Italian schools in Milan
Italian language schools in Lombardy →︎
4 selected schools in Milan, Lombardy. Compare course hours, housing and accreditations, then write directly to the school you prefer.
Milan at a glance
This is Milan (Lombardy): the streets you'll walk every morning on your way to class, and the places where you'll need real Italian, the kind spoken at the bar and the market.
Where the schools are in Milan
schoolsnot to be missedairportHover the green dots for details, click the red ones to open the school page.
Milano Linate (LIN), 6 km away · Milano Malpensa (MXP), 42 km away
Compare the 4 schools in Milan
Of the 4 schools in Milan, 2 hold an accreditation checked by an independent body and 3 are exam centres. Classes range from 12 to 14 students and lessons last 45 to 60 minutes: those two numbers change the real value more than the price does.
| School | Real hours a week | Students per class | Lesson length | Google reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELLCI MilanoCELI | 15 hours | 12 | 45 min | — |
| Il CentroASILSCILS, CELI, PLIDA | 20 hours | 12 | 60 min | — |
| Linguadue | 15 hours | 12 | 45 min | — |
| Scuola Leonardo da Vinci MilanoASILS, AIL, EDUITALIA, Bildungsurlaub, CSNCILS, AIL, DITALS | 15 hours | 14 | 45 min | — |
More cities in Lombardy
The Italian you hear in Milan
Milan speaks Italian closer to the standard than almost anywhere else in the country, only faster. That is not a figure of speech: the city has an above-average speech rate, and for learners that, not vocabulary, is the real obstacle.
Actual Milanese, the Lombard language, is rarely heard in the street now, but it left traces everywhere in the local Italian. Pirla is Milanese and has travelled across the whole country. Sciura is the lady, with a shade of irony that signora does not carry. And there is a purely local use of cifra: costa una cifra means «it costs a fortune», without saying how much.
For an A1 learner Milan is comfortable: clean pronunciation, few surprises, and a city full of foreigners studying, nobody blinks if you ask them to repeat. The difficulty is elsewhere: many people here switch to English to do you a favour. It is worth saying preferisco in italiano straight away.
Three Milanese. Alessandro Manzoni (1785), who after writing The Betrothed went to Florence to «rinse his clothes in the Arno» and clean up his language. Giorgio Gaber (1939) and Enzo Jannacci (1935): two men who set spoken Milanese to music, still the fastest way to actually hear it.
Frequently asked questions about Milan
- How much does accommodation cost in Milan?
- A host family with breakfast usually costs about €230–320 per week for a single room; a room in a shared flat generally starts at €200–280. These are rough figures: the price changes with the season, the distance from the centre and the meals included. Almost every school on this page books accommodation for you, so ask for a quote covering course and room together.
- How many Italian language schools are there in Milan?
- We have selected 4, with courses from 20 to 20 hours a week. They are all compared above.
- How do I choose between the schools in Milan?
- Look at three numbers, not the price alone. The real lesson length: 20 hours of 45 minutes are 15 actual hours, of 60 minutes they are 20. How many people are really in the class in high season, not the stated maximum. And the total including enrolment, materials and accommodation, not the weekly rate.
- Which schools in Milan are exam centres?
- You can sit the exam where you study at these: ELLCI Milano (CELI), Il Centro (CILS, CELI, PLIDA), Scuola Leonardo da Vinci Milano (CILS, AIL, DITALS).
- Do the schools in Milan help you find accommodation?
- Yes, all 4 of them. Host family, shared flat or residence: the host family is the most useful for the language, because it makes you speak Italian every evening.
- How much does an Italian course in Milan cost?
- Rates vary a lot and should be asked of the school. When you do, ask for the total: a one-off enrolment fee is almost always added to the weekly rate, usually 50–90 euros in Italy, and books, accommodation, cultural activities and exam fees may be charged separately.
Events this year
The city's big festivals, food fairs and cultural seasons through the year. They're not just entertainment: they're the best training ground for your Italian. At a local festival you end up ordering, asking directions, chatting with locals: the real language, the kind books don't teach. If you can, line up a week of your course with one of these.
Fuorisalone / Design Week In April Milan becomes the world capital of design: installations, exhibitions and parties in every district. An immersion in the vocabulary of design, art and creative, professional Italian. | April |
Prima della Scala On 7 December La Scala opens the opera season: Italy's most elegant cultural event. Even just soaking up the atmosphere around town helps with the language of opera, music and formal Italian. | 7 December |
Settimana della Moda Milan Fashion Week fills the city with shows and events twice a year. Vocabulary of fashion, colours and style: perfect if you want Italian tied to the fashion world. | February and September |
MiTo SettembreMusica In September Milan and Turin join forces for a festival of classical and contemporary music. Concerts are often free: a refined way to train your listening and your musical vocabulary. | September |
Before you leave for Milan, start at home.
With the 
amo Italian app you arrive in Italy already understanding what you hear: stories at your level with translation in 17 languages, exercises and a pathway from A1 to C2.
Half of the A1 path is open, no sign-up
★★★★★(11)by Alessio, teacher since 2018
Start with A1 ↗︎Search for amo Italian
