Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 1,839 residents, it is a town in Ain, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Health outcomes beat most towns (A): after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 34% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Homes sell for a median €2,000/m², so 70 m² costs 5.3 years of the median income per consumption unit in the Communauté de communes Rives de l'Ain - Pays du Cerdon. Schools lag: brevet results 5 points below the expected rate. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for jobs & income and B− for walkability.
Figures: deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · employment and commuting, INSEE census 2023 · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025. Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Saint-Jean-le-Vieux 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.
Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The one thing Saint-Jean-le-Vieux does most differently from other towns.
Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has 1 historic monument on the Culture ministry’s list, none at the highest level (classé).
The oldest protected part dates from the 13th century; the first monument here was protected in 1983.
23% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
Château de Varey: Photo: Chabe01 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Jean-le-Vieux.
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
129 deaths in Saint-Jean-le-Vieux between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 162: 21% below. At birth, a girl in Ain can expect 85.9 years and a boy 82 (2025); across France, 85.9 and 80.3. For a family doctor, residents of Saint-Jean-le-Vieux have one GP on hand.
Source: INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025; DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 · Licence Ouverte · Allowing for care homes is a TownRatings estimate, not a published statistic.
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
A collège lies 2.3 mi away.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Louise de SavoieNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 127 | 87%−5 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median price, €2,000/m², comes from 43 sales of houses and apartments in Saint-Jean-le-Vieux from July 2023 to June 2026. Houses accounted for 93% of sales, apartments for the rest.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €2,009/m² | 40 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Protection here reaches back to the 13th century. Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has 1 historic monument on the Culture ministry’s list, none at the highest level (classé).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
One measure of family life: 17% of residents are under 15. The median resident of Saint-Jean-le-Vieux is 43.4 years old. People 65 and over make up 21% of the town, above Ain’s towns (19%) but below compared French towns (22%).
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ain 51.0%, France 51.8%.
| Saint-Jean-le-Vieux | Ain median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 20% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 24% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 21% | 19% | 22% |
| No diploma | 16% | 17% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 26% | 26% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| Higher education | 32% | 32% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Ain median and France median: the median of compared communes
At the census, 9.7% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, lower than both Ain’s towns (13.8%) and compared French towns (13.4%). The median disposable income is €27,290 a year per consumption unit. 8.4% of the labour force are out of work.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Heritage, museums and other places to visit in and near Saint-Jean-le-Vieux. Best known first.
One notable person was born in Saint-Jean-le-Vieux.
Commune in Ain, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Saint-Jean-le-Vieux is a commune of 1,839 people in the Communauté de communes Rives de l'Ain - Pays du Cerdon. 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
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Jean-le-Vieux | 1,839 | — | — | B+ | — | A |
| Ambronay | 2,841 | 2.4 | A− | B+ | B− | B+ |
| Pont-d'Ain | 2,843 | 2.6 | D | B+ | D | D |
| Ambérieu-en-Bugey | 15,934 | 5.2 | C− | C+ | C− | C |
| Lagnieu | 7,411 | 9.4 | B+ | B− | B | C+ |
| Villieu-Loyes-Mollon | 3,849 | 11 | B | C | C+ | B |
| Chalamont | 2,533 | 11 | A | B+ | B+ | C+ |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Saint-Jean-le-Vieux has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 3.6 recorded violent incidents and 12 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
They grade C−, better than 22% of compared French towns. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,000/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Jean-le-Vieux grades B+ for cost of living.
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, employment, commuting) · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (income per consumption unit, poverty) · DGFiP, DVF property sales, July 2023 to June 2026 · Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025 · SSMSI, recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Ministry of Education (DEPP), brevet and bac results and value-added indicators, 2025 · INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses 2012–2023; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025 (care homes, emergency and maternity units, GPs, pharmacies); DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 (provisional) · INSEE, BPE 2025 and Filosofi 200 m grid (walking distances) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking French towns against each other only, updated November 9, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
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.