Foix grades C overall: better than 31% of compared French towns, and #7 of 11 in Ariège. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 11.9 recorded violent incidents and 23.6 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Its strongest is cost of living (A−): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.5 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 overall grade uses the other six subjects.
Each subject compares Foix 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 Foix.
Safety
Foix records more crime per resident than 91% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 361 offenses in the graded categories in Foix in 2025. Foix comes 10th of the 11 compared towns in Ariège on the Safety Grade. For armed robbery, 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, 0.1% of the index here.
11.9recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage153
Other physical violence49
Theft from vehicles45
Family violence40
Burglary37
Sexual violence27
Vehicle theft10
Drug use111
Theft without violence99
Fraud67
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.
11.9
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
23.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
361
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.1%
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
HousingCost of living A−
The median sale price of homes in Foix is €1,588/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
That is the middle of 407 sales of houses and apartments in Foix from July 2023 to June 2026, against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns and €1,645/m² for the median of compared towns in Ariège.
€1,588/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Foix€1,588/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Ariège median€1,645/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,683/m²
228
Apartments
€1,513/m²
179
€9.19/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.37 to €11.46/m² a month)
4.5
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.52/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,930
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération L'agglo Foix-Varilhes
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income C
Foix has higher unemployment than Ariège’s towns or compared French towns: 17.4%
That puts Foix above both Ariège’s towns (13.5%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Foix has 7,750 jobs for 3,700 working residents, 2.1 per worker. 26.9% of commuters went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport at the census.
27%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving67%
On foot16%
Bicycle6%
Public transport5%
Motorbike or scooter1%
7,750
jobs based in Foix, 2.1 per working resident
17.4%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€23,470
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A−
Walkability: better than 83% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C−
Foix’s death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 77% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Foix records 99 deaths per 100 expected, close to Ariège’s towns (95) and above compared French towns (88). From 2016 to 2025, 1,280 residents of Foix died, against 1,187 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 8% more. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−1%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw108
Adjusted99
Median town88
Expected100
16
GPs in Foix · 4.7 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
4.5 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Chiva site Saint Jean de Verges
4.5 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Chiva site Saint Jean de Verges
84.9 · 80
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Ariège, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
History
4 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2025
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 4 historic monuments in Foix: 3 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 1 inscrit (the second level). Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 2025. 13% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Foix
Is Foix safe?
It grades D for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 37 burglaries and 153 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Foix good?
They grade C+, better than 37% of compared French towns and #8 of 10 in Ariège. 97% of 293 candidates passed the bac at Lycée général et technologique Gabriel Fauré in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Foix expensive to live in?
By type: houses €1,683/m² (228 sales), apartments €1,513/m² (179 sales). Estimated advertised apartment rents are €9.19/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Foix grades A− for cost of living.
About Foix
Commune in Ariège, Occitanie
Foix is a commune of 9,934 people in the Communauté d'agglomération L'agglo Foix-Varilhes. 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.
