Tesson has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents. Its weakest subject is walkability (C): 52% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 2% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. At the median price of €1,940/m², a 70 m² home costs 5.6 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes de Gémozac et de la Saintonge Viticole. Its strongest is health (B): after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 16% 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 Tesson stand out
The one thing Tesson does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Tesson 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 Tesson.
Work & commuteJobs & income C
Only 2.4% of commuters in Tesson go to work without a car, fewer than in Charente-Maritime’s towns and compared French towns
For its 500 residents in work, Tesson has 150 jobs: 0.3 each. 8.0% of the labour force were unemployed, below Charente-Maritime’s towns (11.0%) and compared French towns (10.1%) alike. No commute at all: 3.6% of working residents here at the census.
2%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving94%
On foot1%
Bicycle1%
Public transport1%
Motorbike or scooter0%
150
jobs based in Tesson, 0.3 per working resident
8.0%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€25,990
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
4%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
C
Walkability: better than 25% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
A typical mix of ages for France
26% of residents are 65 or over, between Charente-Maritime’s towns (36%) and compared French towns (22%). Aged 15 to 24: 8.4% of residents. Under-15s account for 14% of the population.
48.7median age
TessonCharente-Maritime medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
26%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma15%
CAP or BEP32%
Baccalauréat20%
Higher education26%
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About an even split. 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 B
Allowing for age and care homes, Tesson sees fewer deaths than Charente-Maritime’s towns or compared French towns: 84 per 100 expected
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
The nearest emergency department to Tesson is Ch de Saintonge Saintes, 7.9 mi away. From 2016 to 2025, 85 residents of Tesson died, against 101 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 16% fewer. Also worth knowing: life expectancy in Charente-Maritime: 85.5 years for women and 79.6 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3. There are 2 general practitioners here.
−16%deaths against expected, after care homesBHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw84
Adjusted84
Median town88
Expected100
2
GPs in Tesson · 4.9 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
7.9 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Ch de Saintonge Saintes
7.9 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Ch de Saintonge Saintes
85.5 · 79.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Charente-Maritime, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Behind the median of €1,940/m²: 47 houses and apartments sold in Tesson between July 2023 and June 2026. The estimated advertised rent is €11.78/m² a month, lower than both Charente-Maritime’s towns (€12.46/m²) and compared French towns (€12.41/m²). For a house, the estimated advertised rent is €8.90/m² a month.
€1,940/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Tesson€1,940/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Charente-Maritime median€3,369/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,940/m²
47
€11.78/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.35 to €14.85/m² a month)
5.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.90/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,450
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes de Gémozac et de la Saintonge Viticole
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Tesson
Is Tesson safe?
Tesson has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 5.2 recorded violent incidents and 7.1 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Is Tesson expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,940/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Tesson grades C+ for cost of living.
About Tesson
Commune in Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Tesson is a commune of 1,148 people in the Communauté de communes de Gémozac et de la Saintonge Viticole. 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
Population
1,148 (INSEE, census 2023)
Intercommunality
Communauté de communes de Gémozac et de la Saintonge Viticole
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.
