The 15 best places to go shopping in Rome

If you’re going to start anywhere with your shopping, start here, in Monti. This is the place for strolling through cobbled streets, and dipping into vintage shops and little boutiques. One of the hippest neighborhoods in the city, Monti is filled with independent clothing brands, interior decor shops and quaint, Instagrammable eateries. Pulp Vintage, Humana, Pifebo and Blue Goose are all popular spots for one-of-a-kind vintage pieces. Stroll down Via del Boschetto to shop for sartorial styles at Kokoro, global furnishings at Estremi and leather handbags at Sufir. This is the best place to nab a few bits from up-and-coming fashion designers no one has heard of back home.

If you think that your trip to Rome simply won’t be complete without splurging on a real Fendi purse, a bauble from Gucci or a wallet from Prada, look no further than the swanky streets fanning out from Piazza di Spagna, or the Spanish Steps. A dizzying amount of credit card debt gets run up on Via Condotti, Via Borgognona, Via del Babuino and Via Frattina because the big players are all here. From Bulgari and Max Mara to Ferragmo and Zegna, the choices are limitless. You'll also find a few local brands squeezed in here, like Il Bisonte which sells leather goods, and plenty of eyeglass shops and perfume boutiques as well. Popular international stores like COS and & Other Stories are located nearby on Via Borgognona.

This pretty street weaves through the Centro Storico, right near Piazza Navona. There are some one-off boutiques and jewellery stores, but the real draws are the vintage finds: several of Rome’s best resale shops are a few doors down from one another. As you leave Piazza Navona, head into Piazza di Pasquino to begin your stroll down this street. Kolby and Wools Boutique sell contemporary menswear, while Silvia and Arlette focus on womenswear. A few of Rome's most popular eateries are located on this street as well for a perfect lunch pause: enjoy thin-crust Roman pizzas at Da Baffetto or classic pastas at Da Tonino. 

Once upon a time, it was the tradition in Rome – and most everywhere in Italy – for similar stores, studios, and vendors to be clustered on one street. The tradition still holds on Via dei Coronari, a street lined with antique dealers. It’s the place to go for vintage prints and maps, the odd antique Roman bust (or a still-quite-old reproduction), a little piece of estate jewellery or a Biedermeier bedroom set to ship home. A few favorite spots include Essenzialmente Laura for artisanal perfumes, Marta Ray for buttery soft leather ballet flats and handbags, and Lisa Corti for colourful textiles. 

The name-brand storefronts along Via del Corso include the usual global logos like H&M, Zara and Gap alongside well-known Italian brands like Benetton, Kiko and Intimissimi. This isn’t the best place for a made-in-Rome souvenir, but if you need a pair of jeans, new shoes or just want to shop familiar names, you’ll find them here. If you need assistance with your digital device, be sure to pop into the new Apple store which recently opened in a grand 19th century featuring vaulted ceilings, frescoes and marbled staircases.

La Rinascente, Italy’s iconic department store, has sold luxury goods, fashion and accessories since 1865. It has two locations in Rome: one in Piazza Fiume (near Villa Borghese) and a more central location along Via del Tritone (a stone’s throw from the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps). You’ll find international designer brands, local artisans, cosmetics, home design, dining and more. La Rinascente isn’t just a shopping destination: it’s a cultural hub where modernity means Italian heritage. At the location on Via del Tritone, you should head below ground to floor -1 to see remnants of the ancient Aqua Virgo aqueduct that dates back to 19BC, and head upstairs to Maio Restaurant & Rooftop for mesmerizing views of the city skyline.

A tiny bijoux street tucked away behind Piazza del Popolo, Via dell’Oca has some of Italy's most coveted contemporary artisans and upscale designer boutiques in Rome. You'll find Lucia Odescalchi's avant-garde jewellery atelier next to Patrizia Fabri's dreamy hat workshop which sells dozens of styles for every season and occasion. Hip clothing boutiques include Artisanal Cornucopia, Laura Urbinati and Atelier Bomba — all household names with in-the-know locals. Eau d'Italie, a fragrance brand launched by Le Sirenuse in Positano, also has a shopfront here.

The jumble of streets wedged between Via Garibaldi and Viale Trastevere holds a real treasure trove of one-of-a-kind stores selling gifts, shoes, clothes and oddities. And getting lost during the treasure hunt is half the fun. Don’t miss RomaStore Profumi for custom-made fragrances and Polvere di Tempo for antique watches, clocks, sundials, globes and maps. This area is best in the later afternoon when you can hit a cosy bar for an aperitivo after your shopping spree.

One of the prettiest streets in Rome, Via della Scrofa has a great mix of dining options, furniture stores and chic boutiques. This is a top area to shop for your pals back home (or just yourself). Container16 Rome is the place to pick up funky kitchen tools, tableware and food books for the gastronomes in your life; Co.Ro. Jewels sells thoughtful jewellery designs inspired by the architecture of Rome; Sirni produces quality leather goods you'll use for decades to come, and Spazioespanso stocks original fashion and accessories for women.

Once upon a time, Campo de’ Fiori was lined with funky shops selling handmade shoes, handbags and clothes. Now, it’s all about wall-to-wall restaurants. Nearby, Via dei Giubbonari is still suitably weird, though most of its small storefronts sell clothes and shoes that are more made-in-China than made-in-Italy. Still, prices are low, and you can say you bought it in Italy…

A busy train station may not seem like the most obvious or appealing place to shop, but Termini Station is a much nicer place to visit than it used to be. Head to the lower level for Sephora and Desigual or the platform level for Victoria’s Secret, COIN and others. There’s a decent food court on the upper level, and the fabulous Mercato Centrale street food hall is found by the station’s south side. 

The personality of Corso changes as you head north from Piazza Venezia: cheap souvenir shops hawking €10 T-shirts give way to stores the likes of Gap and Lush, and then to higher-end storefronts as you get closer to the Spanish Steps. Don’t expect too many surprises here, but do get ready for crowds, especially on the weekends and during high tourist season.

If outlet shopping is your thing, then it might be worth it to haul out to the hinterlands, where more than 150 medium- to high-end designer outlet stores await. If you go during July and August or January and February, you will catch Italy’s famed seasonal sales, with deep discounts on what might otherwise be very expensive wares. The outlet runs a shuttle bus from Termini Station for €15 round-trip.

Set behind the façade of a stately palazzo near the Trevi Fountain, this luxury department store is all sleek and modern. Shopaholics who want to spend a lot of money in one place need look no further, as La Rinascente offers five floors filled with high-end women’s and men’s fashions, housewares and cosmetics, plus a 6th-floor food court with swoony views of the Rome skyline. Type in Via del Tritone 61 on your GPS and get shopping.

We think of Eataly as a bit of an 800-pound gorilla in Rome’s food shopping scene but, still, there’s no denying that this megastore for all things edible and made-in-Italy is simply dazzling. Set in the old Ostiense Railway Station, Eataly’s largest outlet offers multiple floors of high-quality, carefully-sourced Italian specialities (who knew there were that many kinds of parmigiano?), plus multiple restaurants, cooking classes and tasting opportunities.