If you’re going to Italy but you can’t speak any Italian, you may be wondering whether you’ll be able to use English. Can you get along in Italy using nothing but English? Let’s take a look.
The average estimate of the population which is capable of speaking English to some degree is about a third. In reality, this may be a bit optimistic at times. Italy has scored the 35th place on the EF Proficiency Index Survey in 2023, alongside Spain and Moldova, as ‘moderate proficiency’. Italians try to speak English, just not all that well at times.
Do Italians speak English?
The usual argument is that tourist spots will always have people speak better English and rural areas won’t be able to at all. This is only partially true. Yes, larger cities, especially their tourist centres, will usually have more staff hired partially for their English. This is more about culture and age, though, and not just the location.
Younger people will speak better English on average. If they have higher education, then there’s a much, much higher chance of them being able to actually converse. If you encounter an older gentleman at the ticket booth, there’s a good chance you’ll have to use Italian or find some way to overcome the language barrier.
This does usually also fall in line with the argument that people living in rural Italy won’t understand you because the population there is usually older and less interested in global culture. As such, yes, you might find it impossible to communicate in English in the countryside. Our advice would be to just learn a bit of Italian yourself – it’s not that much effort (you might even find it fun!) and the local people will appreciate it a lot. For real.
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