Plenty to like here, at a price. Overall, Valbonne earns an A−: better than 76% of compared French towns, and #6 of 43 in Alpes-Maritimes. Its best grade is for jobs & income (A): 2.8 jobs per working resident; 9.9% unemployment. Schools do well (A−): bac results at the expected rate; brevet results 0.9 points below the expected rate. The catch is cost of living: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 12.7 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
Figures: employment, INSEE census 2023 · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi.
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 Valbonne 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.
Abbaye (ancienne): Photo: MOSSOT · CC BY 3.0 · Domaine des Trois Moulins de la Valmasque (également sur commune de Vallauris): Photo: Patrick Rouzet · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Place des Arcades: Photo: Cédric Puisney · CC BY 2.5 · Aqueduc de Clausonnes (restes): Photo: MOSSOT · CC BY-SA 3.0
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Valbonne.
HousingCost of living D−
Estimated advertised rents run higher in Valbonne than in Alpes-Maritimes’ towns or across compared French towns: €20.69/m² a month
€5,278/m²median sale price
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median price, €5,278/m², comes from 445 sales of houses and apartments in Valbonne from July 2023 to June 2026. The split locally: €6,693/m² for houses, €4,403/m² for apartments. House rents are put at about €22.76/m² a month.
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Valbonne€5,278/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Alpes-Maritimes median€4,877/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€6,693/m²
199
Apartments
€4,403/m²
246
€20.69/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€16.08 to €26.63/m² a month)
12.7
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€22.76/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€28,980
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération de Sophia Antipolis
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Students and young workers shape Valbonne: 19% are 15 to 24, above Alpes-Maritimes’ towns and compared French towns
41median age
Among adults, 53% have a degree. People 65 and over make up 15% of the town. 17% are under 15, about level with both Alpes-Maritimes’ towns (16%) and compared French towns (17%).
ValbonneAlpes-Maritimes medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
19%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma13%
CAP or BEP16%
Baccalauréat14%
Higher education53%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About an even split. Median share of women: Alpes-Maritimes 52.2%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Alpes-Maritimes median and France median: the median of compared communes
Schools
Brevet results near Valbonne run high: 95.5% passed, above Alpes-Maritimes’ towns and compared French towns
98%passed the bac (general and technological)A−School Grade
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pro: 88% of 75 candidates passed at the vocational lycée within 5 km. Near Valbonne, 97.6% of lycée candidates passed the bac, above Alpes-Maritimes’ towns (93.2%) and compared French towns (92.9%) alike. Collège pupils travel 1.2 mi to the nearest one.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income A
Valbonne is better off than Alpes-Maritimes’ towns or compared French towns: the median disposable income is €32,590 a year per consumption unit
19%walk, cycle or take transit
At the census, 19.3% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train. Unemployment stood at 9.9%, higher than Alpes-Maritimes’ towns (9.2%) and near compared French towns (10.1%).
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving70%
On foot10%
Public transport6%
Motorbike or scooter3%
Bicycle3%
15,550
jobs based in Valbonne, 2.8 per working resident
9.9%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€32,590
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
7%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A−
Walkability: better than 76% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B+
Fewer deaths than Valbonne’s ages would predict, 80 per 100 expected, under Alpes-Maritimes’ towns and compared French towns
−20%deaths against expected, after care homesB+Health Grade
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
For a family doctor, residents of Valbonne can choose among 30 GPs. Life expectancy at birth in Alpes-Maritimes is 86.5 years for women and 81.1 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. From 2016 to 2025, 736 residents of Valbonne died, against 793 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 7% fewer.
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw93
Adjusted80
Median town88
Expected100
30
GPs in Valbonne · 4.8 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
4.8 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Grasse
4.8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de Grasse
86.5 · 81.1
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Alpes-Maritimes, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Valbonne has 4 historic monuments, the oldest from Antiquity
4historic monuments
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The protected list starts in Antiquity. Among the classé monuments in Valbonne is Abbaye (ancienne). Homes from before 1919 make up 2.9% of the total, below both Alpes-Maritimes’ towns (6.1%) and compared French towns (7.4%).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Less crime per resident in Valbonne than in 54% of compared French towns
7.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearB−Safety Grade
Valbonne’s tally for 2025: 250 recorded offenses. With 15,550 jobs for 5,450 working residents, Valbonne draws people in from neighbouring communes. The yearly rates for 2023–2025: 7.6 violent offenses and 12.9 graded property crimes per 1,000 residents. Criminal damage topped the graded crimes in Valbonne (2025).
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage106
Family violence31
Sexual violence30
Other physical violence27
Theft from vehicles23
Burglary21
Vehicle theft12
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence105
Fraud103
Drug use26
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.
7.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
12.9
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
250
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 · The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses. Crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its residents, so a town that draws people in from around can look higher.
Commune in Alpes-Maritimes, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Valbonne is a commune of 11,939 people in the Communauté d'agglomération de Sophia Antipolis. 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
Population
11,939 (INSEE, census 2023)
Intercommunality
Communauté d'agglomération de Sophia Antipolis
Département
Alpes-Maritimes (06)
Région
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Area
7.8 sq mi (20.1 km²)
INSEE code
06152
Valbonne’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 Valbonne
Is Valbonne safe?
It grades B− for safety, #24 of 43 in Alpes-Maritimes. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 21 burglaries and 106 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Valbonne good?
They grade A−, better than 80% of compared French towns and #8 of 46 in Alpes-Maritimes. The lycée stands out: 99% of 329 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Simone Veil in 2025, a point above the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Valbonne expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €5,278/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Valbonne grades D− for cost of living.
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.
