Record stores in Bologna
Bologna, Emilia-Romagna has 14 record stores on the map. That's 14 record shops mapped around Bologna. Every shop grades and prices differently, so the same record can be a bargain in one and a splurge in another — dig everywhere. Bring a want-list, but leave room for the find you didn't know you needed.
This guide covers every record store we could verify in and around Bologna (within about 40 km), built from OpenStreetMap's community-maintained data. Names you'll run into include Transformer and Background Music Shop, plus Semm Music Store. If a record shop's missing from Bologna's list, it probably just hasn't been mapped yet.
The Bologna record lineup
14 in Bologna, plus 5 more around Bologna below:
Transformer
Record store0.3 km from Bologna
Transformer is Record store.
Background Music Shop
Record store0.3 km from Bologna
Background Music Shop is Record store on 16 Via Nazario Sauro, Bologna. Background Music Shop also notes on the map: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
16 Via Nazario Sauro, Bologna, 40121
Phone: +39 051 5060789
Semm Music Store
Record store0.3 km from Bologna
Semm Music Store is Record store on 24f Via Guglielmo Oberdan, Bologna. Semm Music Store also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Mo 12:00-19:00; Tu-Sa 10:30-19:30; Su 14:00-19:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
24f Via Guglielmo Oberdan, Bologna, 40126
Hours: Mo 12:00-19:00; Tu-Sa 10:30-19:30; Su 14:00-19:00
Phone: +39 051 225425
Disco d'Oro
Record store0.4 km from Bologna
Disco d'Oro — Record store on 23a Via Galliera. Also worth knowing about Disco d'Oro: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 10:00-19:30; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
23a Via Galliera
Hours: Mo-Sa 10:00-19:30
Phone: +39 051 260907
Libreria Musicale Ut Orpheus
Record store0.4 km from Bologna
Libreria Musicale Ut Orpheus — Record store, found on 31e Via Marsala in Bologna. Also worth knowing about Libreria Musicale Ut Orpheus: it has a website with more detail.
31e Via Marsala, Bologna, 40126
Bongiovanni
Record store0.4 km from Bologna
Bongiovanni — Record store.
Scolopendra
Record store0.8 km from Bologna
Scolopendra — Record store, found on 3 Via Francesco Todaro in Bologna.
3 Via Francesco Todaro, Bologna, 40126
All For Music
Record store1.2 km from Bologna
All For Music — Record store, found on 4d Via Pier De' Crescenzi in Bologna.
4d Via Pier De' Crescenzi, Bologna, 40131
Sergio Tomassone
Record store1.3 km from Bologna
Sergio Tomassone — Record store, found on 12c Via Pier De' Crescenzi in Bologna.
12c Via Pier De' Crescenzi, Bologna, 40131
DJ's Paradise
Record store1.9 km from Bologna
DJ's Paradise — Record store.
Merula Express
Record store4.1 km from Bologna
Merula Express is Record store on 8 Via Carlo Porta, Bologna.
8 Via Carlo Porta, Bologna, 40128
IDRA Pianoforti
Record store5.3 km from Bologna
IDRA Pianoforti — Record store, found on 3 Via 63° Brigata Bolero in Casalecchio di Reno. Also worth knowing about IDRA Pianoforti: it has a website with more detail.
3 Via 63° Brigata Bolero, Casalecchio di Reno
Ropa Strumenti musicali
Record store6.3 km from Bologna
Ropa Strumenti musicali — Record store, found on 10 Via Bazzanese in Casalecchio di Reno. Also worth knowing about Ropa Strumenti musicali: it has a website with more detail.
10 Via Bazzanese, Casalecchio di Reno
M. Casale Bauer
Record store6.8 km from BolognaRun by M. Casale Bauer S.R.L.
M. Casale Bauer is Record store run by M. Casale Bauer S.R.L. on 6/8 Via Quattro Novembre, Granarolo dell'Emilia. M. Casale Bauer also notes on the map: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
6/8 Via Quattro Novembre, Granarolo dell'Emilia, 40057
Phone: +39 051766648
What the map tells us about record stores in Bologna
2 of the 14 list their opening hours on the map, which is genuinely useful — record shops keep shop hours, so the listed times are usually reliable.
7 have websites listed. Worth a look for new-arrival posts and want-list services.
The Bologna record crawl
Plot these on a map and the day plans itself: Transformer, Background Music Shop on 16 Via Nazario Sauro, Semm Music Store on 24f Via Guglielmo Oberdan, Disco d'Oro on 23a Via Galliera, Libreria Musicale Ut Orpheus on 31e Via Marsala, Bongiovanni, Scolopendra on 3 Via Francesco Todaro, and All For Music on 4d Via Pier De' Crescenzi. That's 14 stops on the Bologna record crawl. 6 more are listed below.
Record digging tips for Bologna
Digging in Bologna? A few habits pay off:
- Check the dead wax at Transformer. The runout groove holds matrix numbers that identify pressings. Collectors live by these; a quick phone search settles it.
- Check the bargain wall rhythm at Background Music Shop. Shops restock the cheap sections on cycles. Ask when — that's when the fresh bargains land.
- The listening station is the test. If a record looks questionable, play the loud passages. That's where surface noise shows up.
- Ask about the return policy. Most used vinyl is sold as-is. Know the policy before the stylus hits a skip at home.
Good to know
We searched about 40 km around Bologna — that covers the town itself plus the surrounding communities you'd reasonably drive to. Listings come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by local volunteers, so a brand-new record store in Bologna can take a while to appear. The 14 above are only as current as the community map. A record store that's shut, or a new one nobody's added yet, gets fixed with a single OpenStreetMap edit.
We don't list prices or stock — both change by the day. What we list is the where: real shops, verified by real mappers.
If you run one of the 14 listed here and something's wrong — a closure, a move, new hours — the fix is the same: update the shop on OpenStreetMap and the correction flows through to this page on the next daily refresh.
Worth the trip: more record stores around Bologna
5 more within about 40 km of Bologna, nearest first:
Ocarina di Budrio Fabio Menaglio
Record store15.3 km from Bologna
Ocarina di Budrio Fabio Menaglio — Record store, found on 6 via vittime delle foibe in Budrio. Also worth knowing about Ocarina di Budrio Fabio Menaglio: it has a website with more detail.
6 via vittime delle foibe, Budrio, 40054
Salani pianoforti
Record store28.1 km from Bologna
Salani pianoforti — Record store, found on 41/b Via Ferrarese in Cento.
41/b Via Ferrarese, Cento, 44042
All The Best!
Record store33.4 km from Bologna
All The Best! — Record store on 15a Via Giuseppe Mazzini.
15a Via Giuseppe Mazzini
Dischinpiazza
Record store37.0 km from Bologna
Dischinpiazza — Record store, found on 41 Via Castellaro in Modena. Also worth knowing about Dischinpiazza: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 09:00-13:00; 15:30-19:30; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip.
41 Via Castellaro, Modena, 41121
Hours: Mo-Sa 09:00-13:00; 15:30-19:30
Phone: +390592155252
Pianoforti Liberalon
Record store39.8 km from Bologna
Pianoforti Liberalon — Record store, found on 3 Via Enrico Fermi in Riolo Terme. Also worth knowing about Pianoforti Liberalon: it has a website with more detail.
3 Via Enrico Fermi, Riolo Terme
Record store listings for Bologna: 14 in Bologna and 5 more nearby mapped from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Photos from Wikimedia Commons contributors; individual photo credits appear in captions. Listing data was last refreshed automatically — verify hours before visiting.