Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 2,920 people live in this town, in Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Mostly strong, with a single weak spot. Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon’s overall grade is A, better than 86% of compared French towns. The ranking puts it #1 of 16 in Ardèche. Its strongest is safety — an average of 3.2 recorded violent incidents and 8.7 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. It is strong on schools as well — bac results 1.3 points above the expected rate; brevet results 2.6 points above the expected rate. Getting around depends on the car (C): 62% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 4% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. A 70 m² home at the median €2,319/m² costs 6.8 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the Communauté de communes du Bassin d'Aubenas. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B for health and B− for jobs & income.
Figures: recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior) · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting and employment, INSEE census 2023 · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025).
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 Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon 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.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry lists no building in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon as a monument historique. That’s true of 25% of compared French towns too.
The nearest classé monument is Château dit château de Montlaur, in Aubenas, 1.8 mi away.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon.
Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon ranks first of the 16 compared towns in Ardèche on the Safety Grade. For 2025, the figures show 36 offenses in the town. Also worth knowing: more of the graded crimes here were burglary than anything else (2025).
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.
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte · Small counts of other physical violence, sexual violence, vehicle theft and theft from vehicles go unpublished (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the département’s average stands in, 20.8% of the index here. That estimated share passes 10%, so treat this Safety Grade with more caution than most. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon is 96.1%, above Ardèche’s towns (94.1%) and compared French towns (92.9%) alike. On school results, the town ranks #1 of 21 in Ardèche. Collège pupils travel 1.6 mi to the nearest one.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège privé Saint-François d'Assise PrivateNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 161 | 99%+6 pts |
| Lycée polyvalent privé Jules Froment PrivateNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 210 | 97%±0 pts |
| Lycée polyvalent Marcel GimondBest against expectations: 8 points above the expected rateVocational lycée | Vocational lycée | 50 | 96%+8 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
9.1% of the labour force were unemployed, below Ardèche’s towns (13.3%) and compared French towns (10.1%) alike. The typical income here, after tax and benefits, is €26,210 a year per consumption unit. 800 jobs are based in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon, for 1,200 working residents (0.7 per worker).
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
People aged 15 to 24 make up nearly a tenth of the town. 28% of residents are 65 or over, close to Ardèche’s towns (27%) and above compared French towns (22%). Under-15s account for 16% of the population.
53% women, 47% men
About 90 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ardèche 52.7%, France 51.8%.
| Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon | Ardèche median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 16% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 8.9% | 9.9% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 21% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 28% | 27% | 22% |
| No diploma | 15% | 24% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 26% | 26% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 19% | 18% | 18% |
| Higher education | 34% | 25% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Ardèche median and France median: the median of compared communes
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
There are 3 general practitioners in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon. Women in Ardèche live to 85.9 on average and men to 79.7 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. 255 deaths here between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 307: 17% below.
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 · The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from C+ to A−.
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median price, €2,319/m², comes from 64 sales of houses and apartments in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon from July 2023 to June 2026. The estimated advertised rent is €10.25/m² a month, close to Ardèche’s towns (€10.27/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²).
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €2,319/m² | 64 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Heritage, other places to visit and gardens in and near Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon. Best known first.
Nothing in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon is on the monuments historiques list. These are the nearest classé monuments, within 15.5 mi.
Wikidata has nobody with a French article born in Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon yet.
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-Étienne-de-Fontbellon | 2,920 | — | A | C+ | A | B |
| Aubenas | 12,416 | 1.5 | B+ | B | D | A− |
| Vals-les-Bains | 3,474 | 4.8 | A− | B | B+ | B+ |
| Villeneuve-de-Berg | 3,031 | 6.7 | C | B+ | B+ | C− |
| Privas | 8,538 | 14 | B− | A− | C | C |
| Le Teil | 8,726 | 15 | C− | B+ | C− | C |
| Chomérac | 3,183 | 16 | — | B | — | B |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
It grades A for safety, #1 of 16 in Ardèche. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 19 burglaries and 7 acts of criminal damage.
They grade A−, better than 83% of compared French towns and #1 of 21 in Ardèche. 97% of 210 candidates passed the bac at Lycée polyvalent privé Jules Froment in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Prices are close to the median of compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,319/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon grades C+ for cost of living.
Commune in Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Saint-Étienne-de-Fontbellon is a commune of 2,920 people in the Communauté de communes du Bassin d'Aubenas. 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
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 8, 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.