🇮🇹 Learning Italian in Italy

A state CPIA covering part of Rome, offering free Italian courses for foreign adults from literacy level upward, plus the A2 permit test. Rome has several CPIAs divided by area, so check which one covers your address before enrolling. Registration goes through the pre-iscrizioni page and set reception hours rather than a rolling online form. Free, with only nominal administrative costs.

A state adult-education centre in Milan running free Italian courses for foreigners and preparing students for the CELI, CILS and PLIDA certificates as well as the A2 permit test. As in Rome, several CPIAs split the city, so confirm yours by address. Enrol through the Iscriviti a un corso section; intakes cluster at the start of the school year but places sometimes open mid-year.

Best known for its committees promoting Italian abroad, the Dante Alighieri society also teaches at its Rome headquarters on Piazza di Firenze and awards the PLIDA certificate, one of the four state-recognised Italian proficiency certifications. A reasonable paid option in central Rome with a strong cultural programme attached. Note the organisation moved from its old ladante.it address to dante.global, so older links redirect.

A private school in central Rome with decades of history and a distinctive methodology built around intensive listening and student-led speaking rather than grammar exposition. Courses run year-round with frequent start dates, in group and one-to-one formats, and it prepares students for the main certification exams. Paid, at typical central-Rome private-school rates; see the dates and fees page before booking.

The largest of the Italian private-school chains, letting you study the same syllabus in four cities and move between them mid-course, which is the main reason to choose it over a single-city school. Group, intensive and one-to-one courses run with weekly start dates plus certification preparation. It is the most straightforward way to get a Milan-based course, where free and subsidised options are thinner than in Rome. Paid, with accommodation packages offered.

The language centre of Europe's oldest university offers Italian courses and proficiency testing at subsidised university rates. The catch is eligibility: the offering is oriented towards people enrolled in a course of study at the university, so confirm whether external learners can join before planning around it. Worth the check if you are already studying in Bologna, since the price is far below any private school in the city.

One of only two Italian universities founded specifically to teach the language and culture to foreigners, with courses at every level running throughout the year, from short intensives to full academic programmes. Its assessment centre issues the CELI certificates, which are recognised for residence and citizenship purposes. Perugia is a small hill town, which means genuine immersion and low living costs. Paid, at public-university rates.

The second of Italy's two universities for foreigners, running language and culture courses at all levels and awarding the CILS certification — the exam most often accepted for the A2 permit requirement and the B1 citizenship threshold. It also trains Italian-language teachers, which keeps the teaching methodology unusually current. Siena is compact and beautiful and offers little chance to hide in English. Paid; check intake dates for the semester and summer courses.

A federation of volunteer associations that teach Italian to migrants for free across Rome and Lazio, with an interactive map letting you filter by town, level and season to find the nearest class. It fills the gap the CPIAs leave: no enrolment deadlines, no documents required, and classes in the neighbourhoods where people actually live. Teaching is informal and does not itself certify, but it prepares people well for the CPIA courses and the A2 test. Simply turn up at a listed school.

Centro Astalli is the Italian arm of the Jesuit Refugee Service and runs a free Italian school in Rome as part of its wider reception and inclusion work with refugees and asylum seekers. Aimed squarely at people in the asylum system who need language alongside legal help, housing support and orientation rather than a standalone course. No fees and no formal entry requirements. Contact the centre directly for current class times.