The 13 best museums in Florence
All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.
There’s actually a term for the dizziness you may feel after viewing the vast array of blockbuster art across Florence: "Stendhal syndrome" is named after the 19th-century French artist Marie-Henri Beyle, who wrote about being afflicted with the predicament after visiting this Tuscan city. From Botticelli's Birth of Venus painting to Michelangelo's iconic contrapposto sculpture David, to 13th-century castles, to provocative contemporary art installations, the Cradle of the Renaissance remains a paean to craft and culture. Just be sure to brace yourself for the overwhelm – these are the best museums in Florence.
How we choose the best museums in Florence
Every review on this list has been written by a Condé Nast Traveler journalist who knows the destination and has visited that museum. When choosing things to do, our editors consider institutions that offer an insider’s view of a destination, keeping authenticity, location, service, and sustainability credentials top of mind.
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo
The Cathedral Works Museum is one of Florence’s finest, especially since it moved into this airy, beautifully lit contemporary space in 2015. Founded in 1891, today it houses the world’s largest collection of sculpture from the Florentine Middle Ages and Renaissance, some 750 works including statues and reliefs in marble, bronze, and silver and masterpieces by the greatest artists of the time: Michelangelo, Donatello, Arnolfo di Cambio, Lorenzo Ghiberti, Andrea Pisano, Antonio del Pollaiolo, Luca della Robbia, Andrea del Verrocchio, and many others. The present museum has just over 64,500 square feet of exhibition space and over 28 rooms on three floors. The permanent collection is vast and varied and can keep you occupied for several hours. But temporary exhibitions are occasionally mounted and are always interesting and well-curated. Even if you limited your visit to a 45-minute perusal of the ground floor rooms, you’d be impressed. There is a lot to see here, and it’s almost all worthwhile.
Address: Piazza del Duomo, 9, 50122 Firenze FI
Website: duomo.firenze.it
Stibbert Museum
With Florence’s top sights suffering from serious overcrowding these days, it’s worth seeking out some of the many under-the-radar gems that the city has to offer. This “house-museum” is one of those; located in the mainly residential northeastern suburbs of the city, it takes a bit of effort to get there (call a cab or hop on a tram), but it is guaranteed to be crowd-free, the madcap, rather eccentric collection is delightful and the rambling, shady park offers a breath of fresh air. “Expect the Unexpected” is the museum’s catch phrase, and it’s very apt. The bizarre, eclectic haul of some 50,000 artefacts, ranging from a vast collection of weapons and armour (which includes a magnificent section on Japanese armour) to important paintings, porcelain, glassware, and even snuff boxes, was amassed by Frederick Stibbert, born in 1838 to an English father and Italian mother. It is all displayed in a series of opulently decorated rooms.
Address: Via Federico Stibbert, 26, 50134 Firenze FI
Website: museostibbert.it
Ospedale degli Innocenti
Gallery of the Ospedale degli Innocenti, designed by Filippo Brunelleschi to showcase the masterpieces housed within – including Botticelli and Domenico Ghirlandaio – offers a window into six centuries of history. The main exhibition, which includes artifacts, artworks, memorabilia, documents, and multimedia exhibits, presents the 600-year-long history of the Istituto degli Innocenti, with a special focus on the personal stories and everyday life of the children who were living in the orphanage, as well as the historical and social context in which the institution was created and developed. There are about 60 artworks on view, all donated to the institution over time, including exquisite Italian Renaissance masterpieces: the Madonna with Child and Angel by Botticelli, the Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints by Piero di Cosimo, and the Adoration of the Magi by Domenico Ghirlandaio.
Address: P.za della SS. Annunziata, 12, 50121 Firenze FI, Italy
Website: istitutodeglinnocenti.it
Museo Novecento
Following a devastating flood in 1966, thousands of artworks were lost or damaged in the city of Florence. Art historian Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti assembled a committee to raise worldwide public awareness and asked local and international artists to donate works to replace the ones that had been destroyed. Over 200 artists replied to the appeal and that's how Museo del Novecento was born. Dedicated to Italian art of the 20th and 21st centuries, today the museum houses more than 400 works. The collection encompasses every medium imaginable, including paintings, sculptures, videos, documents, literature, poetry, and photography. Exhibits combine visual art with multimedia, such as sound and video. The works, divided among 15 spaces, are arranged in a counter-chronological order. This is a lesser-known gallery, one that's far quieter than many other Florence institutions.
Address: P.za di Santa Maria Novella, 10, 50123 Firenze FI
Website: museonovecento.it
Galleria dell'Accademia
Galleria dell’Accademia is Florence’s most-visited museum right after the Uffizi Gallery, thanks largely to the original statue of Michelangelo’s famous David, housed here. You'd be remiss to skip his unfinished collection of Slaves, though, with torsos and limbs seeming to clamber their way out from marble. In addition to other famous sculptures and paintings, there are also collections featuring botany, music, art symbols, and painting techniques. Smaller and more specialised than the Uffizi, the Accademia has housed the David since 1873. It also features other sculptures by Michelangelo, an extensive collection of Florentine paintings from 1300 to 1600, and mural-like pieces by Perugino, Filippino Lippi, Pontormo, Domenico Ghirlandaio, and Bronzino. Additionally, downstairs, it showcases Florentine Gothic paintings, including altarpieces by Giotto.
Address: Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze, Via Ricasoli, 58/60, 50129 Firenze FI
Website: galleriaaccademiafirenze.it
Palazzo Vecchio
Once the seat of government in Florence, Palazzo Vecchio is now an art museum – though the experience is more about the building's design and history. The courtyard has a series of stuccoes and frescoes, though you'll see more people snapping pics of the replica of Michelangelo's David. On the first floor is Salone dei Cinquecento (the Hall of the Five Hundred), the largest and most artistically important room on the property, originally decorated by Michelangelo and Leonardo. The second floor once housed the private rooms of the Medici court; today, still sumptuously furnished, it's where you'll find Donatello’s Judith. And the 311-foot Tower of Palazzo Vecchio was, like the rest of the building, designed by Arnolfo di Cambio, who also built the Duomo.
Address: P.za della Signoria, 50122 Firenze FI
Website: florence-museum.com
Museo San Marco
This place is all about the great Fra Angelico and his ethereal, spiritual paintings. The church and Dominican convent of San Marco was built between 1437 and 1443, commissioned from Michelozzo by Cosimo il Vecchio. It once housed Europe’s first public library, but it is best known for being home to the 15th-century artist, also known as Beato (blessed) Angelico, who lived and worked in the convent between 1438 and 1445, leaving for posterity some of his most famous paintings. A visit begins in Michelozzo’s peaceful Cloister with corner frescoes by Angelico. From here, you move into the Pilgrim’s Hospice, where some of the master’s most celebrated paintings are displayed. His great Last Judgement altarpiece (1430) is here, as is the Tabernacle of the Linaioli, dedicated to the flax-workers guild. The original Refectory contains a Last Supper painting by Domenico Ghirlandaio. Stairs led to the Convent itself, designed by Michelozzo; at the top of the steps is Angelico’s masterpiece, The Annunciation.
Address: Piazza San Marco, 3, 50121 Firenze FI
Website: museitoscana.cultura.gov.it
Gucci Garden
Gucci Garden opened in 2011 on the 90th anniversary of the fashion house, and charts the evolution from its start, right here in Florence, to the enormous international brand it is today. Brainchild of erstwhile Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele, it has a store, exhibition rooms, and a restaurant with the world's best chef Massimo Bottura at the helm. The complex – effectively, a Gucci wonderland – is in the Palazzo della Mercanzia, which was built in 1359 and restored in 1905. Rather interestingly, the historic structure once housed the Court that served to resolve disputes between merchants and members of Florentine arts guilds. The exhibition space on the upper floors showcases a rotating range of iconic pieces tracking the history of the company, from the ‘Flora’ scarf designed in 1966 for Grace Kelly, to a stunning display of some 400 handbags displayed in mirrored glass cases including the 1947 Bamboo and the 1955 Horse Bit. Then there is tennis gear, luggage, shoes, and some stunning frocks.
Address: Gucci Garden, P.za della Signoria, 10, 50122 Firenze FI
Website: gucci.com
Bargello Museum
The Museo Nazionale del Bargello in Florence, which opened in 1865 by royal decree, making it Italy’s first national museum, houses the city’s most significant collection of Renaissance sculpture. A former barracks and prison, the building alone is impressive, never mind the masterpieces by Michelangelo and Donatello. The Bargello’s collection includes some of the most important works of Renaissance sculpture: masterpieces by Donatello, Luca della Robbia, Andrea del Verrocchio, Michelangelo, and Benvenuto Cellini. The building also houses bronzes, ceramics, waxes, enamels, medals, ivories, tapestries, seals, and textiles, some from the Medici collections and others from convents or private collectors. In 1888, Louis Carrand, an antiquarian from Lyon, made one of the most important donations to Bargello: more than 2,500 paintings and works of decorative art.
Address: Via del Proconsolo, 4, 50122 Firenze FI
Website: bargellomusei.it
Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi
Palazzo Strozzi is the venue for the eclectic program of temporary art exhibitions curated by the Fondazione Strozzi. These range from blockbuster shows by the classic masters such as Bronzino and Fra Angelico to contemporary headliners including Anish Kapoor and Ai Weiwei. The more intimate Strozzino gallery showcases more experimental material. The spacious first floor piano rooms of this magnificent Renaissance palazzo make up the main exhibition area; there is sufficient floor space to mount a good-sized show but it is contained enough not to feel overwhelming. The stunning courtyard, often part of the exhibition space, is a gathering place for locals and visitors alike for its cafè and summer events. Depending on what the show is, this gallery is for art lovers who are interested in more than the most obvious sights in Florence and who want to dig a bit deeper into their subject.
Address: Piazza degli Strozzi, 50123 Firenze FI
Website: palazzostrozzi.org
Uffizi Gallery
One of the five most visited museums in the world, the Uffizi Gallery was designed by Giorgio Vasari and constructed between 1560 and 1580 as offices for Cosimo I dei Medici. It's renowned worldwide for its unparalleled collection of paintings which include works by Giotto, Simone Martini, Piero della Francesca, Beato Angelico, Filippo Lippi, Botticelli, Mantegna, Correggio, Leonardo, Raffaello, Michelangelo, and Caravaggio, in addition to many precious works by European painters (mainly German, Dutch, and Flemish). Moreover, the Gallery boasts an invaluable collection of ancient statues and busts from the Medici family. If you're short on time, this a great place to come; it has the highest concentration of classics and masters of any museum in Florence, and everything housed here is worth seeing.
Address: Piazzale degli Uffizi, 6, 50122 Firenze FI
Website: uffizi.it
Palazzo Pitti
Palazzo Pitti and Boboli Gardens was once where the Medici family lived. Built in 1457 and designed by Brunelleschi, the building is now a museum with numerous wings, as well as separate museums, out on the back property, known as Boboli Gardens. The collection features modern art, a gallery showcasing 16th- and 17th-century paintings, a silver museum, and the Royal Apartments, which are furnished with period pieces. Between the palace, all the museums, and Boboli, you could easily spend all day here. The Palazzo Pitti comprises a series of galleries and rooms, including the Palatine Gallery, which houses a collection of 16th- and 17th-century paintings; the Royal Apartments, featuring well-maintained 19th-century furniture; a gallery of modern art; and museums dedicated to silver and porcelain. The Boboli Gardens, meanwhile, are home to a collection of sculptures dating from the 16th through the 18th centuries, along with a series of Roman antiquities. The gardens, nearly 111 acres, extend to modern Fort Belvedere.
Address: Piazza de' Pitti, 1, 50125 Firenze FI
Website: uffizi.it
Museo Salvatore Ferragamo
This is a fashion museum that tells the story of the Ferragamo story and brand. The Ferragamo collection features more than 14,000 shoes, many of which are showcased here. The 11th of 14 children, Ferragamo has quite an interesting story, and you'll learn how he became a much-revered shoemaker to the stars. Opened in 1995 by Wanda Ferragamo and her family, the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum catalogues Ferragamo's move to the United States and his love of Hollywood. The legendary shoemaker worked with the best of the best, from film directors D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. DeMille to actors like Mary Pickford, Pola Negri, and Charlie Chaplin. There are two walls dedicated to iconic Italian actors in Hollywood – not only those who worked with Ferragamo, but also folks who inspired him – as well as the famous American productions (like Ben Hur) that were filmed in Italy at the time.
Address: Piazza di Santa Trinita, 5R, 50123 Firenze FI
Website: museo.ferragamo.com
This gallery has been updated with new information since its original publish date.