Walkability is its strong suit: 84% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 19% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Housing is within reach: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Pupils here do less well than most: brevet results 8 points below the expected rate. It also trails on jobs & income — 1.2 jobs per working resident; 13.6% unemployment.
Espéraza has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Espéraza 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.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Children make up only 10% of Espéraza, fewer than in Aude’s towns and compared French towns
Degrees are held by 20% of adults, lower than both Aude’s towns (25%) and compared French towns (30%). Those 65 and older account for 37% of residents. Young adults of 15 to 24 are 7.1% of the population.
57.4median age
EspérazaAude medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
37%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma23%
CAP or BEP28%
Baccalauréat21%
Higher education20%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 86 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Aude 52.3%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Aude median and France median: the median of compared communes
Work & commuteJobs & income D
Incomes in Espéraza run lower than in Aude’s towns or compared French towns: a median €19,930 a year per consumption unit
18.8% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, above Aude’s towns (11.1%) and compared French towns (13.4%) alike. Unemployment runs at 13.6%.
19%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving73%
On foot14%
Bicycle3%
Public transport2%
Motorbike or scooter0%
600
jobs based in Espéraza, 1.2 per working resident
13.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€19,930
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
8%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A
Walkability: better than 91% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C−
Allowing for age and care homes, deaths in Espéraza run higher than in 83% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Espéraza records 102 deaths per 100 expected, above both Aude’s towns (98) and compared French towns (88). France’s death rates at each age would predict 393 deaths here from 2016 to 2025; there were 520, 32% more. In Aude, life expectancy at birth reaches 84.4 years for women and 78.3 for men (2025), next to 85.9 and 80.3 for France. This Aude town has 2 family doctors.
+2%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw132
Adjusted102
Median town88
Expected100
2
GPs in Espéraza · 3.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
4 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Ch Carcassonne Smur Antenne Quillan
21.6 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Carcassonne Antoine Gayraud
84.4 · 78.3
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Aude, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Estimated advertised rents run lower in Espéraza than in Aude’s towns or across compared French towns: €8.01/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
110 sales of houses and apartments in Espéraza, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €1,179/m². Houses accounted for 95% of sales, apartments for the rest. House rents are put at about €6.04/m² a month.
€1,179/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Espéraza€1,179/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Aude median€1,923/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,231/m²
104
€8.01/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€6.65 to €9.65/m² a month)
4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€6.04/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€20,440
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Pyrénées Audoises
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
Espéraza keeps more of its old housing than Aude’s towns or compared French towns: 13% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Espéraza has 2 historic monuments on the Culture ministry’s list: 1 classé, the highest protection, and 1 inscrit, the second level. Among the classé monuments here is Église Saint-Michel. The protected list starts in the 12th century.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Espéraza has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average
28 offenses were reported in Espéraza during 2025. Each year (2023–2025 average), violence against people came to 4.8 per 1,000 residents and the graded property crimes to 10.7. Of the graded crimes here, criminal damage came up most often (2025).
4.8recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage16
Family violence12
Armed robbery0
Fraud14
Theft without violence9
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.
4.8
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
10.7
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
28
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
33.2%
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 · When other physical violence, sexual violence, burglary, vehicle theft and theft from vehicles number five or fewer in a recent year, the figure is withheld, and the index uses the département’s average instead (33.2% of the index here). The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Nearby attractions
Dinosauria and 6 more in and around Espéraza
Museums, heritage and other places to visit in and near Espéraza. Best known first.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Espéraza
Is Espéraza safe?
Espéraza has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average.
Are schools in Espéraza good?
They grade D−, better than 4% of compared French towns. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Espéraza expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,179/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Espéraza grades A− for cost of living.
About Espéraza
Commune in Aude, Occitanie
Espéraza is a commune of 1,774 people in the Communauté de communes Pyrénées Audoises. 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.
