Rome, 21 Oct. (LaPresse) – The birth rate in Italy continues to fall. In 2025, there were 355,772 births to resident parents, 3.8 per cent fewer than in 2024. Since the peak in 2008, when births exceeded 576,000, the decline has been 38.3 per cent. And the trend is continuing in 2026: between January and July, 196,864 children were born, 1.1 per cent fewer than in the same period the previous year. According to Istat, the average number of children per woman has fallen to 1.14, a new all-time low. Factors influencing the decision to have children include job insecurity, difficulties in accessing housing and the challenge of balancing work and family life. Family structures are also changing: in 2025, 44.1 per cent of children were born outside marriage, with figures peaking at 50.1 per cent in Central Italy and 59.4 per cent in Sardinia.
Birth rates continue to fall; average number of children per woman hits a new all-time low
Rome, 21 Oct. (LaPresse) – The birth rate in Italy continues to fall. In 2025, there were 355,772 births to resident parents, 3.8 per cent fewer than in 2024. Since the peak in 2008, when births exceeded 576,000, the decline has been 38.3 per cent. And the trend is continuing in 2026: between January and July, 196,864 children were born, 1.1 per cent fewer than in the same period the previous year. According to Istat, the average number of children per woman has fallen to 1.14, a new all-time low. Factors influencing the decision to have children include job insecurity, difficulties in accessing housing and the challenge of balancing work and family life. Family structures are also changing: in 2025, 44.1 per cent of children were born outside marriage, with figures peaking at 50.1 per cent in Central Italy and 59.4 per cent in Sardinia.