The Olivetti Lettera 22, designed by Marcello Nizzoli and launched in 1950, is one of the most celebrated pieces of postwar industrial design. It won the Compasso d'Oro in 1954, is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and in 1959 the Illinois Institute of Technology named it the best-designed product of the previous hundred years. It sold in huge numbers into the early-to-mid 1960s, when the Lettera 32 replaced it, and was the working machine of many Italian journalists. Bodies are usually pale blue-grey, beige or green; salmon pink is the rare colour and is priced like it. On eBay in late 2026 about 11 complete Lettera 22s were listed at roughly $210–330 delivered.
Specifications
Brand
Olivetti
Type
Ultra-portable
Era
1950s
Years produced
1950–mid 1960s
Country of manufacture
Italy
Carriage width
Compact carriage (takes letter/A4 paper)
Pitch options
Pica, Elite
Ribbon spool
Olivetti proprietary (Lettera)
Typical asking price (eBay, Oct 1, 2026)
$210 – $330
Buying guide
Which one to buy
From Oct 1, 2026 listings
11 Lettera 22s are listed (one for parts), most asking $210–330 delivered; three loose-parts listings aren't counted. What separates cheap from dear is the matching Italian case, original paint, and whether anyone has typed on it, since only one listing says working. It takes the small Olivetti Lettera spool, not Group 1. Red flag: an aqua-green machine appears under one title from two sellers, one with zero feedback. Bargain hunters start with the $192 1950 machine; a buyer who wants it to type on arrival should look at the $540 working one.
Delivered prices include shipping as eBay quoted it to a US address on Oct 1, 2026. Many sellers charge by distance, so your total may differ — eBay shows your exact total before you buy.
Snapshot
Live on eBay right now
6 of 11 listed
Snapshot captured — listings may have ended
Delivered prices include shipping as eBay quoted it to a US address on Oct 1, 2026. Many sellers charge by distance, so your total may differ — eBay shows your exact total before you buy.
Used
★ Cheapest
Vintage 1950 Olivetti Lettera 22 Typewriter w/ Case
$192.43est. delivered
$135.00 + $57.43 shipping
Buy It Now$135.00
Offers accepted+
This seller takes offers, and sellers often accept less than the asking price.
Fine if you might miss it? Send an offer first. Someone else can still buy it while you wait for a reply.
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Good buy
First-year 1950 Lettera 22 with its case, about $192 delivered. Not described as tested.
Olivetti Underwood Lettera 22 Typewriter + Case: 1950s, Sea Green
$199.99delivered
$199.99 · free shipping
Auction · no bids yet · ends in 4h 41m
Our take
Sea green with its case, free shipping, no bids yet in an auction ending around Oct 1. A sensible ceiling is about $280, what a cased Buy It Now one costs.
Manual typewriters here are 50–80 years old; the same condition badge means different things at that age than on a 2-year-old electronic. Use this as a translation key when you read listings.
New
New / new-old-stock
Vanishingly rare on a manual typewriter — most surviving units are 50+ years old. A "new" listing here usually means a late-production unit (e.g. a 1990s Olivetti Lettera 32 still sealed in factory packaging) or a seller misusing the badge. Verify the listing photos show the original packaging and factory ribbon spool; treat the price premium with skepticism unless those check out.
Refurbished
Refurbished / serviced
The body has been through a CLA (clean / lubricate / adjust) by a typewriter specialist — segment re-lubed, platen tested or re-covered, draw band re-tensioned, type slugs cleaned, key linkages freed. Expect a $100–250 premium over an unserviced "used" equivalent; the listing should name the shop (Gramercy, Cambridge, WordsAreWinged, etc.) or include a service receipt. Highest-confidence buy for a writer who wants to type the day it arrives.
Used
Used — tested / working
The realistic ceiling for most listings. Body types, carriage returns, escapement advances, shift works, ribbon advances. Cosmetic wear is normal. Look for "tested with fresh ribbon" (best), "tested — types all letters" (fine), plus a stated return window — anything short of that drifts toward "for parts." Platen rubber often still hardened on a "used — tested" body; budget $150–250 for a re-cover if you plan to type long-form on it.
For parts
For parts / not working
Sold as-is with no functional guarantee. Common project-typewriter failure modes: hardened platen, gummed segment (sticky keys), broken draw band, missing case, broken bell, dirty type slugs. Buy only to harvest components for another body, donate to a tech for spares, or accept the gamble of a $100–300 specialist CLA on top. The cheapest path to a typing body is almost always a "used — tested" listing, not "for parts" plus a service bill.
Accessories on Amazon
The ribbon, brush, platen fluid, and oil a body off eBay almost never ships with. The ribbon link is matched to Olivetti proprietary (Lettera) — the wrong spool is the easiest way to lose a typewriter purchase on the consumable.
It takes Olivetti Lettera ribbon spools with the larger centre hole, not Group 1; buy ribbon sold for the Lettera 22/32 or keep the original spools. The pastel paint shows wear, so close-up photos matter. The carriage return lever can snap, and the escapement and carriage lock can misbehave when dirty. Italian cases often went missing; price a caseless machine accordingly. Check the platen and paper-feed rollers for hardness.
Notes on sources
Sources give end dates from 1963 to 1965; the Lettera 32 succeeded it. Production years are approximate spans compiled from collector references (the Typewriter Database, oz.Typewriter, Ted Munk's and Richard Polt's typewriter pages). Individual machines are dated by serial number: look the serial up on the Typewriter Database's serial-number page for this brand rather than trusting a seller's stated year.
Used
