The old-age dependency index in Italy peaked in 2025, with ** elderly people to every 100 individuals in working age. This indicator refers to the ratio between the number of elderly aged 65 years and older, age when they are generally economically inactive, and the working-age population between 15 and 64 years, percent.

Graph and download economic data for Age Dependency Ratio: Older Dependents to Working-Age Population for Italy (SPPOPDPNDOLITA) from 1960 to 2024 about 64 years +, working-age, Italy, ratio, and population.

Italy - Old-age-dependency ratio was 38.40% in December of 2024, according to the EUROSTAT. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for Italy - Old-age-dependency ratio - last updated from the EUROSTAT on December of 2025. Historically, Italy - Old-age-dependency ratio reached a record high of 38.40% in December of 2024 and a record low of 31.20% in December of 2010.

Italy IT: Age Dependency Ratio: % of Working-Age Population: Old data was reported at 36.276 % in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 35.660 % for 2016. Italy IT: Age Dependency Ratio: % of Working-Age Population: Old data is updated yearly, averaging 20.867 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 36.276 % in 2017 and a record low of 14.511 % in 1960. Italy IT: Age Dependency Ratio: % of Working-Age Population: Old data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Italy – Table IT.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Age dependency ratio, old, is the ratio of older dependents--people older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. Data are shown as the proportion of dependents per 100 working-age population.; ; World Bank staff estimates based on age distributions of United Nations Population Division's World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision.; Weighted average;

In 2022, Italy had the highest old-age dependency ratio, with a rate of 37.5 people aged over 65 to 100 people of working age. Finland followed second with an old-age dependency ratio of 37.4, while Azerbaijan had the lowest old-age dependency ratio of 11.3 percent.

The dependency ratio is a measure of the proportion of a country's population who are either below the age of being able to take up full-time employment or past the retirement age. A higher dependency ratio generally means that a country must fund a higher amount of public services used by dependents from a smaller tax base of full-time earners. On the other hand, having a high young person dependency ratio is markedly different from countries with an older population, as the money invested in younger people today will result in more full-time earners in the future. Countries with a very high old-age dependency ratios may struggle to fund their pension systems, as there are many people withdrawing with fewer people paying into the system. Except for Serbia, all EU candidate countries had smaller dependency ratios than the European Union average. In particular, Turkey has a much lower total dependency ratio than the EU, with 2.17 working age individuals per every dependent person, compared to 1.75 working age people in the EU. Considering the old-age dependency ratio, the difference expands further. In 2024, there were 6.6 citizens in working age for every person aged 65 and older, while the EU had around three workers for every European aged 65 and older. The EU's high old-age dependency ratio is often considered a key economic weakness of the bloc, as countries such as Italy and Germany have elderly and declining populations, leading them to have skills shortages. The youthful age profile of these candidate countries could therefore benefit the European Union, as it would provide it with a larger pool of young workers. On the other hand, countries which are particularly wary of allowing countries into the Union that may increase immigration within the bloc may look at this negatively, such as Austria and the Netherlands.

Actual value and historical data chart for Italy Age Dependency Ratio Old Percent Of Working Age Population

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the data for the Italy, TX population pyramid, which represents the Italy population distribution across age and gender, using estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates. It lists the male and female population for each age group, along with the total population for those age groups. Higher numbers at the bottom of the table suggest population growth, whereas higher numbers at the top indicate declining birth rates. Furthermore, the dataset can be utilized to understand the youth dependency ratio, old-age dependency ratio, total dependency ratio, and potential support ratio.

Key observations

• Youth dependency ratio, which is the number of children aged 0-14 per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Italy, TX, is 44.3.
• Old-age dependency ratio, which is the number of persons aged 65 or over per 100 persons aged 15-64, for Italy, TX, is 28.5.
• Total dependency ratio for Italy, TX is 72.9.
• Potential support ratio, which is the number of youth (working age population) per elderly, for Italy, TX is 3.5.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group for the Italy population analysis. Total expected values are 18 and are define above in the age groups section.
• Population (Male): The male population in the Italy for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Population (Female): The female population in the Italy for the selected age group is shown in the following column.
• Total Population: The total population of the Italy for the selected age group is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Italy Population by Age. You can refer the same here

Many western European countries rely heavily on home care or informal methods to care for the elderly. In 2020, nearly ************* German elderly people potentially received informal care, while ************ received home care, and *********** were formally cared for by an institution. Elderly care in Italy and France also relied heavily on informal care. Why does Europe rely on informal care? Informal care is typically delivered within families and households and while difficult to quantify is very common. Indeed, an important share of healthcare expenditure is spent on long-term residential care in European countries. Therefore, some governments encourage and incentivize informal care to reduce healthcare expenditure by the state. For instance, Italian workers are granted up to ** days of paid leave per year to provide care to dependent relatives, while French employees are entitled to ** days of paid leave. In addition, the extent of informal care can also be the result of economic factors. In 2019, the average monthly cost of care homes reached ************** euros in some European countries. A sustainable strategy for European healthcare systems? The elderly population is expected to grow significantly in Europe. In 2020, Italy had notably the highest old-age dependency ratio in Europe, with a rate of **** people aged over ** to 100 people of working age. Furthermore, the ability of many families to assist elderly relatives is decreased with the loss of multi-generational household culture in modern Western Europe. Finally, some health conditions linked to elderly age require specialist nursing and a residential care setting. Therefore, although a heavy reliance on informal care can reduce healthcare costs, it could be a risky strategy to hold on in the long run.

IT：年龄抚养比：占劳动人口百分比：旧在12-01-2017达36.276%，相较于12-01-2016的35.660%有所增长。IT：年龄抚养比：占劳动人口百分比：旧数据按年更新，12-01-1960至12-01-2017期间平均值为20.867%，共58份观测结果。该数据的历史最高值出现于12-01-2017，达36.276%，而历史最低值则出现于12-01-1960，为14.511%。CEIC提供的IT：年龄抚养比：占劳动人口百分比：旧数据处于定期更新的状态，数据来源于World Bank，数据归类于全球数据库的意大利 – 表 IT.世行.WDI：人口和城市化进程统计。

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the Italy town population by age cohorts (Children: Under 18 years; Working population: 18-64 years; Senior population: 65 years or more). It lists the population in each age cohort group along with its percentage relative to the total population of Italy town. The dataset can be utilized to understand the population distribution across children, working population and senior population for dependency ratio, housing requirements, ageing, migration patterns etc.

Key observations

The largest age group was 18 to 64 years with a poulation of 597 (57.13% of the total population). Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age cohorts:

• Under 18 years
• 18 to 64 years
• 65 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age cohort for the Italy town population analysis. Total expected values are 3 groups ( Children, Working Population and Senior Population).
• Population: The population for the age cohort in Italy town is shown in the following column.
• Percent of Total Population: The population as a percent of total population of the Italy town is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Italy town Population by Age. You can refer the same here

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the Italy population by age cohorts (Children: Under 18 years; Working population: 18-64 years; Senior population: 65 years or more). It lists the population in each age cohort group along with its percentage relative to the total population of Italy. The dataset can be utilized to understand the population distribution across children, working population and senior population for dependency ratio, housing requirements, ageing, migration patterns etc.

Key observations

The largest age group was 18 to 64 years with a poulation of 1,141 (46.38% of the total population). Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.

Age cohorts:

• Under 18 years
• 18 to 64 years
• 65 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age cohort for the Italy population analysis. Total expected values are 3 groups ( Children, Working Population and Senior Population).
• Population: The population for the age cohort in Italy is shown in the following column.
• Percent of Total Population: The population as a percent of total population of the Italy is shown in the following column.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for Italy Population by Age. You can refer the same here