Lombardy 2026 High School Exam Shows 99.5% Pass Rate as Lodes Drop Below 1%

The final exam (Maturità) for the 2026 school year in Lombardy recorded a 99.5% overall pass rate, with only 57 748 of 58 010 candidates obtaining the diploma. Among students enrolled in Lombardy schools, the failure rate fell to just 0.27%, indicating widespread preparation success.

Grade distribution shifted toward the middle: the 61‑70 band held 32.5% of scores and the 71‑80 band 31.2%, together covering roughly two‑thirds of results. The 81‑90 band rose to 17.6% from 15.9% the previous year, while the share of perfect scores (100) fell to 2.9% from 4.25% and the combined 100‑and‑lode category dropped to about 1%, leaving lodes at roughly 1% of all diplomas.

Provincial analysis shows Cremona leading with 6.7% of students achieving the top marks, followed by Mantova (5.8%) and Sondrio (5.0%). Milan, Brescia and Bergamo each reported about 3.6% top‑grade students. Lodes remain most common in licei, with 1.5% of licei graduates earning the distinction, compared with 0.7% in technical institutes and 0.2% in professional schools.