An even record, with no subject far from the norm. Health outcomes fall short of most towns: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 3% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Safety is weaker too — an average of 11.4 recorded violent incidents and 15.1 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At €1,976/m², the median price, 70 m² costs 5.6 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the Communauté de communes Sarlat-Périgord Noir. Walkability is its strong suit: 64% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 17% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. The overall grade comes out at C, #25 of 27 in Dordogne. Set against the rest, it does better than nearly a third of compared French towns.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior) · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
How Sarlat-la-Canéda grades
Each subject compares Sarlat-la-Canéda 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.
Chapelle des Pénitents Blancs · Classé · Photo: MOSSOT · CC BY 3.0
Sarlat-la-Canéda’s story
Sarlat-la-Canéda in pictures
The Culture ministry lists 74 historic monuments in Sarlat-la-Canéda: 19 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 54 inscrit (the second level).
That’s 84 for every 10,000 residents, more per resident than almost every compared French town; the median compared French town has 2.5.
The oldest protected part dates from the 12th century, and the first monument here was protected in 1840, on France’s very first list.
Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 1964.
The Culture ministry lists 74 historic monuments in Sarlat-la-Canéda: 19 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 54 inscrit (the second level).
Ancienne cathédrale Saint-Sacerdos: Photo: Gilbert Bochenek · Public domain · Chapelle des Pénitents Bleus ou chapelle Saint-Benoît: Photo: MOSSOT · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cimetière Saint-Benoît, enfeux et chapelle sépulcrale: Photo: K.Weise · Public domain · Église Notre-Dame de Temniac: Photo: MOSSOT · CC BY 3.0
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Sarlat-la-Canéda.
History
A secteur sauvegardé since 1964, and 74 historic monuments
74historic monuments
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Its heritage reaches back to the 12th century. A protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable) has covered part of the town since 1964. Scaled to its population, that is 84 protected monuments for every 10,000 people in Sarlat-la-Canéda. Among the classé monuments in the town is Ancienne cathédrale Saint-Sacerdos.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Who lives here
Children make up only 11% of Sarlat-la-Canéda, fewer than in Dordogne’s towns and across compared French towns
55median age
Young adults of 15 to 24 account for nearly a tenth of the town. People 65 and over make up just over a third of the town, close to Dordogne’s towns (33%) and above compared French towns (22%). The middle age in Sarlat-la-Canéda is 55.
Sarlat-la-CanédaDordogne medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
34%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma23%
CAP or BEP25%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education26%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 87 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Dordogne 52.7%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Dordogne median and France median: the median of compared communes
HealthHealth C
Sarlat-la-Canéda has a higher adjusted death rate than 74% of compared French towns
−3%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
France’s death rates at each age would predict 1,272 deaths in Sarlat-la-Canéda from 2016 to 2025; there were 1,335, 5% more. Adjusted for age and care homes, Sarlat-la-Canéda records 97 deaths per 100 expected, higher than both Dordogne’s towns (88) and compared French towns (88). For a family doctor, residents of Sarlat-la-Canéda can choose among 7 GPs. In Dordogne, women can expect to live 85.2 years and men 79.6 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France.
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw105
Adjusted97
Median town88
Expected100
7
GPs in Sarlat-la-Canéda · 4.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Sarlat
24.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Dubois Brive
85.2 · 79.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Dordogne, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
More crime per resident in Sarlat-la-Canéda than in 71% of compared French towns
11.4recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearCSafety Grade
With 6,950 jobs for 3,150 working residents, Sarlat-la-Canéda draws people in from neighbouring communes. 2025 saw 275 offenses recorded in the town. Among the graded crimes locally, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage90
Family violence46
Other physical violence42
Sexual violence31
Theft from vehicles31
Burglary27
Vehicle theft8
Drug use69
Theft without violence58
Fraud50
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.
11.4
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
15.1
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
275
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.3%
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 armed robbery, 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, 0.3% of the index here. 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.
Work & commuteJobs & income C+
More people in Sarlat-la-Canéda are out of work than in Dordogne’s towns or across compared French towns: 14.0%
17%walk, cycle or take transit
16.6% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, higher than both Dordogne’s towns (11.4%) and compared French towns (13.4%). The median disposable income is €23,940 a year per consumption unit.
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving74%
On foot11%
Public transport3%
Bicycle3%
Motorbike or scooter2%
6,950
jobs based in Sarlat-la-Canéda, 2.2 per working resident
14.0%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€23,940
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
7%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B
Walkability: better than 64% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Schools
86.8% of candidates passed the brevet at the two collèges within 5 km, 2.5 points below the expected rate
98%passed the bac (general and technological)BSchool Grade
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Sarlat-la-Canéda is 94.9%, about level with Dordogne’s towns (94.1%) and above compared French towns (92.9%). The town’s schools place #7 of 27 in Dordogne on results. At the general lycée, 98% of 256 candidates passed the bac, a point above the expected rate.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living B−
Sarlat-la-Canéda earns a B− for cost of living
€1,976/m²median sale price
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Sarlat-la-Canéda is the most expensive of the 29 towns in Dordogne: its median sale is €1,976/m². Behind the median of €1,976/m²: 486 houses and apartments sold in the town between July 2023 and June 2026. Houses in Sarlat-la-Canéda sell for €2,188/m² and apartments for €1,829/m². Advertised rents are estimated at €11.17/m² a month, above Dordogne’s towns (€10.18/m²) but below compared French towns (€12.41/m²).
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Sarlat-la-Canéda€1,976/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Dordogne median€1,680/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,188/m²
289
Apartments
€1,829/m²
197
€11.17/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.14 to €13.64/m² a month)
5.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€10.76/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,700
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Sarlat-Périgord Noir
Étienne de La Boétie: Tommy-Boy, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Elisa Shua Dusapin: Chick19092017, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jean-Pierre Bouchard: Photo Claude TRUONG-NGOC, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sébastien Peytavie: Loan Cannard, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jean Pierre Rossignol: Unknown photographer Unknown photographer, Public domain
About Sarlat-la-Canéda
Commune in Dordogne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Sarlat-la-Canéda is a commune of 8,763 people in the Communauté de communes Sarlat-Périgord Noir. 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
8,763 (INSEE, census 2023)
Intercommunality
Communauté de communes Sarlat-Périgord Noir
Département
Dordogne (24)
Région
Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Area
18.7 sq mi (48.5 km²)
INSEE code
24520
Sarlat-la-Canéda’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 Sarlat-la-Canéda
Is Sarlat-la-Canéda safe?
It grades C for safety, #22 of 27 in Dordogne. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 27 burglaries and 90 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Sarlat-la-Canéda good?
They grade B, better than 59% of compared French towns and #7 of 27 in Dordogne. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Sarlat-la-Canéda expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,976/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Sarlat-la-Canéda grades B− for cost of living.
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.
