Chalais has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents. Its strongest is cost of living (A): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 3.4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Chalais 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 Chalais.
Who lives here
An older town: 38% of people in Chalais are 65 or over, more than in Charente’s towns or compared French towns
13% of adults hold a degree. Children under 15 make up 11%, lower than both Charente’s towns (15%) and compared French towns (17%). Those aged 15 to 24 account for 9% of residents.
55.9median age
ChalaisCharente medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
38%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma33%
CAP or BEP29%
Baccalauréat16%
Higher education13%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 89 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Charente 52.4%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Charente median and France median: the median of compared communes
HousingCost of living A
Homes in Chalais cost less than in Charente’s towns or across compared French towns, with a median sale of €1,127/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The estimated advertised rent is €8.87/m² a month, below both Charente’s towns (€10.82/m²) and compared French towns (€12.41/m²). A house rents for an estimated €8.02/m² a month. Between July 2023 and June 2026, buyers took 90 homes in Chalais.
€1,127/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Chalais€1,127/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Charente median€1,635/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,127/m²
90
€8.87/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.17 to €10.97/m² a month)
3.4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.02/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,220
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Lavalette Tude Dronne
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More people in Chalais are out of work than in Charente’s towns or across compared French towns: 16.5%
Half of residents lived on more than €20,580 a year per consumption unit, lower than both Charente’s towns (€24,645) and compared French towns (€25,970). The census found 15.3% of commuters going to work on foot, by bike or by public transport.
15%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving76%
On foot7%
Public transport7%
Motorbike or scooter3%
Bicycle1%
950
jobs based in Chalais, 1.7 per working resident
16.5%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€20,580
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B+
Walkability: better than 74% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
3 historic monuments in Chalais, 2 classé
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Among the classé monuments in Chalais is Église Saint-Martial. The oldest protected building goes back to the 10th century. On the Culture ministry’s list, Chalais counts 3 historic monuments: 2 classé at the top level of protection and 1 inscrit at the second. Also worth knowing: homes from before 1919 make up 14% of the total.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Crime per resident in Chalais is lower than in 54% of compared French towns
With 950 jobs for 550 working residents, Chalais draws people in from neighbouring communes. 33 offenses were reported in Chalais during 2025. On average over 2023–2025, every 1,000 residents saw 9 violent offenses and 11.6 graded property crimes a year. Of the graded crimes in the town, criminal damage came up most often (2025).
9recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearB−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage19
Other physical violence7
Sexual violence7
Armed robbery0
Fraud14
Theft without violence6
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.
9
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
11.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
33
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
15.8%
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 family violence, burglary, vehicle theft and theft from vehicles, 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, 15.8% of the index here. Because that share is over 10%, this Safety Grade is less sure than most. 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. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
HealthHealth B−
Chalais is 16.3 mi from the nearest emergency department
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
2 GPs practise in Chalais. Its care home for older people (91 places) counts its residents as Chalais’; allowing for it, deaths were 12% below expected. France’s death rates at each age would predict 396 deaths locally from 2016 to 2025; there were 441, 11% more. Average lifespans in Charente: 85.7 years for women, 79 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 nationally.
−12%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw111
Adjusted88
Median town88
Expected100
2
GPs in Chalais · 3.4 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
16.3 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Ch Hopitaux Sud Charente
25.3 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier D Angouleme
85.7 · 79
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Charente, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Chalais
Is Chalais expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Chalais grades A for cost of living.
About Chalais
Commune in Charente, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Chalais is a commune of 1,812 people in the Communauté de communes Lavalette Tude Dronne. 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.
