Rome is not just a city of ruins and museums; its truest artistic soul resides within its sacred spaces. For the discerning visitor, the churches in Rome offer an unparalleled feast of masterpieces.

One of the most fascinating aspects of Rome for me was the sheer number of churches hidden in side streets and piazzas off the main thoroughfares which contained some of the world’s most famous artworks. Often these churches in Rome were unassuming on the outside, but as soon as you stepped inside you realised how fantastic the display you were presented with was.

In these quiet sanctuaries, you came face-to-face with the dramatic genius of Caravaggio, the theatrical ecstasy of Bernini, and the monumental power of Michelangelo. Glittering Byzantine mosaics, sweeping illusionistic frescoes, and monumental pieces are on view in these twenty churches in Rome.

We have not included here St. Peter’s Basilica, which contains the greatest of them all, because it is in the Vatican City and is worthy of a full article on its own.

Here are the 20 Churches in Rome

1. San Luigi dei Francesi. This church is world-renowned for housing three absolute masterpieces by the Baroque master Caravaggio in the Contarelli Chapel. The paintings depict the life of St. Matthew: The Calling of St. Matthew, The Inspiration of St. Matthew, and The Martyrdom of St. Matthew. They are celebrated for their dramatic use of chiaroscuro (stark contrast between light and dark) and stark realism.

2. Santa Maria del Popolo. One of the churches in Rome with a treasure trove of Renaissance and Baroque art, this church features the Cerasi Chapel, which contains two breathtaking canvases by Caravaggio (The Crucifixion of St. Peter and The Conversion of St. Paul) alongside an altarpiece by Annibale Carracci. Additionally, it houses the Chigi Chapel, designed by Raphael and later completed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

3. Santa Maria della Vittoria This small, heavily ornamented Baroque church is famous for the Cornaro Chapel, home to Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s theatrical masterpiece, The Ecstasy of St. Teresa. The spectacular marble sculpture depicts the saint in a state of spiritual and physical rapture, illuminated by natural light filtered through a hidden window.

4. San Pietro in Vincoli (St. Peter in Chains) While the church is named for the chains that purportedly bound St. Peter in Jerusalem, its most important artistic draw is Michelangelo’s colossal statue of Moses. Originally intended for the grand, never-completed tomb of Pope Julius II, the horned Moses is a striking example of Michelangelo’s ability to convey powerful psychological tension (terribilità) in marble.

5. Sant’ Agostino Located near Piazza Navona, this Renaissance church contains Caravaggio’s renowned Madonna di Loreto (or Madonna of the Pilgrims), which caused a scandal in its time for depicting the Virgin Mary barefoot and the pilgrims with dirty feet. A pillar in the nave also features a beautiful fresco of the Prophet Isaiah painted by Raphael.

6. Santa Maria sopra Minerva, Rome’s only gothic church contains a wealth of artistic treasures, most notably Michelangelo’s marble sculpture Christ the Redeemer (also known as Christ Carrying the Cross). The Carafa Chapel inside is beautifully decorated with late 15th-century frescoes by Filippino Lippi depicting the life of St. Thomas Aquinas.

7. Il Gesù The mother church of the Jesuit order is a monument to the Counter-Reformation and early Baroque. Its most spectacular artwork is the nave vault fresco, The Triumph of the Name of Jesus by Giovanni Battista Gaulli (Baciccio). The ceiling blends painting and stucco so seamlessly that the damned appear to be tumbling out of the frame into the church.

8. Sant’Ignazio di Loyola Another spectacular Jesuit church, it is most famous for its immense ceiling fresco by Andrea Pozzo. The painting is a masterpiece of quadratura (illusionistic perspective), designed to make the flat ceiling look like a soaring, vaulted architectural space opening into heaven. Pozzo also painted a famous “fake dome” on a flat canvas over the crossing to mask incomplete architecture.

9. Santa Maria della Pace Hidden just behind Piazza Navona, this church features the Chigi Chapel, where Raphael painted a stunning fresco of the Sibyls and Angels in 1514. The dynamic, twisting figures show the profound influence of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling on the younger Raphael.

10. San Francesco a Ripa. Located in the Trastevere neighbourhood, this church houses one of Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s final masterpieces, the Blessed Ludovica Albertoni. Similar in emotional intensity to his St. Teresa, this sculpture captures the dying noblewoman in the throes of religious ecstasy, carved with deep, agitated folds of drapery.

Click on the images to view the 20 churches in Rome

20 Churches in Rome on The Map

Click on the markers to reveal the name of the church

11. Santa Cecilia in Trastevere This ancient basilica holds two highly significant works. Beneath the altar lies Stefano Maderno's moving marble statue of St. Cecilia, carved in 1599 to perfectly replicate her uncorrupted body as it was allegedly found when her tomb was opened. In the nuns' choir (accessible by a small fee), visitors can see fragments of a groundbreaking, highly realistic Last Judgment fresco painted by Pietro Cavallini in 1293.

12. Santa Maria in Trastevere One of the oldest churches in Rome, it is celebrated for its glittering medieval mosaics. The 12th-century apse mosaic depicts Christ and the Virgin Mary sharing a throne, while the lower band of mosaics, detailing the Life of the Virgin, was added by Pietro Cavallini in the late 13th century, showing early signs of transitioning from stiff Byzantine styles toward Renaissance naturalism.

13. San Clemente This is a multi-layered historical complex, but the upper, 12th-century basilica contains a magnificent apse mosaic of the Triumph of the Cross. It depicts the cross as a Tree of Life with vines swirling outward to encompass scenes of everyday life. The church also contains the Chapel of St. Catherine, featuring early Renaissance frescoes by Masolino da Panicale.

14. Santa Prassede Located near Santa Maria Maggiore, this church contains some of the most important Byzantine-style mosaics in Rome, dating to the 9th century. The absolute highlight is the Chapel of San Zeno, a small space entirely covered in shimmering golden glass tesserae, often referred to as the "Garden of Paradise."

15. Santa Maria Maggiore One of Rome’s four major papal basilicas, it retains its original 5th-century structure. The nave features incredibly rare 5th-century mosaic panels depicting Old Testament scenes. The apse contains a stunning 13th-century mosaic of the Coronation of the Virgin by Jacopo Torriti. The church also features a spectacular coffered ceiling purportedly gilded with the first gold brought back from the Americas.

16. San Giovanni in Laterano The cathedral of Rome contains a massive nave remodeled by Baroque architect Francesco Borromini. Placed within Borromini's monumental niches are larger-than-life, highly dynamic marble statues of the Twelve Apostles sculpted by various late-Baroque masters. A pillar in the right aisle preserves a fragment of a fresco by the great proto-Renaissance master Giotto, depicting Pope Boniface VIII.

17. San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane While it lacks large famous paintings, the church itself is the artwork. Designed by Francesco Borromini, "San Carlino" is considered a masterpiece of Baroque architecture. Its undulating facade and complex, mathematically brilliant oval dome demonstrate a revolutionary departure from classical, straight-lined Renaissance architecture.

18. Sant'Andrea al Quirinale Often considered the architectural rival to Borromini's San Carlino, this small church was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who considered it one of his few perfect works. The interior is a rich, theatrical oval bathed in pink and gold marble, culminating in a dramatic sculptural depiction of St. Andrew ascending to heaven above the high altar.

19. Trinità dei Monti Standing prominently at the top of the Spanish Steps, this French church houses an incredibly important Mannerist fresco: the Descent from the Cross by Daniele da Volterra. A close friend and pupil of Michelangelo, Volterra's work here shows the heavy, muscular influence of his master, and it was long rumored that Michelangelo himself helped design the composition.

20. Santa Sabina Perched on the Aventine Hill, this is the best-preserved early Christian basilica in Rome (5th century). Its greatest artistic treasure is not a painting or marble, but its original 5th-century carved cypress wood doors. One of the small wooden panels contains what is widely considered to be one of the earliest surviving depictions of the Crucifixion of Christ in public art.

These are our selection of 20 churches in Rome with great art pieces.
Do you know any others? Let us know.