Unimpresa’s analysis shows that credit in Italy is still costly: households and companies face high rates, with SMEs paying the highest price.
Money is cheaper in Europe, but not enough in Italy
The cost of credit in Italy is still weighing heavily on households and businesses. Even though monetary policy in the euro area has eased, with the cost of money hovering around 2%, the Italian banking system is only partially passing that benefit on to the real economy. The result is an uneven picture: those seeking financing, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, still face expensive conditions that do not fully reflect the new interest-rate cycle.
The Unimpresa Research Center analysis, based on average global effective rates recorded between October 1 and December 31, 2025 and applied to customers from April 1 to June 30, 2026, highlights a clear reality: business credit is still moving in a range between 5% and 8%, with peaks close to or above 10% for smaller or riskier transactions. According to Unimpresa, this trend could slow investment, competitiveness and economic recovery.
SMEs are still paying too much for the credit they need most
The most delicate issue concerns financing for productive activity. Italian businesses, especially SMEs, are not fully benefiting from the European Central Bank’s rate cuts. In financing linked to the commercial cycle, such as invoice advances, bill discounting and similar operations, the cost of credit changes significantly depending on the amount borrowed: 8.06% up to €50,000, 6.50% between €50,000 and €200,000, and 4.97% above €200,000.
The same pattern appears in factoring, which remains an essential liquidity tool for many firms: 6.41% up to €50,000 and 4.66% above that threshold. In practical terms, the message is simple: the smaller the company, the more expensive the money. And that is exactly the critical issue, because smaller firms are the ones that most need sustainable financing conditions to invest, innovate and stay competitive.
Overdrafts and current-account credit lines remain very expensive
When companies and households rely on ordinary or emergency liquidity tools, the cost of credit becomes even heavier. Current-account credit lines show an average rate of 10.53% for amounts up to €5,000, falling to 8.86% for larger sums. But the harshest numbers concern unauthorized overdrafts, which stand at 15.76% up to €1,500 and 15.65% above that level.
These figures clearly show how vulnerable many businesses and households become when they are forced to use short-term, expensive and often unavoidable financing tools. In simple terms, when liquidity is missing and money is needed quickly, the price paid is extremely high.
Leasing still makes productive investment expensive
Even financing tools designed for investment do not offer a truly light picture. In real-estate leasing, average rates stand at 6.16% for fixed-rate contracts and 5.43% for variable-rate ones. Vehicle and aeronautical leasing is even more expensive, at 9.24% up to €25,000 and 8.26% above that amount.
One of the most significant figures concerns instrumental leasing, which is crucial for companies buying machinery, equipment and technology: rates reach 9.92% for smaller amounts and 7.21% for larger ones. This means that investing to grow, automate or improve productivity remains costly, and in an uncertain economic phase that can lead many businesses to postpone key decisions.
Consumer credit remains the most expensive segment
If the business side is worrying, the household side is even tougher. Consumer credit still records the highest levels in the entire system. Revolving credit reaches 16.07%, unauthorized overdrafts exceed 15.6%, while loans backed by salary or pension assignment rise to 13.85% for smaller amounts.
Personal loans remain above 10%, with an average rate of 11.32%, while purpose-specific consumer credit stands at 10.88%. Financing through credit cards comes in at 11.57%, and other generic loans climb to 14.23%. These numbers show that flexible or immediate credit solutions still come at a very high cost, with clear consequences for household budgets and spending capacity.
Mortgages are still the exception, with rates near 4%
Within this overall heavy scenario, mortgages backed by real estate collateral remain the clearest exception. Average rates stand at 4.05% for fixed-rate mortgages and 4.08% for variable-rate ones, making them the cheapest form of credit in the system.
The reason is obvious: the presence of real collateral lowers risk for banks and allows more favorable conditions. Even so, rates around 4% are still demanding for many households, especially compared with the period before monetary tightening. Yet compared with other financing tools, mortgages remain the least expensive option available today.
Unimpresa’s warning: monetary policy is only being transmitted halfway
The main economic and policy message behind Unimpresa’s analysis is clear: the rate cuts decided at European level are not being fully and quickly transmitted to the real economy. According to Unimpresa vice president Giuseppe Spadafora, the gap between banks’ funding costs and the rates charged to customers shows that the transmission of monetary policy is still slow and incomplete.
This is not just a technical issue. It has very concrete consequences. If businesses, especially SMEs, continue to borrow at overly expensive conditions, they invest less, grow less and struggle more to face international uncertainty. In other words, expensive credit becomes a silent but powerful brake on recovery.
Why this may seriously slow growth
When money costs too much, companies postpone purchases of machinery, slow hiring, compress development plans and reduce their ability to face new challenges. At the same time, households burdened by costly financing cut spending, which weakens domestic demand even further.
That is why the picture described by Unimpresa goes beyond a simple list of rates. It reveals a structural problem: Italy still has a credit system that distributes the cost of money in a way that is unfavorable to the most dynamic but also most fragile part of the economy. And until that gap is reduced, the recovery risks remaining slower than it could be.
This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)