Basse-Terre’s weakest is safety (D−): an average of 22.3 recorded violent incidents and 28 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. It lags on health as well — after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 4% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Schools lag: bac results 2.3 points above the expected rate; brevet results 1.4 points below the expected rate.
Figures: recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior) · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education. Basse-Terre has no overall grade because cost of living and walkability aren’t graded here.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Basse-Terre 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 Basse-Terre.
Safety
Crime per resident in Basse-Terre runs higher than in 99% of compared French towns
Basse-Terre comes 25th of the 26 compared towns in Guadeloupe on the Safety Grade. Over 2025, Basse-Terre logged 474 recorded offenses. It has 8,750 jobs for 2,600 working residents, so people come in from nearby communes to work. Of the graded crimes here, criminal damage came up most often (2025).
22.3recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage131
Other physical violence109
Theft from vehicles82
Family violence64
Burglary47
Sexual violence33
Armed robbery8
Drug use125
Theft without violence84
Fraud40
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.
22.3
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
28
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
474
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SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte · Small counts of vehicle theft go unpublished (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the département’s average stands in, 0.3% of the index here.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.
History
Basse-Terre is rich in protected monuments: 20 per 10,000 residents, more than compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The pre-1919 share of homes is 2.5%. On the Culture ministry’s list, Basse-Terre counts 19 historic monuments: 7 classé at the top level of protection and 11 inscrit at the second. Among the classé monuments here is Fort Saint-Charles, Fort Richepance ou Fort Delgrès, puis laboratoire de vulcanologie. The oldest protected building goes back to the 17th century.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth C
More deaths than expected: Basse-Terre is above 71% of compared French towns once ages and care homes are allowed for
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
After the care-home adjustment, Basse-Terre’s deaths ran at 96 per 100 expected, higher than compared French towns (88). France’s death rates at each age would predict 1,089 deaths locally from 2016 to 2025; there were 1,106, 2% more. At birth, a girl in Guadeloupe can expect 84.7 years and a boy 78.1 (2025); across France, 85.9 and 80.3. 24 GPs practise here.
−4%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw102
Adjusted96
Median town88
Expected100
24
GPs in Basse-Terre · 4 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.5 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de la Basse Terre
0.5 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de la Basse Terre
84.7 · 78.1
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Guadeloupe, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Fewer pupils pass the brevet at the collèges near Basse-Terre than in compared French towns: 79.1%
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
At the 3 vocational lycées within 5 km, 84% of 252 candidates passed the bac pro. The bac pass rate near Basse-Terre is 90.3%, lower than compared French towns (92.9%). Results rank its schools #18 of 25 in Guadeloupe.
93%passed the bac (general and technological)CSchool Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Fewer people in Basse-Terre hold a degree than in compared French towns: 16%
People aged 15 to 24 are 13% of the population. Just over a quarter of residents are 65 or over, higher than compared French towns (22%). The age that splits Basse-Terre in two is 48.4.
48.4median age
Basse-TerreFrance median
Ages · share of residents
13%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma37%
CAP or BEP22%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education16%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 84 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: France 51.8%.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Housing
A typical home in Basse-Terre sells for €1,318/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Apartments in Basse-Terre sell for €1,137/m², houses for €1,392/m². This Guadeloupe town is the second cheapest of the 21 towns in Guadeloupe, at €1,318/m². Estimated advertised rent for houses: €11.61/m² a month.
€1,318/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Basse-Terre€1,318/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,392/m²
54
Apartments
€1,137/m²
36
€12.45/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.07 to €17.09/m² a month)
€11.61/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
Fort Saint-Charles, Fort Richepance ou Fort Delgrès, puis laboratoire de vulcanologie: Photo: LPLT · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ancienne caserne d'artillerie dite l'Arsenal: Photo: Aristoi · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Maison Coquille ou maison Turlet: Photo: Aristoi · CC BY-SA 3.0
Lenny Nangis: Steindy 22:56, 13 June 2013 (UTC), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Daryl Bultor: DarDarCH, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jean-Pierre Cyprien: Sławek, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Marc Michel: Armando Nannuzzi, Luigi Comencini / Ultra films, Tecisa., Public domain · Rony Martias: YellowMonkey/Blnguyen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vincent Marcel: Biser Todorov, CC BY 4.0
Basse-Terre’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 Basse-Terre
Is Basse-Terre safe?
It grades D− for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 47 burglaries and 131 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Basse-Terre good?
They grade C, better than 32% of compared French towns and #18 of 25 in Guadeloupe. The lycée stands out: 94% of 323 candidates passed the bac at Lycée général et technologique Gerville Réache in 2025, a point above the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
About Basse-Terre
Commune in Guadeloupe
Basse-Terre is a commune of 9,417 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Grand Sud Caraïbe. 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.
