Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,579 in Ardennes, Grand Est.
Balan has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents. Its weakest subject is schools (C−): bac results 4.8 points below the expected rate; brevet results 1.6 points below the expected rate. Its strongest is cost of living (A−): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.1 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
The one thing Balan does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Balan 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 Balan as a monument historique. That’s true of 25% of compared French towns too.
The nearest classé monument is Maison dite "du Gros Chien", in Sedan, 0.9 mi away.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Explore the history →Heritage, gardens and museums in and near Balan. Best known first.
ChâteauChâteau de Sedan1.7 km northwest, in SedanGardenGardenJardin botanique de Sedan1.5 km northwest, in SedanMuseumMuseumMaison de la dernière cartouche1.2 km southeast, in BazeillesMonastery or conventMonastery or conventCouvent des Capucins irlandais1.8 km northwest, in SedanChâteauChâteauChâteau de Turenne1.6 km southeast, in BazeillesChâteauChâteauChâteau de Bazeilles2.2 km southeast, in BazeillesPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Balan.
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
82.1% of candidates passed the brevet at the collèges within 5 km of Balan, below both Ardennes’ towns (83.7%) and compared French towns (87.5%). At the 3 vocational lycées within 5 km, 75% of 254 candidates passed the bac pro. A collège lies 0.8 mi away.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Élisabeth de NassauNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 62 | 87%+3 pts |
| Lycée Pierre BayleNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 246 | 91%−4 pts |
| Collège Mabillon PrivateBest against expectations: 2 points above the expected rateCollège | Collège | 90 | 97%+2 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 sale price was €1,357/m², between Ardennes’ towns (€1,185/m²) and compared French towns (€2,430/m²). The sales split: 79% houses, the rest apartments. 53 houses and apartments changed hands in Balan from July 2023 to June 2026.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €1,493/m² | 42 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Average lifespans in Ardennes: 84.6 years for women, 77.7 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 nationally. From 2016 to 2025, 153 residents of Balan died, against 165 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 7% fewer. For a family doctor, residents of Balan can choose among 3 GPs.
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 · Care-home places are adjusted for by TownRatings, using a model rather than an official statistic. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from D to B+.
Over-65s are 26% of the population. 28% of adults hold a degree, above Ardennes’ towns (17%) but below compared French towns (30%). The age that splits Balan in two is 48.4.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ardennes 52.2%, France 51.8%.
| Balan | Ardennes median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 10% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 22% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 27% | 26% |
| 65+ | 26% | 25% | 22% |
| No diploma | 21% | 30% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 25% | 28% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 20% | 16% | 18% |
| Higher education | 28% | 17% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Ardennes median and France median: the median of compared communes
10.8% of the labour force were unemployed, between Ardennes’ towns (18.5%) and compared French towns (10.1%). For its 650 residents in work, Balan has 200 jobs: 0.3 each. Households’ median disposable income: €26,170 a year per consumption unit.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Violence against people averaged 3.8 per 1,000 residents a year over 2023–2025; graded property crimes averaged 9. 2025 saw 13 offenses recorded in Balan. Also worth knowing: more of the graded crimes in the town 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 family violence, 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, 32.4% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Nothing in Balan is on the monuments historiques list. These are the nearest classé monuments, within 15.5 mi.
2 notable people were born in Balan.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balan | 1,579 | — | — | A− | — | C+ |
| Sedan | 16,667 | 1.3 | D | A | D | D |
| Vrigne aux Bois | 3,518 | 5.9 | C+ | B | B+ | D− |
| Vivier-au-Court | 2,732 | 7 | — | B | — | D |
| Carignan | 2,680 | 9.9 | C | A+ | C+ | D |
| Villers-Semeuse | 3,615 | 10 | B | B+ | B | C+ |
| Charleville-Mézières | 45,560 | 12 | D | B+ | D | D |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Balan has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 7 burglaries and 6 acts of criminal damage.
They grade C−, better than 15% of compared French towns. 91% of 246 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Pierre Bayle in 2025, 4 points below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Balan grades A− for cost of living.
Commune in Ardennes, Grand Est
Balan is a commune of 1,579 people in the Ardenne Métropole. 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 October 30, 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.