netherlands | 1 | 0.15% |
| Argentina | 0 | 0.00% |
| Austria | 0 | 0.00% |
| Australia | 0 | 0.00% |
| Belgium | 0 | 0.00% |
| Canada | 0 | 0.00% |
| Switzerland | 0 | 0.00% |
| Germany | 0 | 0.00% |
| Denmark | 0 | 0.00% |
| Spain | 0 | 0.00% |
| Finland | 0 | 0.00% |
| France | 0 | 0.00% |
| Japan | 0 | 0.00% |
| South Korea | 0 | 0.00% |
| Mexico | 0 | 0.00% |
| Norway | 0 | 0.00% |
| Portugal | 0 | 0.00% |
| Sweden | 0 | 0.00% |
| United States | 0 | 0.00% |
| Venezuela | 0 | 0.00% |
Country of birth
| Group | Residents | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Born in Italy | 652 | 94.77% |
| Born elsewhere in the EU | 14 | 2.03% |
| Born outside the EU | 22 | 3.20% |
Russians over time
Quality of life in Biella
Full BES profile for Biella →Biella on cost vs quality of life (province-level) →
Property prices
Buying in Donato is well below the Biella average of €566/m². Based on a single OMI micro-zone, so it describes the town as one market.
12.3 years of rent here equal the purchase price — well below 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.
A detached house here averages €485/m², against €340 for an apartment.
Compared street for street — houses and flats priced in the same neighbourhood — a house costs 43% 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.