Florence
A walkable Renaissance art-city with world-class healthcare and food, but pricier than most of Italy, no year-round US flights, and it does NOT qualify for Italy's famous 7% retiree tax.
For an American couple, Florence runs about $3,850 a month — though the flight home is a long one.
Florence by the numbers
Visa & residency for Americans
As of 2026 the stated minimum stable passive income is ~€31,000/yr for a single applicant (~€2,580/mo; shown here ~$2,950/mo) and ~€38,000/yr for a couple, from pensions/Social Security/investments/rental income — savings alone don't count. Pathway: apply at your home US consulate before moving, then get a permesso di soggiorno in Italy. Caveats: a strict no-work clause, heavy documentation, and US consulates frequently demand well above the floor at their discretion. Renewable, leads toward long-term residency/citizenship.
Your Italy residency, mapped to your situation
Where you're headed, who's going, and what you're working with — five questions puts your file on the desk. When a visa specialist clears our bar for your country, you're first in line for the introduction.
Map my Italy visa path →What living in Florence is actually like
Italy's public SSN is consistently ranked among the world's best and is low-cost. Careggi University Hospital in Florence is a large world-class teaching/referral center for acute and complex care; private options (e.g., Ulivella Clinic) cut wait times. English-speaking doctor networks (Medelit, Doctors in Italy, private GPs) serve the expat community, but in the public system English is not guaranteed and waits can be long, so most expats add private insurance.
Health cover for retiring in Italy
A broker that compares plans across the major international insurers — including plans that cover you past 65.
Compare plans for Italy →Inland Mediterranean/humid-subtropical: hot, muggy summers (often 32-36C/90s F, little breeze in the valley) and cool, damp winters (lows near 2-4C/upper-30s F, gray and rainy). Pleasant spring and fall. Not a warm-all-year beach climate — there is a real, chilly winter.
Very safe by violent-crime standards — Florence scores among the safest major Italian cities (Numbeo safety index ~58). The real issue is petty theft: pickpocketing surged (~1,034 reported cases, roughly doubled year-over-year) around tourist crush points like Ponte Vecchio, the Uffizi, and SMN station. Standard big-city precautions suffice.
Large, long-established Anglo/American presence — Florence is home to ~58,000 foreign residents (~14% of the population), US study-abroad campuses, and an old art/expat scene. Easy to find English-speaking community, but integration still rewards learning Italian.
No year-round nonstop flights from the US. Florence's own airport (FLR) is small and short-haul/European only; a summer-seasonal Delta route runs from Pisa (PSA, ~1 hr away). Realistically you connect through a European hub (Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam) or fly into Rome (FCO) or Milan and take the ~1.5-hr high-speed train to Florence SMN. Plan on a long travel day to/from the US.
Italy taxes residents on worldwide income at progressive 23-43% rates. The well-known 7% flat tax for foreign pensioners does NOT apply in Florence — that regime is limited to towns under 30,000 residents (Florence is ~360k). A US-Italy tax treaty prevents true double taxation and US Social Security is generally taxable only in Italy, but expect ordinary Italian rates here, not the bargain southern-village deal. Get cross-border tax advice.
Getting your money to Florence
Move money across the border at the real exchange rate — the fee shown up front, and you see exactly what lands on the other side.
See how a transfer to Italy works →Partner-marked links may pay Second Summer a referral fee if you choose them. Rankings are never pay-to-rank. How partners work
Florence, weighed both ways
What’s good
- +World-class, low-cost public healthcare plus a major university hospital and private/English-speaking options
- +Extremely walkable, largely car-free historic center — daily life on foot
- +Among the safest big Italian cities for violent crime
- +Deep culture, art, food and wine; day-trip access to all of Tuscany and fast trains across Italy
- +Large, established English-speaking expat community
Worth weighing
- –One of Italy's more expensive cities — Tuscan-tourist premium on rent and dining
- –Does NOT qualify for the 7% retiree flat tax; you pay ordinary Italian rates (23-43% on worldwide income)
- –No year-round direct US flights — every trip home is a connection or a Rome/Milan train add-on
- –Heavy overtourism and pickpocketing in the center; summers are hot and humid, winters gray and damp
- –Italian bureaucracy (visa, permesso, healthcare enrollment) is slow, and everyday officialdom runs in Italian
Who Florence suits
culture-and-art lovers · walkable car-free living · foodies and wine lovers · couples wanting world-class healthcare in Europe · those who want an established English-speaking expat scene
budget retirees seeking the cheapest option · anyone wanting the 7% Italian flat tax · beach or warm-all-year seekers · people who need frequent, easy direct US flights · those unwilling to deal with Italian bureaucracy or learn some Italian
What a move to Florence actually costs
One form, and up to five international movers come back with real quotes for your move — compare prices before you commit.
Get my moving quotes →Sources, methodology & recent updates · visa & advisory re-checked 2026-09-11SHOW
- Sep 4, 2026We flagged a possible change in Florence's data and are holding the current figures until an official source confirms it.
Go and see Florence first
Flights, a hotel, and a car for the scouting trip — booked in one place, through our travel shop.
See scouting trips to Florence →A month in Florence before you decide
The people who land happiest came and lived it first — the market, the bus, an ordinary Tuesday — before they signed anything. A furnished place by the week or the month is how you do that.
Partner-marked links may pay Second Summer a referral fee if you choose them. Rankings are never pay-to-rank.
Browse monthly stays in Florence on Vrbo →