How to Write an Italian Address Correctly

Italian addresses are compact. The street comes first with its type, then the number, and the last line carries the CAP, the town and the province abbreviation. The country name is only added on international mail.

The standard order

1. Recipient name, or company name.
2. Street type, street name and number.
3. Building details, such as staircase, floor and flat, if needed.
4. CAP, town and province abbreviation.
5. Country, for mail from abroad.

The street type is part of the name and comes first: Via, Viale, Corso, Piazza, Vicolo, Largo. The number follows after the name and may be preceded by a comma. A letter or a barred number can follow the number when a plot has been subdivided.

Province abbreviation

After the town, the province is written as a two-letter abbreviation, often in brackets or capital letters. It resolves ambiguity, because many town names repeat across the country. The abbreviation belongs on the last line, after the town.

Flats, stairs and floors

Apartment buildings use short abbreviations:

• Scala, abbreviated as sc., for the staircase.
• Piano, abbreviated as p., for the floor.
• Interno, abbreviated as int., for the flat.

The name on the doorbell (citofono) is also commonly used to identify the flat, so it often helps to include it as a note.

Numbering quirks

In some Italian cities, buildings can carry two series of street numbers, a black or blue series for homes and a red series for businesses. Florence and Genoa are the best-known examples. In such cities, an address with the wrong colour series points to a different building, so the colour may be added after the number.

Language

Addresses are in Italian. In some border regions, such as South Tyrol, street names may be displayed in two languages. Use the name as shown on the street sign or a trusted document.

A formatted example

Placeholder values only:

Giulia Esempio
Via Esempio 12, Scala B, Interno 5
12345 Cittaesempio EX
Italia

Using a UPCS code

A code such as IT-XXXX-XXXX (placeholder) can be stored beside the address to show the exact entrance in a courtyard or an old-town passage. It does not replace the lines above. See Italy postal code format explained and the Italy overview.