Leaving to study or work abroad, without ruling out a return. This is the path chosen by a growing number of young Sardinians: between 2021 and 2025, 3,892 people transferred their residence back to the island after a period outside Italy. The figure, referring to the 18-to-39 age group, marks a 42.4% increase compared with the 2,734 returns recorded between 2016 and 2020.
Sassari ranks first for growth in returns
The province of Sassari is the area of Sardinia recording the most significant percentage increase. Returns rose from 667 in the 2016-2020 five-year period to 1,085 between 2021 and 2025, an increase of 62.7%. During the same period, however, departures for other countries also increased, from 2,571 to 2,802, representing a 9% rise. The ratio is therefore 38.7 returns for every 100 departures, compared with 25.9 in the previous five-year period.
The Sassari figure is close to the regional average of 39.2 returns for every 100 departures abroad, and to the national average, which stands at 39.8. Elsewhere on the island, returns increased by 35.9% in the province of Cagliari, by 59.3% in South Sardinia, by 54% in Nuoro and by 38.3% in Oristano.
A growing phenomenon, but departures abroad continue
Overall, between 2021 and 2025, 9,926 young people left Sardinia to move abroad, a figure slightly lower than the 10,185 departures recorded in the previous period. The picture therefore describes mobility that remains intense, but is less unbalanced than in the past: returns are increasing while departures remain essentially stable.
Across Italy, returns among 18-to-39-year-olds reached 129,362, 32.9% more than in the 2016-2020 five-year period. The average age of those returning is 29.6. The largest age group is 30-to-34-year-olds, who account for 29.4% of the total, followed by young people aged 25 to 29.
Family, quality of life and work among the reasons for returning
The decision to return depends on more than just salary. Family and personal reasons are cited by 67.7% of young people, while 32.4% mention homesickness for Italy. Tax incentives and quality of life each account for 23.5% of responses; job opportunities, meanwhile, account for 20.6%.
Among those who have returned, 75% consider the opportunities to reconcile private life and work to be better than, or at least equivalent to, those abroad. Positive assessments also concern the working environment, protections and benefits. Perceptions of salaries are more critical: only 42.9% consider them adequate for the cost of living. In addition, 48.5% return with a contract already signed, while 37.1% find work only after returning.
For Sardinia, the phenomenon poses a concrete challenge: turning returning into a stable choice by making the most of the skills acquired outside the island and improving jobs, services and connections. In this context, the issue of regional mobility also remains central: new prospects for internal Sardinian flights could affect the possibility of living and working on the island while maintaining broader professional and personal relationships.