Belley grades A− overall: better than 76% of compared French towns, and #24 of 53 in Ain. At the median price of €2,067/m², a 70 m² home costs 5.6 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes Bugey Sud. Its strongest is walkability (A−): 73% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 21% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
Each subject compares Belley with other French towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far its rank is from the middle. American and UK towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Belley.
History
More protected monuments for its size in Belley than in Ain or compared French towns: 12 per 10,000 residents
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
In the comparison, Belley comes above both Ain’s towns (1.5) and compared French towns (2.5). The Culture ministry lists 11 historic monuments in Belley: 4 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 7 inscrit (the second level). Among the classé monuments in Belley is Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Work & commuteJobs & income C+
Incomes in Belley run lower than in Ain’s towns or compared French towns: a median €24,270 a year per consumption unit
For Belley, that is below both Ain’s towns (€27,670) and compared French towns (€25,970). At the census, 21.5% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train. Belley has 6,400 jobs for 3,550 working residents, 1.8 per worker.
21%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving72%
On foot15%
Public transport4%
Bicycle3%
Motorbike or scooter1%
6,400
jobs based in Belley, 1.8 per working resident
11.9%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€24,270
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A−
Walkability: better than 84% of compared French towns
INSEE, census 2023 · Ain median and France median: the median of compared communes
HealthHealth B
Belley’s death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is lower than in 60% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 1,336 residents of Belley died, against 1,255 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 6% more. Its four care homes for older people (315 places) count their residents as Belley’s; allowing for them, deaths were 15% below expected. The adjustment lowers most towns’ figures, so the comparison is what counts: the median of compared French towns is 12% below expected. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−15%deaths against expected, after care homesBHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw106
Adjusted85
Median town88
Expected100
14
GPs in Belley · 3.9 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Bugey Sud
0.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Bugey Sud
85.9 · 82
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Ain, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Belley has less crime per resident than 54% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 176 offenses in the graded categories in Belley in 2025.
8recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearB−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage68
Family violence32
Other physical violence24
Burglary24
Sexual violence12
Vehicle theft10
Theft from vehicles6
Armed robbery0
Fraud49
Theft without violence48
Drug use19
Not in the gradeTheft without violence, drug use and fraud are shown for information but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence plus burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and criminal damage per resident.
8
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
12.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
176
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.2%
of the index rests on the département’s average, used where small counts aren’t published
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living B−
Belley gets a B− for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median price, €2,067/m², comes from 308 sales of houses and apartments in Belley from July 2023 to June 2026. In Belley, houses go for €2,268/m² and apartments for €1,944/m².
€2,067/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Belley€2,067/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Ain median€2,641/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,268/m²
155
Apartments
€1,944/m²
153
€11.69/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€8.84 to €15.46/m² a month)
5.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€10.84/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€25,980
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Bugey Sud
Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste: Photo: Torsade de Pointes · CC0 · Petit Séminaire: Photo: Benoît Prieur · CC0 · Place de la cathédrale Saint-Jean: Photo: Benoît Prieur · CC0 · Hôtel des Ducs de Savoie (ancien): Photo: Groumfy69 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Sandrine Bailly: Götz A. Primke from Muenchen, Germany Cropped by Fschoenm, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Simon Desthieux: Miceman, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cédric Burdet: Kuebi = Armin Kübelbeck, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Didier Ollé-Nicolle: Flo63~commonswiki, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Charles Millon: William_S._Cohen_-_Charles_Millon.jpg : DoD, Public domain · Andrée Martinerie: Laurent Jurgensen, CC BY-SA 3.0
Belley’s neighbors
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Belley
Is Belley safe?
It grades B− for safety, #28 of 53 in Ain. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 24 burglaries and 68 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Belley good?
They grade B+, better than 73% of compared French towns and #16 of 54 in Ain. The lycée stands out: 100% of 73 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Lamartine in 2025, 2 points above the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Belley expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,067/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Estimated advertised apartment rents are €11.69/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Belley grades B− for cost of living.
About Belley
Commune in Ain, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Belley is a commune of 9,388 people in the Communauté de communes Bugey Sud. TownRatings compares communes, France’s local unit: each has its own mayor and its own statistics. Its area takes in the town and the countryside around it.
Built from INSEE’s 2026 official geography (COG) and IGN Admin Express boundaries
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.
