Saint-Martin-de-Ré’s standout strength is schools: brevet results a point above the expected rate. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here: 98% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 30% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Safety is its weak spot: an average of 25 recorded violent incidents and 17.9 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Prices are high against local incomes: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 16.3 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
Figures: brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior) · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi. Saint-Martin-de-Ré 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 Saint-Martin-de-Ré 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.
Hazard riskNot graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas–
How TownRatings grades French towns →
Ancienne abbaye, dénommée aussi ancien château des Seigneurs de Rhé ou ancien hôtel de Clerjotte · Classé · Photo: Llann Wé² · CC BY-SA 3.0
Saint-Martin-de-Ré’s story
Saint-Martin-de-Ré in pictures
The Culture ministry lists 8 historic monuments in Saint-Martin-de-Ré: 4 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 4 inscrit (the second level).
The oldest protected part dates from the 15th century; the first monument here was protected in 1903.
Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 1988.
16% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
1903First protected: Église Saint-Martin dite Le Grand Fort
1988The protected historic area is created
2002Most recently protected: Maison à pan-de-bois dite de la Vinatrie
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Martin-de-Ré.
Safety
For crime per resident, Saint-Martin-de-Ré sits above 97% of compared French towns
In all, 138 offenses reached the police record in Saint-Martin-de-Ré in 2025. With 1,850 jobs for 700 working residents, Saint-Martin-de-Ré draws people in from neighbouring communes. The graded crime recorded most locally was other physical violence (2025).
25recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Other physical violence70
Criminal damage53
Sexual violence9
Family violence6
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence47
Drug use25
Fraud23
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.
25
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
17.9
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
138
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
6.1%
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 · When 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 (6.1% of the index here). The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses. Crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its residents, so a town that draws people in from around can look higher.
Work & commuteJobs & income B+
A walkable place: Saint-Martin-de-Ré beats 92% of compared French towns on foot
Unemployment stood at 11.8%, above Charente-Maritime’s towns (11.0%) and compared French towns (10.1%) alike. No commute at all: 7.5% of working residents in Saint-Martin-de-Ré at the census. Per consumption unit, the median disposable income is €26,510 a year.
30%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving59%
On foot20%
Bicycle9%
Motorbike or scooter3%
Public transport1%
1,850
jobs based in Saint-Martin-de-Ré, 2.6 per working resident
11.8%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€26,510
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 92% of compared French towns
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living C−
Buying in Saint-Martin-de-Ré costs more than in Charente-Maritime’s towns or across compared French towns: the median sale is €7,018/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
A house in Saint-Martin-de-Ré goes for €7,533/m², an apartment for €6,578/m². Advertised rents are estimated at €13.95/m² a month, above both Charente-Maritime’s towns (€12.46/m²) and compared French towns (€12.41/m²). Houses made up 64% of the homes sold; apartments the rest.
€7,018/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Saint-Martin-de-Ré€7,018/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Charente-Maritime median€3,369/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€7,533/m²
87
Apartments
€6,578/m²
50
€13.95/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€10.39 to €18.74/m² a month)
16.3
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€11.72/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€30,190
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes de l'Île de Ré
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Children make up only 8.1% of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, fewer than in Charente-Maritime’s towns and compared French towns
Degrees are held by nearly a quarter of adults. People aged 15 to 24 make up 6.5% of the town, below both Charente-Maritime’s towns (7.6%) and compared French towns (11%). The 65-and-over age group makes up 33% of residents.
53.8median age
Saint-Martin-de-RéCharente-Maritime medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
33%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma28%
CAP or BEP22%
Baccalauréat20%
Higher education23%
Women and men · all residents
46% women, 54% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 116 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Charente-Maritime 53.1%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Charente-Maritime median and France median: the median of compared communes
HealthHealth C
More deaths than expected: Saint-Martin-de-Ré is above 69% of compared French towns once ages and care homes are allowed for
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
561 deaths in Saint-Martin-de-Ré between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 403: 39% above. Adjusted mortality in the town: 95 deaths for every 100 expected. The nearest emergency department to Saint-Martin-de-Ré is Hopital Saint Louis la Rochelle, 10.8 mi away. This Charente-Maritime town has 3 family doctors.
−5%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw139
Adjusted95
Median town88
Expected100
3
GPs in Saint-Martin-de-Ré · 4.8 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
10.8 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopital Saint Louis la Rochelle
10.8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Hopital Saint Louis la Rochelle
85.5 · 79.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Charente-Maritime, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
More protected monuments for its size in Saint-Martin-de-Ré than in Charente-Maritime or compared French towns: 34 per 10,000 residents
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Homes built before 1919 account for 16% of the housing. Among the classé monuments in Saint-Martin-de-Ré is Église Saint-Martin dite Le Grand Fort. The Culture ministry lists 8 historic monuments locally: 4 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 4 inscrit (the second level). Since 1988, part of the town has been a site patrimonial remarquable, a protected historic area.
The Culture ministry lists 8 historic monuments in Saint-Martin-de-Ré: 4 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 4 inscrit (the second level).
Église Saint-Martin dite Le Grand Fort: Photo: Chris06 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Citadelle et fortifications: Photo: Celeda · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hôpital Saint-Honoré: Photo: daop5510 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Maison à pan-de-bois dite de la Vinatrie: Photo: Patrick Despoix · CC BY-SA 4.0
Famous people from Saint-Martin-de-Ré
11 notable people were born in Saint-Martin-de-Ré.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Saint-Martin-de-Ré
Are schools in Saint-Martin-de-Ré good?
They grade A−, better than 85% of compared French towns. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Saint-Martin-de-Ré expensive to live in?
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Martin-de-Ré grades C− for cost of living.
About Saint-Martin-de-Ré
Commune in Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Saint-Martin-de-Ré is a commune of 2,355 people in the Communauté de communes de l'Île de Ré. 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.
