Easy on the wallet, harder on other counts. Buying a home costs less than in most towns: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 3.6 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. It also does well on walkability (A): 88% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 19% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Crime is the sore point (D): an average of 17.4 recorded violent incidents and 20.4 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Overall, that makes a B+, good for #19 of 21 in Deux-Sèvres. On that grade it does better than 68% of compared French towns.
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior).
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 Parthenay 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 Parthenay.
History
Parthenay is rich in protected monuments: 19 per 10,000 residents, more than in both Deux-Sèvres’ towns and compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Part of the town has been protected as a historic area since 1991. The protected list starts in the 10th century. Among the classé monuments in Parthenay is Restes de l'ancienne église Notre-Dame-de-la-Couldre. 14% of its homes were built before 1919, below Deux-Sèvres’ towns (16%) but above compared French towns (7.4%).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Crime per resident in Parthenay runs higher than in 94% of compared French towns
In all, 391 offenses reached the police record in Parthenay in 2025. No compared town in Deux-Sèvres has more graded crime per resident than Parthenay: it ranks last of 21. With 6,650 jobs for 3,550 working residents, Parthenay draws people in from neighbouring communes.
17.4recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage104
Family violence94
Other physical violence67
Sexual violence52
Vehicle theft30
Theft from vehicles27
Burglary17
Theft without violence89
Drug use76
Fraud43
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.
17.4
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
20.4
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
391
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.1%
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 armed robbery number five or fewer in a recent year, the figure is withheld, and the index uses the département’s average instead (0.1% 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 C−
Unemployment in Parthenay, 15.1%, runs above Deux-Sèvres’ towns and compared French towns
The median disposable income is €22,680 a year per consumption unit. 19.4% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, above Deux-Sèvres’ towns (7.5%) and compared French towns (13.4%) alike.
19%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving76%
On foot12%
Public transport4%
Bicycle3%
Motorbike or scooter2%
6,650
jobs based in Parthenay, 1.9 per working resident
15.1%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,680
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
3%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A
Walkability: better than 87% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living A−
A home in Parthenay sells for €1,212/m², less than in both Deux-Sèvres’ towns and compared French towns
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
A house in Parthenay goes for €1,292/m², an apartment for €1,010/m². The estimated advertised rent is €9.77/m² a month, close to Deux-Sèvres’ towns (€9.89/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). Houses accounted for 77% of sales, apartments for the rest.
€1,212/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Parthenay€1,212/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Deux-Sèvres median€1,508/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,292/m²
400
Apartments
€1,010/m²
122
€9.77/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.38 to €12.92/m² a month)
3.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.61/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,680
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes de Parthenay-Gâtine
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Older residents shape Parthenay: 31% are 65 or over, above Deux-Sèvres’ towns and compared French towns
Under-15s account for 14% of the population. The 15-to-24 age group: 11%, about level with compared French towns (11%) and above Deux-Sèvres’ towns (9.6%). Graduates make up just over a fifth of adults.
50median age
ParthenayDeux-Sèvres medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
31%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma30%
CAP or BEP25%
Baccalauréat15%
Higher education22%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 84 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Deux-Sèvres 51.4%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Deux-Sèvres median and France median: the median of compared communes
Schools
94.0% of candidates passed the brevet at the three collèges within 5 km, 5.7 points above the expected rate
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
On results, collèges and lycées here come #11 of 18 in Deux-Sèvres. At the general lycée, 97% of 208 candidates passed the bac, a point below the expected rate.
97%passed the bac (general and technological)A−School Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B+
Allowing for age and care homes, Parthenay sees fewer deaths than Deux-Sèvres’ towns or compared French towns: 81 per 100 expected
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 1,330 residents of Parthenay died, against 1,529 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 13% fewer. In Deux-Sèvres, women can expect to live 85.3 years and men 79.4 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. For a family doctor, residents of Parthenay can choose among 7 GPs.
−19%deaths against expected, after care homesB+Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw87
Adjusted81
Median town88
Expected100
7
GPs in Parthenay · 2.8 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
1.2 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Site hospitalier de Parthenay
14.6 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Site hospitalier Faye L Abbesse
85.3 · 79.4
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Deux-Sèvres, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Michel Hervé: Unknown, Public domain · Nelzir Allard: Auguste Lemoine / Pierson, Public domain · Henry Taudière: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
Parthenay’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 Parthenay
Is Parthenay safe?
It grades D for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 17 burglaries and 104 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Parthenay good?
They grade A−, better than 76% of compared French towns and #11 of 18 in Deux-Sèvres. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Parthenay expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Parthenay grades A− for cost of living.
About Parthenay
Commune in Deux-Sèvres, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Parthenay is a commune of 10,140 people in the Communauté de communes de Parthenay-Gâtine. 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.
