Palaja has no overall grade because safety and schools aren’t graded here. At the median price of €2,155/m², a 70 m² home costs 6.5 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté d'agglomération Carcassonne Agglo. Its strongest is health (B+): after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 20% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
What makes Palaja stand out
The 2 things Palaja does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Palaja 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 Palaja.
HealthHealth B+
Fewer deaths than Palaja’s ages would predict, 80 per 100 expected, under Aude’s towns and compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Palaja sits below both Aude’s towns (98) and compared French towns (88) on this measure. 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.
−20%deaths against expected, after care homesB+Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw80
Adjusted80
Median town88
Expected100
2
GPs in Palaja · 2.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
3.1 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Carcassonne Antoine Gayraud
3.1 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
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income C
Fewer people in Palaja are out of work than in Aude’s towns or across compared French towns: 8.9%
That puts Palaja below both Aude’s towns (14.6%) and compared French towns (10.1%). The median disposable income is €27,800 a year per consumption unit.
3%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving92%
Motorbike or scooter2%
On foot1%
Bicycle1%
Public transport1%
250
jobs based in Palaja, 0.2 per working resident
8.9%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€27,800
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
3%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
C
Walkability: better than 33% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
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 Palaja: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 2 inscrit (the second level). 2.4% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
INSEE, census 2023 · Aude median and France median: the median of compared communes
Safety
Palaja has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average
Police and gendarmerie recorded 22 offenses in the graded categories in Palaja in 2025. For family violence, other physical violence, sexual violence, vehicle theft and theft from vehicles, 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, 25.8% of the index here.
1.7recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year
Recorded by type · 2025
Burglary13
Criminal damage9
Armed robbery0
Fraud14
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.
1.7
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
8.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
22
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
25.8%
of the index rests on the département’s average, used where small counts aren’t published
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Palaja
Is Palaja safe?
Palaja has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 1.7 recorded violent incidents and 8.6 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 13 burglaries and 9 acts of criminal damage.
Is Palaja expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,155/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Estimated advertised apartment rents are €11.04/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Palaja grades C for cost of living.
About Palaja
Commune in Aude, Occitanie
Palaja is a commune of 2,722 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Carcassonne Agglo. 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.
