Privas grades B− overall: better than 51% of compared French towns, and #9 of 16 in Ardèche. Its weakest subject is safety (C): an average of 12.6 recorded violent incidents and 15.1 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At the median price of €1,490/m², a 70 m² home costs 4.3 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté d'agglomération Privas Centre Ardèche. Its strongest is walkability (A): 81% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 27% 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 Privas 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 Privas.
Work & commuteJobs & income C
Privas has higher unemployment than Ardèche’s towns or compared French towns: 16.6%
Privas sits above both Ardèche’s towns (13.3%) and compared French towns (10.1%) on this measure. Privas has 8,050 jobs for 2,850 working residents, 2.8 per worker. At the census, 26.5% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train.
27%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving68%
On foot20%
Public transport4%
Bicycle2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
8,050
jobs based in Privas, 2.8 per working resident
16.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,810
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
4%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A
Walkability: better than 90% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living A−
Privas gets an A− for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The estimated advertised rent is €9.50/m² a month, close to Ardèche’s towns (€10.27/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). The median price, €1,490/m², comes from 288 sales of houses and apartments in Privas from July 2023 to June 2026. In Privas, houses go for €2,011/m² and apartments for €1,284/m².
€1,490/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Privas€1,490/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Ardèche median€1,907/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,011/m²
104
Apartments
€1,284/m²
184
€9.50/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.46 to €12.09/m² a month)
4.3
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€10.05/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,530
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Privas Centre Ardèche
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Privas records more crime per resident than 74% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 223 offenses in the graded categories in Privas in 2025. Of the graded crimes in Privas, criminal damage came up most often (2025). For burglary, this figure isn’t published when it’s small (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the index uses the département’s average instead, 0.7% of the index here.
12.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearCSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage97
Family violence44
Other physical violence38
Sexual violence27
Theft from vehicles9
Vehicle theft8
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence62
Fraud44
Drug use34
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.
12.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
15.1
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
223
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.7%
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
HealthHealth C
Privas’ death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 73% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Privas records 97 deaths per 100 expected, above both Ardèche’s towns (90) and compared French towns (88). From 2016 to 2025, 1,084 residents of Privas died, against 997 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 9% more. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−3%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw109
Adjusted97
Median town88
Expected100
6
GPs in Privas · 2 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.6 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Privas Ardeche
12.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Ch Ardeche Meridionale Aubenas
85.9 · 79.7
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Ardèche, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
11% of residents are 15 to 24 and 26% are 65 or over, against 9.9% and 27% in the median compared commune of Ardèche. 27% of adults who have left education hold a higher-education diploma (Ardèche 25%, France 30%).
48.1median age
PrivasArdèche medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
26%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma25%
CAP or BEP23%
Baccalauréat17%
Higher education27%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 87 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ardèche 52.7%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Ardèche median and France median: the median of compared communes
History
3 historic monuments, the oldest from Antiquity
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 3 historic monuments in Privas: 2 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 1 inscrit (the second level). 14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Cyril Théréau: Adrian Haisan, CC BY 2.0 · Pierre Broué: User: Tusco, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pierre Vigne: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Alain Planet: Yannsinclair, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Paul Mazon: Studio Harcourt, Public domain · Dominique Gardette: Jean-Paul Gardette, CC BY-SA 4.0
Privas’ 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 Privas
Is Privas safe?
It grades C for safety, #12 of 16 in Ardèche.
Are schools in Privas good?
They grade B, better than 55% of compared French towns and #10 of 21 in Ardèche. 96% of 223 candidates passed the bac at Lycée polyvalent Vincent d'Indy in 2025, a point below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Privas expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,490/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Privas grades A− for cost of living.
About Privas
Commune in Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Privas is a commune of 8,538 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Privas Centre Ardèche. 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.
