Fouras grades D overall: better than 11% of compared French towns, and #38 of 44 in Charente-Maritime. Its weakest subject is cost of living (D): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 11.1 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Its strongest is jobs & income (B): 0.8 jobs per working resident; 11.4% unemployment.
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 Fouras 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 Fouras.
Who lives here
Children make up only 8.5% of Fouras, fewer than in Charente-Maritime’s towns and compared French towns
The 15-to-24 age group: 7.1%, about level with Charente-Maritime’s towns (7.6%) and below compared French towns (11%). 45% of residents are 65 or over. Among adults, 35% have a degree.
62.9median age
FourasCharente-Maritime medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
45%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma15%
CAP or BEP24%
Baccalauréat19%
Higher education35%
Women and men · all residents
55% women, 45% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 82 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Charente-Maritime 53.1%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Charente-Maritime median and France median: the median of compared communes
HousingCost of living D
Buying in Fouras costs more than in Charente-Maritime’s towns or across compared French towns: the median sale is €4,000/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The split in Fouras: €4,016/m² for houses, €3,811/m² for apartments. Advertised rents are estimated at €13.66/m² a month, above both Charente-Maritime’s towns (€12.46/m²) and compared French towns (€12.41/m²). Renting a house costs an estimated €11.53/m² a month.
€4,000/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Fouras€4,000/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Charente-Maritime median€3,369/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€4,016/m²
308
Apartments
€3,811/m²
59
€13.66/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€10.88 to €17.16/m² a month)
11.1
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€11.53/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€25,210
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Rochefort Océan
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
More protected monuments for its size in Fouras than in Charente-Maritime or compared French towns: 12 per 10,000 residents
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Protection here reaches back to the 15th century. Among the classé monuments in Fouras is Fort et citadelle. On the Culture ministry’s list, Fouras counts 5 historic monuments: 1 classé at the top level of protection and 4 inscrit at the second. The pre-1919 share of homes is 11%.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth C
Fouras has a higher adjusted death rate than 73% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
In Charente-Maritime, life expectancy at birth reaches 85.5 years for women and 79.6 for men (2025), next to 85.9 and 80.3 for France. Adjusted for age and care homes, Fouras records 97 deaths per 100 expected, higher than both Charente-Maritime’s towns (89) and compared French towns (88). 820 deaths in the town between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 753: 9% above.
−3%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw109
Adjusted97
Median town88
Expected100
4
GPs in Fouras · 2.5 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
6 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Rochefort
6 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Rochefort
85.5 · 79.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Charente-Maritime, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Per resident, Fouras sees more crime than 68% of compared French towns
In 2025, 88 offenses were recorded in Fouras. Graded property crimes ran at 19.6 per 1,000 residents a year, and violence against people at 6.2 (2023–2025 average). The commonest graded crime in the town was criminal damage (2025).
6.2recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearCSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage38
Family violence18
Burglary12
Other physical violence8
Vehicle theft7
Theft from vehicles5
Fraud33
Theft without violence30
Drug use14
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.
6.2
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
19.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
88
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
3.7%
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 · For sexual violence and 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, 3.7% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Work & commuteJobs & income B
Fouras is better off than Charente-Maritime’s towns or compared French towns: the median disposable income is €29,100 a year per consumption unit
At the census, 7.3% of working residents in Fouras didn’t travel to work at all. Unemployment stood at 11.4%, about level with Charente-Maritime’s towns (11.0%) and above compared French towns (10.1%). 10.5% of commuters left the car at home at the census, walking, cycling or taking public transport.
10%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving81%
On foot5%
Bicycle3%
Public transport3%
Motorbike or scooter1%
950
jobs based in Fouras, 0.8 per working resident
11.4%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€29,100
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
7%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B
Walkability: better than 58% of compared French towns
Fort Lapointe ou fort Vasou: Photo: Patrick Despoix · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Redoute dite Fort de l'Aiguille: Photo: Patrick Despoix · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort d'Enet: Photo: Rémih · CC BY-SA 4.0
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Fouras
Is Fouras safe?
It grades C for safety, #25 of 44 in Charente-Maritime. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 12 burglaries and 38 acts of criminal damage.
Is Fouras expensive to live in?
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Fouras grades D for cost of living.
About Fouras
Commune in Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Fouras is a commune of 4,148 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Rochefort Océan. 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.
