Italy has recorded yet another historic low in its demographic figures. The national statistics agency Istat reports that the number of babies born in 2024 dropped to 369,944, reflecting a 2.6 % decline compared with the previous year.
Key facts
- 369,944 births in 2024, down 2.6 % on 2023
- 13,000 fewer births in the first seven months of 2025 than the same period in 2024
- Fertility rate: 1.18 in 2024, 1.13 provisional for 2025
- Average age at childbirth: 32.6 years; at first birth: 31.9 years
- Population: 58.93 million (end of 2024)
- Deaths exceeded births by around 281,000
- Life expectancy: 83.4 years
Looking ahead, the provisional data for January to July 2025 are particularly sobering. Births during that period are about 13,000 fewer than in the same stretch of 2024, corresponding to a decline of some 6.3 %.
The fertility rate — the average number of children a woman bears over her lifetime — fell to a new record low of 1.18 children per woman in 2024. This is below the previous low of 1.19 recorded in 1995. For the first seven months of 2025, the provisional estimate drops even further, to around 1.13.
The average age of mothers continues to rise. In 2024, the average woman giving birth was 32.6 years old, up from 32.5 in 2023. The average age at first birth also rose slightly, to 31.9 years, compared with 31.7 in 2023 and just 28.1 in 1995. Italian women are now among the oldest first-time mothers in Europe, a shift that has contributed to the nation’s long-term fertility decline.
Births have been steadily decreasing since 2008, when about 576,000 babies were born. Today’s figure of roughly 370,000 represents a fall of more than one-third over that period. The 2024 result marks the 16th consecutive year of decline and is the lowest annual number of births since Italian unification. The trend is closely tied to economic uncertainty, job insecurity, and delayed family formation, all of which have discouraged younger generations from having children.
The wider demographic picture
Italy’s natural population balance remains deeply negative. In 2024, deaths outnumbered births by around 281,000, contributing to a net population drop of about 37,000 people. By the end of the year, the resident population stood at approximately 58.93 million.
Life expectancy, meanwhile, rose to 83.4 years, about five months higher than in 2023. This combination — a shrinking birth rate and an ageing population — intensifies Italy’s demographic imbalance.
Government response and the challenges
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has repeatedly described reversing the falling birth rate as an “absolute priority”. Her government has introduced support measures for families, including means-tested tax breaks for working mothers, extended parental leave and financial incentives for new parents.
However, many analysts argue that such policies are unlikely to be sufficient on their own. Structural challenges persist: many families still struggle to reconcile work and childcare, the cost of living continues to rise, and precarious employment remains widespread. Tax breaks put forward in the 2026 budget bill may go a little way to helping, but more work is required.
A persistently low birth rate has far-reaching consequences for Italy’s future. The country’s working-age population is shrinking, increasing the burden of supporting an ever-larger elderly population. Pension systems and healthcare services will come under greater strain, while regional disparities are expected to deepen.
Rural and inner areas — especially across the Mezzogiorno — face steeper population loss, threatening the viability of small towns and local economies. The declining number of young people also risks reducing labour supply, limiting innovation and slowing economic growth.
