Culture: private funding in Italy totals 1.9 billion

Private funding for culture in Italy stands at around 1.9 billion, compared with public spending on the sector of around 10.1 billion. A comparison with other European countries shows that there is considerable scope for growth in the Italian system. In many countries, in fact, private contributions are more structured and systematic, partly thanks to incentive schemes. This is the key insight that emerges from the data compiled by Formules, ahead of the launch of the Eureka trade fair to be held in November in Pordenone.

Private investment in culture in Italy remains a strategic area but one that is still poorly measured: one of the main problems is, in fact, the lack of consistent and comprehensive data, a situation that makes it difficult to estimate the total volume of investment with any precision. As regards the general public, individual donations range from 88.5 million (Italiani Solidali, BVA Doxa, 2024) to 621.4 million euros per year (X Italy Giving Report, Vita, 2025), depending on the sources and calculation methods used.

A significant contribution also comes from the ‘5 per mille’ scheme, which, for example, raised 13.3 million in the 2022 tax year. The role of the Third Sector is also crucial, comprising over 148,000 registered organisations and more than 4,000 active foundations. Among these, banking and corporate foundations represent a significant proportion, with resources amounting to 256.5 million and 32 million euros respectively. Comparisons with other countries can vary greatly depending on the model of cultural support adopted by each country.

The United States, the home of private enterprise, sees 20 billion in private funding for culture; France stands at 2.8 billion; Germany’s figures are not too dissimilar from Italy’s (1.9 billion), Switzerland stands at 1.7 billion, whilst the UK (765 million) and the Netherlands (389 million) lag far behind.

The data from Formules, a research and consultancy firm for cultural and creative enterprises led by Guido Guerzoni, a lecturer at Bocconi University, was presented in Rome at the launch of the third edition of Eureka, the national trade fair for cultural and creative enterprises to be held in Pordenone on 5 and 6 November, an event promoted by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region in collaboration with Pordenone Fiere, which aims to build a bridge between culture and business, fostering new opportunities for development. Italian cultural and creative industries, in fact, represent a rapidly expanding sector comprising 289,000 companies that employ around 1.5 million people and generate added value of over 115 billion. The fair’s programme includes exhibitions, workshops and B2B meetings. Over a hundred cultural enterprises and institutional stakeholders are expected in Pordenone, with a guest list ranging from the FAO to Il Sole 24 Ore Cultura and GetYourGuide.