List of rivers of Italy


This is a list of rivers which are at least partially located in Italy. They are organized according to the body of water they drain into, with the exceptions of Sicily and Sardinia, which are listed separately. At the bottom, all of the rivers are also listed alphabetically.
Italian rivers are generally shorter than those of other European regions because Italy is partly a peninsula along which the Apennine chain rises, dividing the waters into two opposite sides. The longest river originating in Italy is the Drava, which flows for, while the river flowing the most kilometers in Italy is the long Po.
Rivers in Italy total about 1,200, and give rise, compared to other European countries, to a large number of marine mouths. This is due to the relative abundance of rain events in Italy, and to the presence of the Alpine chain rich in snowfields and glaciers in the northern part of the country, in the presence of the Apennines in the center-south and in the coastal extension of Italy.

Characteristics of Italian rivers

  • The widest and largest rivers belong to the Alpine region due to the arrangement and elevation of the relief, as well as the depth of the Po Valley.
  • Along the peninsula, given the arrangement of the Apennine chain and the different slopes of the two sides, the rivers on the Adriatic and Ionian sides run through short transversal valleys and, except for the Reno, do not exceed in length, while ten are just over. On the Tyrrhenian side instead, they are on average longer because the Apennine spurs and the sub-Apennine belt are wider.
  • The rivers that flow into the Tyrrhenian sea are longer also because for the first stretch, they follow longitudinal valleys and then run transversally with respect to the axis of the chain, in the south-Apennine area.
  • Given the location of the springs and the local rainfall regime, the rivers of Italy are divided into:
  • *Alpine rivers, of glacial origin, subject to flooding in spring and summer because when it is hot the glaciers melt. The lakes that frequently occupy the most depressed parts of the Alpine valleys serve to dampen the rush of the rivers and to clarify their murky waters. In fact, given the rapidity of the valleys from which the rivers descend, the speed of their waters is remarkable and their activity of erosion and transport of rocky debris is sensitive. Decanting is precisely the process by which this material is abandoned in the lakes of which these rivers are tributaries.
  • *Apennine rivers, subject to sudden spring and autumn floods due to the rains. The lean period is in summer accentuated in the Northern Apennines, almost absolute in the southern one, except for some waterways which are fed by large karst springs that spring on the edge of areas characterized by permeable fissured rocks. In fact, there are no snowfields and glaciers on the Apennines ; rainwater does not always collect in river beds made up of impermeable ground, that is, such as to allow a fair average annual flow.
  • *The Sardinian and Sicilian rivers are torrential, with the exception of Tirso, Flumendosa, Coghinas and Simeto.

Draining into the [North Sea]

Draining into the [Black Sea]

Draining into the [Adriatic Sea]

For the purposes of this list, the Italian rivers draining into the Adriatic Sea begin at the coastal border between Italy and Slovenia and follow the Adriatic coast of Italy until it reaches Santa Maria di Leuca. Beyond this point, rivers empty into the Ionian Sea rather than the Adriatic. The rivers are ordered according to how far along the coast the river mouth is from the Italian/Slovenian border, the first river having its mouth the closest to the border and the last being closest to Santa Maria di Leuca.

Tributaries of the Adige

Tributaries of the Po

The tributaries of the Po are organized into right- and left-hand tributaries. The lists are ordered from the river closest to the source of the Po to the river closest to the mouth of the Po.

Right-hand tributaries

Left-hand tributaries

Rivers draining into [Lake Maggiore]

Rivers draining into [Lake Como]

Draining into the [Ionian Sea]

For the purposes of this list, the Italian rivers draining into the Ionian Sea begin at Santa Maria di Leuca in the east and extend to the Strait of Messina in the west. Sicilian rivers are excluded because they are listed in their own section below. The rivers are ordered according to how far east their mouth is, the first river having the easternmost mouth and the last having the westernmost mouth.

Draining into the [Tyrrhenian Sea]

For the purposes of this list, the Italian rivers draining into the Tyrrhenian Sea begin at the Strait of Messina in the south and extend north up to San Pietro Point near Portovenere. Sicilian and Sardinian rivers are excluded from this list because those rivers are in their own sections below. The rivers are ordered according to how far south their mouth is, the first river having the southernmost mouth and the last having the northernmost mouth.

Tributaries of the Tiber

Draining into the [Ligurian Sea]

For the purposes of this list, the Italian rivers draining into the Ligurian Sea begin at San Pietro Point near Portovenere in the east and extend to the border with France near Monaco. Sardinian rivers are excluded from this list because those rivers are in their own section below. The rivers are ordered according to how close their mouth is to San Pietro Point. The river with its mouth closest to this geographic point is listed first and rivers further away from this point are listed in the order in which their mouth empties into the sea as one proceeds along the coast up to the border with France.

Rivers of Sicily

Rivers of Sardinia

Alphabetical list