Gray grades C− overall: better than 23% of compared French towns, and #9 of 11 in Haute-Saône. Its weakest subject is safety (D−): an average of 25.1 recorded violent incidents and 18.8 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 €1,063/m², a 70 m² home costs 3.1 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes Val de Gray. Its strongest is walkability (A+): 100% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 25% 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 Gray 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 Gray.
History
Gray is rich in protected monuments: 43 per 10,000 residents, more than Haute-Saône’s towns or compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
That puts Gray above both Haute-Saône’s towns (10) and compared French towns (2.5). Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 1996. The Culture ministry lists 23 historic monuments in Gray: 7 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 16 inscrit (the second level).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Crime per resident in Gray runs higher than in 97% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 256 offenses in the graded categories in Gray in 2025. Gray comes 10th of the 11 compared towns in Haute-Saône on the Safety Grade. With 4,150 jobs for 1,750 working residents, Gray draws people from neighboring communes, and crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its number of residents.
25.1recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage70
Other physical violence63
Family violence53
Sexual violence37
Theft from vehicles14
Vehicle theft13
Burglary6
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence50
Fraud38
Drug use33
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.
25.1
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
18.8
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
256
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.2%
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
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
Gray is easier to get around on foot than 96% of compared French towns
25.3% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, above both Haute-Saône’s towns (11.3%) and compared French towns (13.4%). The median disposable income is €19,830 a year per consumption unit.
25%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving68%
On foot19%
Bicycle3%
Public transport3%
Motorbike or scooter2%
4,150
jobs based in Gray, 2.3 per working resident
15.2%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€19,830
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
4%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A+
Walkability: better than 96% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living A
Gray gets an A for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The median sale price was €1,063/m², close to Haute-Saône’s towns (€1,108/m²) and below compared French towns (€2,430/m²). In Gray, houses go for €1,224/m² and apartments for €1,041/m².
€1,063/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Gray€1,063/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Haute-Saône median€1,108/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,224/m²
71
Apartments
€1,041/m²
78
€8.86/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.09 to €11.06/m² a month)
3.1
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.58/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,170
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Val de Gray
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C
Gray’s death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 73% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Gray records 97 deaths per 100 expected, below Haute-Saône’s towns (102) but above compared French towns (88). From 2016 to 2025, 1,399 residents of Gray died, against 907 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 54% more. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−3%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw154
Adjusted97
Median town88
Expected100
12
GPs in Gray · 4.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.4 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Gh Haute Saone site Gray
22.9 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Universitaire Jean Minjoz Besancon
84.7 · 78.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Haute-Saône, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
A young town: 14% of people in Gray are 15 to 24, more than in Haute-Saône’s towns or compared French towns
In the comparison, Gray comes above both Haute-Saône’s towns (11%) and compared French towns (11%). Over-65s are 28% of the population.
47.5median age
GrayHaute-Saône medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
14%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma30%
CAP or BEP27%
Baccalauréat20%
Higher education18%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 87 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Haute-Saône 51.4%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
Antoine-Augustin Cournot: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Edmond Bour: Arnaud 25, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jean-Marie Bergeret: US Army Signal Corps, Public domain · François Devosge: GO69, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jean-Baptiste-Rose-Bonaventure Violet d'Épagny: François Joseph Heim, Public domain · Charles Wislin: Charles Wislin, Public domain
Questions about Gray
Is Gray safe?
It grades D− for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 6 burglaries and 70 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Gray good?
They grade D, better than 11% of compared French towns and #7 of 10 in Haute-Saône. 93% of 165 candidates passed the bac at Lycée polyvalent Augustin Cournot 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 Gray expensive to live in?
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €8.86/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Gray grades A for cost of living.
About Gray
Commune in Haute-Saône, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Gray is a commune of 5,365 people in the Communauté de communes Val de Gray. 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.
