Homes are dear: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 9 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Where it does best is walkability (B+) — 63% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 11% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Put together, the subjects come to a C− overall, better than 20% of compared French towns. That places it #55 of 99 in Bouches-du-Rhône. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for schools and B− for jobs & income.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting and employment, INSEE census 2023 · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education.
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-Chamas 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 Saint-Chamas.
HousingCost of living D
Renting in Saint-Chamas costs an estimated advertised €14.61/m² a month, against €15.81/m² in Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns and €12.41/m² in compared French towns
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Homes sold for a median €3,313/m², lower than Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns (€3,824/m²) yet higher than compared French towns (€2,430/m²). Apartments in Saint-Chamas sell for €2,942/m², houses for €3,620/m². Of the homes sold, 51% were houses.
€3,313/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Saint-Chamas€3,313/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Bouches-du-Rhône median€3,824/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€3,620/m²
157
Apartments
€2,942/m²
148
€14.61/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€11.59 to €18.40/m² a month)
9
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€13.73/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€25,740
median annual income per consumption unit, Métropole d'Aix-Marseille-Provence
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C
Saint-Chamas sees 95 deaths per 100 expected: under what its ages predict, yet above Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns and compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Saint-Chamas has 8 family doctors. Average lifespans in Bouches-du-Rhône: 86 years for women, 81 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 nationally. 816 deaths locally between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 761: 7% above.
−5%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw107
Adjusted95
Median town88
Expected100
8
GPs in Saint-Chamas · 3 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
3.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Clinique de L Etang de L Olivier
7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Hopital du Pays Salonais
86 · 81
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Bouches-du-Rhône, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Saint-Chamas has 0.5 jobs for every resident in work, so most commute out
The median disposable income was €27,990 a year per consumption unit, near Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns (€27,430) and higher than compared French towns (€25,970). Public transport took 4.9% of Saint-Chamas’ working residents to work at the census.
11%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving85%
Public transport5%
On foot5%
Bicycle1%
Motorbike or scooter1%
1,850
jobs based in Saint-Chamas, 0.5 per working resident
9.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€27,990
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
3%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B+
Walkability: better than 65% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Saint-Chamas ranks above 62% of compared French towns for crime per resident
Among the graded crimes in Saint-Chamas, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025). Graded property crimes ran at 17.8 per 1,000 residents a year, and violence against people at 6.4 (2023–2025 average). 2025 saw 230 offenses recorded locally.
6.4recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearC+Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage63
Theft from vehicles45
Burglary42
Other physical violence31
Family violence17
Sexual violence16
Vehicle theft16
Fraud62
Theft without violence46
Drug use33
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.
6.4
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
17.8
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
230
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.5%
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 · Small counts of armed robbery go unpublished (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the département’s average stands in, 0.5% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
History
Saint-Chamas keeps more of its old housing than Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns or compared French towns: 13% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Among the classé monuments here is Pont Flavien. Saint-Chamas has 4 historic monuments on the Culture ministry’s list: 1 classé, the highest protection, and 3 inscrit, the second level.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Who lives here
Few people in Saint-Chamas are 15 to 24: 9.1%, fewer than in both Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns and compared French towns
People 65 and over make up just over a fifth of the town, lower than both Bouches-du-Rhône’s towns (22%) and compared French towns (22%). A third of adults hold a degree. One measure of family life: 16% of residents are under 15.
45.6median age
Saint-ChamasBouches-du-Rhône medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
21%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma16%
CAP or BEP27%
Baccalauréat20%
Higher education33%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 93 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Bouches-du-Rhône 51.9%, France 51.8%.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Saint-Chamas
Is Saint-Chamas safe?
It grades C+ for safety, #46 of 99 in Bouches-du-Rhône. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 42 burglaries and 63 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Saint-Chamas good?
They grade B−, better than 51% of compared French towns and #50 of 96 in Bouches-du-Rhône. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Saint-Chamas expensive to live in?
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Chamas grades D for cost of living.
About Saint-Chamas
Commune in Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Saint-Chamas is a commune of 8,676 people in the Métropole d'Aix-Marseille-Provence. 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.
