Autoscuola or studying on your own — which one is right for you

Last updated: 30 September 2026 · ✓ Checked against its sources

Built on figures checked against MIT and the Portale dell’Automobilista. Last verified: 15 August 2026.

Both routes are completely legal in Italy: enrol at an autoscuola and take the full package, or go da privatista — study the theory yourself and take only the compulsory part from a school. There is no single answer to which is “better”. It depends on your situation.

First: you cannot do it entirely alone

The thing most often misunderstood: da privatista does not mean skipping the autoscuola altogether. Before the practical exam you must have at least 6 hours of certified driving instruction, and only an autoscuola can provide it. So the real decision is narrower than it looks: how you study the theory.

Choose an autoscuola if

Your Italian is still weak or middling. The official question papers exist only in Italian, French and German — there is no English version. Studying alone means translating and understanding every question yourself, which costs both time and patience.
You need a fixed schedule and structure. Set class times keep the study moving; on your own it is easy to fall behind.
The paperwork worries you. A school will usually handle the TT 2112 form, book the appointments and coordinate the medical — that saves real time.
You have never driven, or have had little practice. Driving with a professional instructor makes your preparation for the practical exam more organised.

Choose da privatista if

You can read Italian well enough to work through the question bank yourself.
You already study reliably on your own — nobody pushing you, and it still gets done.
You want to spend less. The theory package is the saving — the arithmetic is here: What a Patente B actually costs
You need a flexible schedule and want to fit study around work or family at your own pace.

There is a middle route as well

Plenty of people do both: study the theory themselves, but use an autoscuola for the paperwork and the appointment booking. It is worth asking whether a school will do “documents and the compulsory lessons only” as a separate service — not all of them will, so ask first.

What is the same either way

The state fees: €26,40 + €16,00 (theory) and €16,00 (practical)
The medical certificate is compulsory on both routes
The minimum 6 hours of certified driving instruction is compulsory on both routes
The theory exam rules are identical — 30 questions, 20 minutes, a maximum of 3 wrong answers

Where I stand myself

I have not sat this exam yet; I am studying for it now, and the language is the reason it has taken me this long. So I cannot make this choice for you — what I can do is put the rules in front of you, checked against the official sources, so that you can make it yourself. Neither route is the “easy” one. The right route is the one that matches your situation.

First, see how the exam itself works: How the Italian theory exam actually works