La Souterraine grades C+ overall: better than 43% of compared French towns. Its strongest is cost of living (A): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 3.6 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. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
Each subject compares La Souterraine 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 La Souterraine.
History
7 historic monuments, the oldest from prehistory
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 7 historic monuments in La Souterraine: 4 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 2 inscrit (the second level). 12% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HousingCost of living A
The median sale price of homes in La Souterraine is €1,178/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
That is the middle of 178 sales of houses and apartments in La Souterraine from July 2023 to June 2026, against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns and €1,137/m² for the median of compared towns in Creuse.
€1,178/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
La Souterraine€1,178/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Creuse median€1,137/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,236/m²
149
€8.86/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€6.92 to €11.34/m² a month)
3.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.65/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,130
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes du Pays Sostranien
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
La Souterraine skews young, with 14% of residents aged 15 to 24, more than Creuse’s towns or compared French towns
For La Souterraine, that is above both Creuse’s towns (11%) and compared French towns (11%). Over-65s are 33% of the population.
51.4median age
La SouterraineCreuse medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
33%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma27%
CAP or BEP28%
Baccalauréat16%
Higher education22%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 90 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Creuse 52.8%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Creuse median and France median: the median of compared communes
Safety
La Souterraine records more crime per resident than 79% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 168 offenses in the graded categories in La Souterraine in 2025. Violence against people ran at 10.7 per 1,000 residents a year and the graded property crimes at 18.6 (2023–2025 average). For armed robbery 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, 0.6% of the index here.
10.7recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearC−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage83
Burglary25
Other physical violence22
Family violence21
Vehicle theft9
Sexual violence8
Theft without violence37
Fraud36
Drug use15
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.
10.7
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
18.6
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
168
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.6%
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
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More people in La Souterraine are out of work than in Creuse’s towns or across compared French towns: 19.5%
La Souterraine sits above both Creuse’s towns (15.4%) and compared French towns (10.1%) on this measure. La Souterraine has 3,100 jobs for 1,550 working residents, 2 per worker. The median disposable income is €22,100 a year per consumption unit.
19%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving74%
On foot14%
Public transport3%
Motorbike or scooter2%
Bicycle2%
3,100
jobs based in La Souterraine, 2 per working resident
19.5%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,100
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A−
Walkability: better than 78% of compared French towns
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B−
La Souterraine is 19 mi from the nearest emergency department
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
9 GPs practise in La Souterraine. Adjusted for age and care homes, La Souterraine records 86 deaths per 100 expected, below Creuse’s towns (97) and close to compared French towns (88). The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−14%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw98
Adjusted86
Median town88
Expected100
9
GPs in La Souterraine · 4.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
19 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Gueret
19 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de Gueret
84.6 · 77.5
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Creuse, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Ancien château de Bridiers: Photo: GoMarie · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Porte de ville dite Porte Saint-Jean (avec la courtine adjacente): Photo: Jochen Jahnke 17:45, 8. Jan. 2010 (CET) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lanterne des Morts: Photo: JPTR2 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Paul Sauvage: André Cros, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jacques Mestadier: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Jean-Baptiste Alexandre Montaudon: Appert, Public domain
La Souterraine’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 La Souterraine
Is La Souterraine safe?
It grades C− for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 25 burglaries and 83 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in La Souterraine good?
They grade C, better than 26% of compared French towns. 96% of 91 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Raymond Loewy in 2025, a point below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is La Souterraine expensive to live in?
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €8.86/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so La Souterraine grades A for cost of living.
About La Souterraine
Commune in Creuse, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
La Souterraine is a commune of 4,978 people in the Communauté de communes du Pays Sostranien. 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.
