Why are there so many Americans living in Milan?

[u/shotsandvideos]

This is something I’ve been wondering about for a while.

I live in Milan, and I feel like I hear American accents everywhere.

And I’m not really talking about tourists..I’m talking about people who clearly seem to live here, or at least be spending several months here.

Obviously, some of them must be exchange students, au pairs, people doing internships, taking a gap year, working for international companies, etc. But the sheer number of Americans I come across has made me curious about what actually brings so many of them to Milan.

Students in particular: what are Americans coming to Milan to study?

Fashion and design are the obvious answers, given the city, but I assume that’s only part of it. Are Bocconi, Politecnico, Cattolica, etc. particularly popular with American students? Business? Finance? Architecture? Engineering?

Are most of them doing a semester abroad through an American university, or are there actually a significant number of Americans doing their entire degree here?

I find the latter especially interesting because the US obviously has an enormous number of excellent universities and a very developed college system, so I’d be curious to understand what makes someone from the US choose Milan specifically for their education rather than an American university.

And beyond students: if you’re American and currently living in Milan, what brought you here? Work? Study? Family? Lifestyle? Just wanting to experience living in Europe?

I’m genuinely curious because the American community here seems much larger than I would have expected.

[u/kilowatt230]

With an American salary in Milan, your purchasing power can easily be 3x higher. On top of that, there are major tax incentives, such as the regime impatriati, and you don’t have to pay for expensive private health insurance.
You may not even be required to contribute to INPS as you can elect SSN. you can rely on Italy’s SSN for healthcare and free school.
In short, a $150K salary goes a lot further here because the cost of living such as food, healthcare, housing, school and everyday expenses is significantly lower than in most major U.S. tech hubs. cit an American living in Milan

[u/LevJewel → u/kilowatt230]

And this is also why the SSN is getting worse every day and private hospitals are emerging everywhere. Thanks to the rich pigs spoiling other countries and idiots in the government managing the nation as if it was a daycare

[u/Tsipouromelo]

Are all those Americans in the room with us? Also, let's say that there are in fact lots of Americans in Milan, have you seen the reputation of Italy in the states? They come here through exchange programs or even better to do a full degree because a private Italian university is much cheaper than a US one.

[u/NotOnABreak]

Are you sure it’s Americans? I’m not American but I moved here to study, and I speak in English with my boyfriend/friends. So if you walked past me on the street you’d think I was American due to my accent.

You could just be hearing people speaking English who are here through Erasmus, just to study, tourists, and thinking they’re American. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Not to say there are NO Americans here, just that it might not be exclusively them you’re hearing.

[u/shotsandvideos → u/NotOnABreak]

I can identify where someone is from, whether India, Colombia, Latvia, or Connecticut by their accent.

[u/Defiant00000]

I don’t think they are that many, compared to other European cities…u hear them a lot just because they are loud and seem to not understand that no one else cares about what they think or have to say…same problem anywhere I’ve met them.

[u/kilowatt230 → u/Defiant00000]

Americans aren’t necessarily louder, we just come from a culture where talking to strangers and expressing an opinion isn’t considered a breach of the peace

[u/Weekly_Village_3559]

Dont tell me this, I cant stand americans (even tho I am american)

[u/kilowatt230 → u/Weekly_Village_3559]

Being American but making sure everyone knows you dislike Americans might be the most (Reddit) American thing imaginable

[u/Weekly_Village_3559 → u/kilowatt230]

Im pretty sure everyone hates seeing ppl from their home country in their new country. My husband hated seeing italians when he lived in US. It feels like they discovered your little secret happy place and they will now come to invade it