The earthquake struck the south-western Calabrian coast at 10:19 am, at a depth of around 10 kilometres.
The areas most affected were Catanzaro, Vibo Valentia and Reggio Calabria.
Civil protection authorities have not reported any damage and there are no reports of injuries.
Italian newspaper La Repubblica reports that the earthquake led to many schools and public offices being evacuated in the region.
Trains were stopped for several hours, including at least five high-speed services bound for Rome, leading to knock-on delays across the rail network, according to Italian news agency ANSA.
Major roads in the region remained open.
