Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,437 in Essonne, Île-de-France.
Saclay grades A overall: better than 88% of compared French towns, and #4 of 91 in Essonne. Its weakest subject is cost of living (D−): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 10.7 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Its strongest is jobs & income (A+): 3.2 jobs per working resident; 5.9% unemployment.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
The 3 things Saclay does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Saclay 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.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry lists 1 historic monument in Saclay: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
The oldest protected part dates from the 17th century; the first monument here was protected in 1912.
2.1% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Heritage, museums and other places to visit in and near Saclay. Best known first.
MuseumMusée français de la photographie4.6 km northeast, in Bièvres
MuseumMusée de la toile de Jouy3.4 km northwest, in Jouy-en-Josas
ChâteauChâteau de Jouy-en-Josas2.4 km north, in Jouy-en-Josas
MuseumMaison de Léon et Jeanne Blum3.1 km north, in Jouy-en-Josas
MuseumMusée de l'outil3.7 km northeast, in BièvresPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saclay.
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Saclay sits below both Essonne’s towns (79) and compared French towns (88) on this measure. From 2016 to 2025, 258 residents of Saclay died, against 352 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 27% fewer. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
Source: INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025; DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 · Licence Ouverte
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
That puts Saclay above both Essonne’s towns (€3,237/m²) and compared French towns (€2,430/m²). Saclay is the second most expensive of the 96 towns in Essonne, at €4,707/m². In Saclay, houses go for €4,706/m² and apartments for €4,771/m².
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €4,706/m² | 72 |
| Apartments | €4,771/m² | 33 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
On this, Saclay is above both Essonne’s towns (€29,720) and compared French towns (€25,970). Unemployment stands at 5.9%.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
In the comparison, Saclay comes above both Essonne’s towns (39%) and compared French towns (30%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 14% of the population.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Essonne 51.3%, France 51.8%.
| Saclay | Essonne median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 21% | 20% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 14% | 12% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 25% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 16% | 16% | 22% |
| No diploma | 11% | 15% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 14% | 20% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 15% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 58% | 39% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Essonne median and France median: the median of compared communes
Police and gendarmerie recorded 81 offenses in the graded categories in Saclay in 2025. For other physical violence and sexual violence, 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, 13.9% of the index here. Because that share is over 10%, this Safety Grade is less sure than most. With 6,550 jobs for 2,100 working residents, Saclay draws people from neighboring communes, and crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its number of residents.
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.
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 1 historic monument in Saclay: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level). 2.1% 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
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Near Saclay, 100.0% of lycée candidates passed the bac, above both Essonne’s towns (91.1%) and compared French towns (92.9%).
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Émile ZolaNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 199 | 83%−10 pts |
| Lycée international Palaiseau Paris-SaclayNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 255 | 100%±0 pts |
| Collège Alain FournierBest against expectations: a point above the expected rateCollège | Collège | 145 | 96%+1 pt |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Saclay has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
Pavillon de l'Etang: Photo: Lionel Allorge · CC BY-SA 3.0
Wikidata has nobody with a French article born in Saclay yet.
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saclay | 4,437 | — | A | D− | B+ | A+ |
| Jouy-en-Josas Yvelines | 7,981 | 1.7 | B+ | D | B | A− |
| Bièvres | 4,686 | 2.1 | B− | D | C+ | A |
| Igny | 10,833 | 2.4 | B− | D− | C+ | A |
| Vélizy-Villacoublay Yvelines | 23,011 | 3 | B− | D | C− | A− |
| Buc Yvelines | 5,816 | 3.2 | A | D | B+ | A+ |
| Orsay | 16,498 | 3.3 | B | D | C | A |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
It grades B+ for safety, #10 of 91 in Essonne. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 20 burglaries and 32 acts of criminal damage.
They grade B−, better than 55% of compared French towns and #9 of 94 in Essonne. 100% of 255 candidates passed the bac at Lycée international Palaiseau Paris-Saclay in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €18.44/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saclay grades D− for cost of living.
Commune in Essonne, Île-de-France
Saclay is a commune of 4,437 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Communauté Paris-Saclay. 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
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, employment, commuting) · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (income per consumption unit, poverty) · DGFiP, DVF property sales, July 2023 to June 2026 · Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025 · SSMSI, recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Ministry of Education (DEPP), brevet and bac results and value-added indicators, 2025 · INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses 2012–2023; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025 (care homes, emergency and maternity units, GPs, pharmacies); DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 (provisional) · INSEE, BPE 2025 and Filosofi 200 m grid (walking distances) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking French towns against each other only, updated October 30, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
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.