Blaye grades D− overall: better than 2% of compared French towns, and #98 of 100 in Gironde. Its weakest subject is safety (D−): an average of 18.3 recorded violent incidents and 23.2 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At the median price of €1,679/m², a 70 m² home costs 4.8 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes de Blaye. Its strongest is walkability (A−): 76% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 20% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work.
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 Blaye 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 Blaye.
Safety
Recorded crime per resident is higher in Blaye than in 96% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie figures for Blaye show 237 offenses in 2025. With 3,350 jobs for 1,800 working residents, Blaye draws people in from neighbouring communes. Among the graded crimes locally, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
18.3recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage78
Other physical violence42
Family violence41
Sexual violence27
Vehicle theft26
Burglary13
Theft from vehicles10
Theft without violence58
Fraud56
Drug use27
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.
18.3
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
23.2
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
237
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.4%
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, 0.4% 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.
Schools
84.0% of candidates passed the brevet at the two collèges within 5 km, 4.9 points below the expected rate
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Near Blaye, 88.0% of lycée candidates passed the bac, below Gironde’s towns (93.5%) and compared French towns (92.9%) alike. Ranked by results, schools here are #82 of 93 in Gironde.
89%passed the bac (general and technological)DSchool Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
Unemployment in Blaye, 16.7%, runs above Gironde’s towns and compared French towns
Half of residents lived on more than €21,820 a year per consumption unit, below Gironde’s towns (€27,420) and compared French towns (€25,970) alike. No commute at all: 5.9% of working residents in Blaye at the census.
20%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving73%
On foot12%
Public transport6%
Bicycle2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
3,350
jobs based in Blaye, 1.8 per working resident
16.7%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€21,820
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
6%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A−
Walkability: better than 85% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C
Blaye has a higher adjusted death rate than 73% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Ages and care homes taken into account, deaths in Blaye come to 97 per 100 predicted. From 2016 to 2025, 951 residents of Blaye died, against 694 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 37% more. In Gironde, women can expect to live 86.4 years and men 81.3 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. There are 5 general practitioners here.
−3%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw137
Adjusted97
Median town88
Expected100
5
GPs in Blaye · 2.6 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de la Haute Gironde
0.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de la Haute Gironde
86.4 · 81.3
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Gironde, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
A house in Blaye goes for €1,687/m², an apartment for €1,660/m². 195 sales of houses and apartments in the town, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €1,679/m². Also worth knowing: from July 2023 to June 2026, 195 homes were sold locally.
€1,679/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Blaye€1,679/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Gironde median€3,176/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,687/m²
124
Apartments
€1,660/m²
71
€13.08/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€10.52 to €16.26/m² a month)
4.8
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.96/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,250
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes de Blaye
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
Blaye keeps more of its old housing than Gironde’s towns or compared French towns: 17% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
A protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable) has covered part of the town since 2017. Its oldest listed monument dates from the 11th century. Among the classé monuments in Blaye is Citadelle de Blaye.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Who lives here
Children make up only 15% of Blaye, fewer than in Gironde’s towns and compared French towns
Degrees are held by 27% of adults, below both Gironde’s towns (34%) and compared French towns (30%). Young adults of 15 to 24 account for 11% of the town. In addition, the 65-and-over age group makes up a quarter of residents.
45.8median age
BlayeGironde medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
25%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma20%
CAP or BEP29%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education27%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 91 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Gironde 51.8%, France 51.8%.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Blaye
Is Blaye safe?
It grades D− for safety, #88 of 100 in Gironde. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 13 burglaries and 78 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Blaye good?
They grade D, better than 9% of compared French towns and #82 of 93 in Gironde. 89% of 328 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Jaufré Rudel in 2025, 4 points below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Blaye expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,679/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Estimated advertised apartment rents are €13.08/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Blaye grades C+ for cost of living.
About Blaye
Commune in Gironde, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Blaye is a commune of 5,066 people in the Communauté de communes de Blaye. 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.
