In Southern Italy, 22.5 per cent of pensioners receive between 500 and 1,000 euros a month

In 2025, over 4.5 million pensioners had a pension income of less than 1,000 euros a month, accounting for over a quarter of the total (27.5 per cent). In particular, nearly 1.7 million pensioners (10.3 per cent) receive up to €499, whilst over 2.8 million receive between €500 and €1,000 (17.2 per cent). There are almost 2.9 million pensioners (17.5 per cent) with incomes between €1,000 and €1,500, whilst those with a monthly pension income of more than €1,500 number over 9 million (55 per cent of the total).

 Women account for 51 per cent of pensioners but receive 44 per cent

An analysis by gender reveals a higher proportion of men in pension income brackets above 1,500 euros per month, where 64.3 per cent of male pensioners are concentrated, whilst the corresponding figure for women is 46.2 per cent. This therefore confirms a different distribution of pension incomes between the two sexes – reflecting the disparity in earnings from employment, which places women at a disadvantage – with a higher concentration of men in the higher income brackets.

Women account for 51 per cent of pensioners, but men receive 56 per cent of pension income. This figure is influenced by differences in working careers, with women being disadvantaged by factors such as greater reliance on part-time work and career breaks to care for family members. The average annual pension income received by men is, in fact, 33 per cent higher than that of women (€26,031 compared with €19,553).

76.7 per cent of pensions are social security pensions (disability, old-age and survivors’ pensions), whilst 20.7 per cent are welfare benefits (civil disability benefits, social allowances and pensions, war pensions) and around 2.6 per cent relate to compensation-type benefits.

Among pensioners, the largest group is that receiving old-age pensions, totalling 11.5 million people, 28 per cent of whom also receive other types of pension. Next come recipients of survivors’ pensions (4.1 million): of these, 31 per cent receive only survivors’ pensions, whilst the remaining 69 per cent also receive other types of pension. Among those receiving social security benefits, recipients of disability pensions (858,000) account for the largest group, 46 per cent of whom also receive other types of pension.

Almost a quarter of pensioners receive social security benefits: there are 4.1 million of them, and 48 per cent of them also receive benefits other than social security benefits. These are mainly recipients of carer’s allowances who also receive social security pensions. 592,000 people are in receipt of compensation-type benefits, the majority of whom (71 per cent) combine this benefit with other types of social security and/or welfare benefits.