Is Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse a good place to live?
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse’s lowest grade is for schools (D): brevet results 6.7 points below the expected rate. Work and incomes are strong (B+): 1 job per working resident; 7.7% unemployment. Buying 70 m² at the median €2,379/m² takes 6.4 years of the median income per consumption unit in the Communauté d'agglomération Arche Agglo. Overall, that makes a C, good for #21 of 36 in Drôme. On that grade it does better than nearly a third of compared French towns.
Figures: employment, INSEE census 2023 · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · 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.
Each subject compares Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse 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.
The Culture ministry lists 3 historic monuments in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse: 3 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
The oldest protected part dates from the 12th century; the first monument here was protected in 1906.
12% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Wikidata records 2 people born in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse before 1900, the earliest Hippolyte Bajard, in 1793.
1906First protected: Chapelle dite Chapelle des Evêques
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse.
Schools
Schools around Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse do less well than those of 89% of compared French towns
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The brevet pass rate near Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse is 83.7%, close to Drôme’s towns (85.1%) and below compared French towns (87.5%). Its collèges and lycées rank #30 of 32 in Drôme on results. The nearest general lycée is 5.7 mi away.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C−
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse has a higher adjusted death rate than 77% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Life expectancy in Drôme: 85.7 years for women and 80.6 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3. Adjusted mortality in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse: 99 deaths for every 100 expected. 468 deaths here between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 397: 18% above.
−1%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw118
Adjusted99
Median town88
Expected100
7
GPs in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse · 2.9 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
5.8 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopitaux Drome Nord Romans Sur Isere
5.8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Hopitaux Drome Nord Romans Sur Isere
85.7 · 80.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Drôme, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse ranks above 62% of compared French towns for crime per resident
On average over 2023–2025, every 1,000 residents saw 8 violent offenses and 16.1 graded property crimes a year. For 2025, the figures show 118 offenses in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse. In 2025, criminal damage led the graded crimes here.
8recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearC+Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage35
Family violence23
Burglary23
Other physical violence18
Vehicle theft10
Theft from vehicles9
Fraud22
Theft without violence18
Drug use17
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.
8
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
16.1
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
118
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
2.8%
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 · Small counts of sexual violence and armed robbery go unpublished (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the département’s average stands in, 2.8% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
History
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse keeps more of its old housing than Drôme’s towns or compared French towns: 12% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Among the classé monuments in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse is Chapelle dite Chapelle des Evêques. Most of the list is churches, chapels and other religious buildings: 2 of 3.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HousingCost of living B
Estimated advertised rents run lower in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse than in Drôme’s towns or across compared French towns: €10.06/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Apartments in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse sell for €1,996/m², houses for €2,522/m². 121 sales of houses and apartments in the town, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €2,379/m². Of the homes sold, 75% were houses.
€2,379/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse€2,379/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Drôme median€2,388/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,522/m²
91
Apartments
€1,996/m²
30
€10.06/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.93 to €12.77/m² a month)
6.4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.26/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€26,220
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Arche Agglo
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income B+
Unemployment in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse, 7.7%, runs below Drôme’s towns and compared French towns
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse holds 1,850 jobs; 1,800 of its residents are in work, so 1 jobs each. No commute at all: 4.5% of working residents in the town at the census. Per consumption unit, the median disposable income is €26,020 a year.
11%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving84%
On foot7%
Public transport3%
Bicycle1%
Motorbike or scooter1%
1,850
jobs based in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse, 1 per working resident
7.7%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€26,020
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 58% 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
People 65 and over make up a quarter of the town, near Drôme’s towns (23%) and higher than compared French towns (22%). 17% of residents are children under 15. Typical age in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse: 46.5, the median.
46.5median age
Saint-Donat-sur-l'HerbasseDrôme medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
25%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma21%
CAP or BEP24%
Baccalauréat19%
Higher education30%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 90 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Drôme 51.8%, France 51.8%.
The Culture ministry lists 3 historic monuments in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse: 3 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse
Is Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse safe?
It grades C+ for safety, #16 of 36 in Drôme. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 23 burglaries and 35 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse good?
They grade D, better than 11% of compared French towns and #30 of 32 in Drôme. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse expensive to live in?
Prices are close to the median of compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,379/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse grades B for cost of living.
About Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse
Commune in Drôme, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Saint-Donat-sur-l'Herbasse is a commune of 4,193 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Arche Agglo. 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.
