Modena · Go deeper

Where to live

Modena reads from the middle out: the compact, elegant historic centre inside the ring of the old walls, and the calm residential quarters that spread beyond it. Centre and outskirts trade beauty for space.

The historic centre

Centro Storico

most expensive

The handsome old heart of Modena, built around Piazza Grande, the Romanesque cathedral, and the leaning Ghirlandina tower, with porticoed streets and the famous Albinelli market close by. It's elegant, walkable, and full of the city's best food and daily life. The trade is cost: it's the priciest area, and supply is tight, so good places go fast.

Best for: those who want to live in the elegant, walkable heart of the city

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Learn more about the historic heart

Modena’s centre is a masterpiece of the Romanesque, and one of the earliest. Work on the cathedral began in 1099, and it’s famous for something rare: the names of its makers survive, the architect Lanfranco and the sculptor Wiligelmo, whose carvings across the façade are among the first great works of medieval European sculpture. Beside it rises the Ghirlandina, the tall, slightly leaning bell tower finished in 1319, the symbol of the city.

The cathedral, the tower, and the square they stand on, Piazza Grande, laid out along the ancient Roman Via Emilia, together form a UNESCO World Heritage Site, listed in 1997. It’s a compact, human-scaled core where the market, the cafés, and a thousand years of history all sit within a few minutes’ walk, and where a wealthy food-and-engineering city keeps its beautiful old heart at the centre of daily life.

The quarters around the core

Sant'Agnese & the western quarters

premium

The desirable residential districts just west and south of the centre, Sant'Agnese and its neighbours, handsome, leafy, and well-kept, close enough to walk into town. This is where much of professional Modena wants to live, so it carries a premium, but you get calm, quality, and proximity together.

Best for: professionals and families wanting a refined, central-adjacent base

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Buon Pastore & the southern quarters

mid, residential

Settled, everyday residential neighbourhoods spreading south of the centre, Buon Pastore, Vaciglio, Morane, with local shops, schools, parks, and a mix of older and newer housing. Calmer and gentler on the budget than the prestige areas, popular with families wanting space near the centre.

Best for: families and settled residents wanting a calm, practical home near town

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The outer districts & toward the station

lower, value

The more modern, workaday districts on the city's edges, including the area around the train station north of the centre: a mix of housing, newer builds, and commercial areas. The most affordable places worth looking at, plain but practical, and handy for the trains and ring roads. The stretches right by the station are ones to know before you sign.

Best for: budget-conscious residents who want value and easy rail and road access

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Rough rents are indicative and move with the market. Check current listings on Idealista ›