Caen grades D overall: better than 14% of compared French towns, and #38 of 46 in Calvados. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 12.2 recorded violent incidents and 21 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At the median price of €2,954/m², a 70 m² home costs 8.1 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté urbaine Caen la Mer. Its strongest is walkability (A+): 100% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 38% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work.
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 Caen 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 Caen.
Work & commuteJobs & income C
More people in Caen are out of work than in Calvados’ towns or across compared French towns: 15.0%
Households’ median disposable income: €23,650 a year per consumption unit. Caen has 78,300 jobs for 44,000 working residents, 1.8 per worker. Public transport took 17.4% of the town’s working residents to work at the census.
38%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving57%
Public transport17%
On foot12%
Bicycle9%
Motorbike or scooter1%
78,300
jobs based in Caen, 1.8 per working resident
15.0%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€23,650
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
3%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A+
Walkability: better than 98% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Caen records more crime per resident than 88% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie figures for Caen show 3,705 offenses in 2025. Among the graded crimes locally, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
12.2recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage1,196
Theft from vehicles669
Other physical violence655
Family violence394
Sexual violence367
Burglary261
Vehicle theft151
Armed robbery12
Theft without violence1,624
Drug use811
Fraud693
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.
12.2
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
21
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
3,705
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
under 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 · The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
HousingCost of living D
Estimated advertised rents run higher in Caen than in Calvados’ towns or across compared French towns: €13.83/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median price, €2,954/m², comes from 5,533 sales of houses and apartments in Caen from July 2023 to June 2026. Houses sell for €3,500/m² locally, apartments for €2,880/m².
€2,954/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Caen€2,954/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Calvados median€2,560/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€3,500/m²
825
Apartments
€2,880/m²
4,708
€13.83/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€11.26 to €16.98/m² a month)
8.1
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€12.68/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€25,510
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté urbaine Caen la Mer
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
90 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2021
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 2021. Per 10,000 residents, Caen counts 8.2 protected monuments, higher than both Calvados’ towns (6.4) and compared French towns (2.5). Among the classé monuments here is Ancienne abbaye aux Hommes. Its oldest listed monument dates from the 11th century.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
A young town: 24% of people in Caen are 15 to 24, more than in both Calvados’ towns and compared French towns
12% are under 15, below Calvados’ towns (16%) and compared French towns (17%) alike. The 65-and-over age group makes up 19% of residents. Degrees are held by 44% of adults.
33.7median age
CaenCalvados medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
24%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma18%
CAP or BEP18%
Baccalauréat16%
Higher education44%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 88 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Calvados 52.0%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Calvados median and France median: the median of compared communes
HealthHealth B−
Allowing for age and care homes, Caen sees 87 deaths per 100 expected, against 92 in Calvados’ towns and 88 in compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
France’s death rates at each age would predict 10,101 deaths in Caen from 2016 to 2025; there were 10,057, about as many. Life expectancy in Calvados: 85.5 years for women and 78.9 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3. Also worth knowing: 168 GPs practise here.
−13%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw100
Adjusted87
Median town88
Expected100
168
GPs in Caen · 5.5 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
1.1 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopital Prive St Martin Caen
1.2 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Universitaire Cote de Nacre
85.5 · 78.9
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Calvados, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Benoît Costil: Кирилл Венедиктов, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Youssef El-Arabi: Benoit-caen, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Pierre Kœnig: Unknown author Unknown author (Hulton Archive), Public domain · Léa Drucker: Gérald Garitan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · André Danjon: ESO, CC BY 4.0 · Charles Longuet: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
Caen’s neighbors
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Caen
Is Caen safe?
It grades D for safety, #41 of 46 in Calvados. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 261 burglaries and 1,196 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Caen good?
They grade C+, better than 36% of compared French towns and #29 of 50 in Calvados. 98% of 201 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Charles de Gaulle in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Caen expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,954/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns, so Caen grades D for cost of living.
About Caen
Commune in Calvados, Normandy
Caen is a commune of 109,400 people in the Communauté urbaine Caen la Mer. 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.
