Italian family wealth reached 11,333 billion euros at the end of 2025, but the asset growth rate and middle-class purchasing power lag behind major European economies while wealth concentrates heavily at the top. According to the Family Wealth Observatory report by the Fiba Foundation of First Cisl—which draws on data from the European Central Bank and Eurostat—the wealthiest 5% of Italian households control over half of the national net wealth.
Italian Household Wealth Growth Lags Eurozone Peers
Italy’s total net household wealth stood at 11,333 billion euros at the close of 2025, trailing well behind Germany at 19,867 billion euros, France at 14,054 billion euros, and Spain at 8,484 billion euros. Between 2015 and 2025, Italy registered a wealth increase of 22.8%, very distant from Germany’s 87.3%, from Spain’s 56.6% and France’s 42%. Consequently, Italy’s share of total household wealth within the Eurozone dropped from 21.7% to 16.5%. Financial assets drove a significant portion of this limited growth. Since 2015, roughly 45% of the overall increase—equal to 937 billion euros—stemmed from unquoted shares and other equity holdings, instruments held almost exclusively by wealthier households.
Widening Wealth Gap and Middle-Class Erosion
The distribution of Italian wealth remains sharply skewed toward the top of the socioeconomic ladder. At the end of 2025, the top 10% of households owned 60.6% of total net wealth, up from 52% in 2010. Concentration at the absolute peak is even more pronounced: the top 5% of households control 50.2% of the national total, compared to 39.9% in 2010. Meanwhile, the bottom 50% of the population holds just 7.3% of the country’s net wealth. Financial instruments exhibit extreme stratification. The top 10% of households hold over 93% of quoted shares, 98.3% of unquoted equity holdings, more than 82% of mutual fund shares, and over three-quarters of debt securities and life insurance policies. Conversely, the least wealthy 50% of the population carries nearly 38% of total household debt. First Cisl general secretary Daniela Fumarola notes that wealth has progressively concentrated in the upper brackets over the past fifteen years while the middle class loses purchasing power due to inflation and stagnant incomes.
Stagnant Incomes and Falling Savings Rates
Sluggish income dynamics and declining savings capacity continue to suppress broader wealth accumulation across Italy. Gross disposable household income rose from 1,132.8 billion euros in 2015 to 1,455 billion euros in 2025, marking a 28.4% increase. Peer nations recorded much faster gains: disposable income jumped 48.3% in Germany, 41.1% in France, and 53.8% in Spain over the same ten-year period. Gross household savings grew from 125.7 billion euros to 161.1 billion euros, a 28.2% increase that trails European averages. By 2025, Italy’s gross savings rate fell to 10.7%, marking the lowest level among major Eurozone economies and remaining far beneath the Eurozone average of 14.3%.
Real Estate Market Trends
Real estate assets remain a cornerstone of Italian households, with approximately 74% of families living in owner-occupied homes according to Istat data. However, property values have appreciated at a slower pace in Italy than across the wider Eurozone. Setting the 2015 index baseline at 100, Italy’s real estate price index reached 116.1 in 2025. That figure stands well below the Eurozone average of 153.7, alongside Germany at 152.7, France at 127.3, and Spain at 180.6. Fumarola advocates for a structured incomes policy focused on boosting wages and reigniting broad economic growth to reverse these widening disparities.