Townsend struck in the 79th minute by rifling an unstoppable shot past goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon from 20 metres to give England a deserved result at the Juventus stadium.
Italy had taken the lead on the half-hour through Graziano Pelle's deft header after defender Giorgio Chiellini waltzed around Phil Jones and provided a precise cross from the left.
It was Pelle's second goal in his three appearances for the "azzurri" although the striker has failed to score a Premier League goal for his club Southampton since December.
"It didn't seem like a friendly," Italy defender Leonardo Bonucci told Rai TV. "It was a high-paced match. We let the win slide through our fingers but Townsend scored a fantastic goal."
Antonio Conte's side dominated the first half by pressing when England had possession and quickly attacking with crisp, short passes once they won the ball.
Marco Parolo had the first effort on goal after 10 minutes with a rising shot from 30 metres that England goalkeeper Joe Hart deflected over the bar.
England were not given time to catch their breath as the Italians kept on attacking and defender Phil Jagielka had to be alert seven minutes later to foil Brazilian-born Eder who would otherwise have had an easy tap-in.
A Wayne Rooney volley from the edge of the area almost put England ahead against the run of play but his shot clipped the crossbar after deflecting off Roberto Soriano before the home side took the lead through Pelle's header.
Four minutes after the break Eder, whose late goal had salvaged a 2-2 draw away to Bulgaria in Italy's Euro 2016 qualifier on Saturday, almost put the hosts 2-0 ahead but his shot was brilliantly parried with one hand by Hart.
Italy could not sustain the pressure, though, and Roy Hodgson's side began to take control with Rooney testing Buffon with a fierce strike after 72 minutes.
Townsend, who came off the bench nine minutes earlier for Fabian Delph, then popped up with his third goal in seven appearances for England, whose run of seven straight wins since last year's World Cup was brought to an end.
The result left both teams undefeated since the finals in Brazil where Italy beat England 2-1 in a group match but neither side managed to qualify for the knockout stages.
(Writing by Jacopo Lo Monaco; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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