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MILAN

Six essential apps that make life in Milan easier for foreign residents

From public transport to restaurant bookings, life in Milan might not exactly be a piece of cake at first. Here are six essential apps that’ll help you get properly settled in Italy's second-largest city.

A view of Milan's famous Galleria
A number of mobile apps can make life in Milan much easier. Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP

Whether you’re totally new to Milan or have been living in the northern city for a while but are still finding it hard to adapt to the milanese lifestyle, there are some mobile apps that are guaranteed to make daily life easier. 

In no particular order, here are six of the most useful apps for navigating life in Milan. 

ATM Milano

Public transport in Milan is efficient and reliable, with a dense network of trams, buses and metro lines servicing the city’s entire urban area. But, figuring out the best way to get to your chosen destination might not be so easy, especially if you’ve just moved to the city.

Luckily, ATM Milano, the mobile app provided by Milan’s main public transport operator (ATM), offers newcomers some precious assistance. 

READ ALSO: What are the best Milan neighbourhoods for international residents?

The app will work out the quickest way to get to your destination, giving you all the relevant info regarding your journey as well as keeping you posted on potential delays or service suspensions on your route.

You can buy single tickets or manage your daily or monthly passes directly on the app. The app can be downloaded here.

SHARE NOW (from Car2Go)

Car-sharing services have become increasingly popular in Milan over the past few years and Car2Go is the most reliable provider in town.

Hiring a car through Car2Go’s app, SHARE NOW, is as easy as it gets: once you have uploaded your driving licence directly to the app, you’ll only need to locate a car in your area and book it with just a couple of taps on your screen.

There are five types of car available to users (you can see them here) and the operational zone has been recently extended to encompass some extra-urban areas (Baggio, Linate, San Donato and others).

A tram heading down a street in Milan

Public transport in Milan is very efficient but a number of car- and bike-sharing services are also available. Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP

Rates go from six to eight euros an hour and parking within the urban area is free. Further info and app download links are available here.

BikeMi

If you’re not a fan of cars (or simply can’t stand traffic during peak hours), you’ll also have the option to quickly hop on a bike and cycle your way through the city.

There are countless bike-sharing services available to Milan residents but the BikeMi app is probably the most reliable one. 

There are as many as 325 BikeMi stations scattered across the city, with nearly 5,500 between regular bikes and e-bikes being available to users. 

BikeMi is also fairly cheap (around two euros an hour for regular bikes), though subscription to the service comes at a fee. The app can be downloaded here.

The Fork

Milan truly has no shortage of eateries and, as a resident, you’ll likely be dining out at least once a week.

But managing bookings over the phone can be a bit of a hassle at times, especially if you’re not very proficient in Italian. 

READ ALSO: Five things you’ll only know if you live in Milan

The Fork app allows you to book a table at your favourite restaurant directly from your phone. 

Boking through The Fork also gives you access to a number of generous discounts (20, 30 or even 50 percent) on your restaurant bill. You can download the app here.

Glovo

Online food delivery service Glovo is a popular choice among hungry Milanese who don’t feel like going out.

Glovo services an extensive network of restaurants across the city and deliveries are usually bang on time. 

READ ALSO: Moving to Italy: How much does it really cost to live in Milan?

Aside from delivering food orders, the service will also bring anything from groceries to medicine to flowers right to your doorstep.

Download is available here

Glovo riders in Milan

Glovo is the most reliable food delivery service in Milan. Photo by Piero CRUCIATTI / AFP

Playtomic 

Milan is the Italian capital of padel, a racket sport which is in many ways similar to tennis, with the main difference being that a padel court is enclosed by walls and balls can be played off them. 

Though you might not think much of it based on the above description, padel is a lot of fun and, besides keeping you fit, it’ll give you a chance to socialise with locals. 

The best way to get involved is through the Playtomic app

People playing padel

Playing padel is one of the best ways to make new friends in Milan. Photo by Tolga AKMEN / AFP

Far from being just a court-booking app, Playtomic gives users a chance to connect with other players, track their personal progress through match data and sign up for city-wide tournaments.

Bonus tip

If you’re a bit of a party animal and like to get home late on weekends, you might find yourself in need of a taxi at some point. 

Now, Uber is available in Milan but it is far more expensive than in other major European cities. As such, your best bet would be to order a local taxi through AppTaxi

Booking is easy and the app accepts a variety of payment methods.

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MOVING TO ITALY

How can you find an apartment to rent in Milan?

With its thriving job market and international allure, Milan is one of the most popular Italian cities for foreigners to move to, but finding a place to rent can be complicated.

How can you find an apartment to rent in Milan?

With its wealth of job opportunities and international appeal, Milan is one of the most popular Italian cities among foreigners.

The northern economic powerhouse is home to over 475,000 foreign nationals (around 14.7 percent of the city’s total population), including ​​a sizeable group of native English speakers.

But high demand for accommodation, high prices (monthly rent in the city comes at an average of around €25 per square metre – that’s over €12 above national average) and housing shortages all make finding a place to rent a challenging task.  

Italian rental contracts

Before actually starting to look for an apartment, it’s generally advisable to get familiar with Italy’s most popular rental agreements, or contratti di affitto in Italian. 

Excluding tourist lets (contratti turistici), which range from a minimum of one day to a maximum of 30 days, the shortest available rental agreement is the transitory contract, or contratto di locazione ad uso transitorio

This lasts a minimum of one month up to a maximum of 18 months, and comes with an important caveat: you’ll need to specify and prove that you have a specific, non-tourism-related reason for your temporary stay, like an apprenticeship, a short-term work contract, or degree program. 

If you’re a student attending a university, you may also be able to sign a student contract (contratto di locazione per studenti universitari), which can last between six months and three years.

Two tenants pictured inside their flat in January 2021

Two tenants pictured inside their flat in January 2021. Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP

Finally, if you’re looking for longer-term agreements, you have two main options: 

  • Unrestricted contract (contratto a canone libero). This lasts for four years, with an automatic option to renew for four more. The rental price is freely set by the landlord.
  • Determined contract (contratto a canone concordato). This lasts for three years with an automatic option to renew for two more. Rent in this case is set by the relevant municipality (or comune) and cannot be negotiated.

For further info on both of the above contracts, see our article on the topic.

Regardless of which type of contract you sign, you should always make sure there’s a clause that allows you to move out after a specified notice period (this is usually a full six months).

Using an agency

Once you’re familiar with the types of contracts available, you can start your search. 

Milan has plenty of agenzie immobiliari that can help you find your future home, with some specialised in assisting international customers (for instance, Renting Milan).

These agencies will do the work of finding and connecting you with potential properties, and negotiate the terms of the contract on your behalf. They may also know about some properties before they hit the open market, giving you a leg up on the competition.

But there are some downsides too. Properties let through rental agencies can be more expensive, as the owners must cover the costs of their own fees to the agency.

READ ALSO: How much does it cost to live in Milan in 2024?

Further, rental agencies will generally take a commission equivalent to one or two months’ rent from the tenant, which can make initial expenses rise very fast when added to the apartment’s security deposit (usually two months’ rent).

Searching online

If agency fees look a little too steep – or if you just want to explore every option – there’s an increasing number of online rental portals that you can check out.

These sites often offer a mix of properties proposed by rental agencies and apartments rented directly by owners. Some of the most popular ones for renting are Idealista, Immobiliare, Casa and Bakeca

All work more or less the same way: select your area, filter by cost, number of rooms, and other details, and see what’s available.

Quite conveniently, some of these websites feature maps showing statistics on rental price per square metre by neighbourhood. This can be useful to ‘zone in’ on certain areas of the city or simply to judge whether the rent being requested by a landlord is reasonable. 

Rental prices by neighbourhood in Milan.

Rental prices by neighbourhood in Milan. Screengrab from Immobiliare.it

You’ll also find listings posted on classifieds sites like Subito, and even on Facebook groups like Milano Easy Renting and Affitti Milano, though most posts will be in Italian (some key Italian renting vocabulary can be found here). 

If you do use social media for your search and find yourself dealing directly with landlords, it’s generally advisable that you keep an eye out for scams at all times. As a rule of thumb, you should never hand out money without visiting the apartment and signing a contract first.

Finally, if you’re ever unsure about the legitimacy of a listing or have any other doubts about a specific apartment or neighbourhood, seeking out advice from people already living in the city is generally well worth the effort.

How much can I expect to pay?

Renting in Milan doesn’t come cheap. 

According to data from property market portal Wikicasa, monthly rent in the city comes at an average of around €25 per square metre – that’s nearly €7 over Lombardy’s average, and more than €12 higher than national average. 

But rent can be as high as €60 per square metres in the more central areas (Duomo, Cadorna, Cordusio, Castello Sforzesco, etc.).

READ ALSO: What are the best Milan neighbourhoods for international residents?

According to Numbeo estimates, renting a one-bedroom flat in the city centre will set you back over €1,400 a month on average, while renting the same type of flat in the outskirts will come at an average monthly price of around €950.

If you have any suggestions on how to find a place to rent in Milan, please share them in the comments section below. 

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