Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 1,139: a town in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Households here earn well (A+): 0.9 jobs per working resident; 5.2% unemployment. Where it falls short is cost of living: A year’s estimated rent on a 70 m² apartment is 62% of the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. It lags on walkability as well (C−). Holiday and other second homes account for 18% of homes.
Figures: employment and commuting, INSEE census 2023 · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025. Alex has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Alex 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.
Alex has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The one thing Alex does most differently from other towns.
Alex has 1 historic monument on the Culture ministry’s list, none at the highest level (classé).
The oldest protected part dates from the 17th century; the first monument here was protected in 1926.
13% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Alex has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
Croix sur la place de l'église: Photo: Elisabeth Martin · CC BY-SA 3.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Alex.
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
From July 2023 to June 2026, 21 homes were sold in Alex.
Source: Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Unemployment stood at 5.2%, lower than both Haute-Savoie’s towns (8.1%) and compared French towns (10.1%). 7.8% of commuters left the car at home at the census, walking, cycling or taking public transport.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Retirement age and beyond: 17% of residents are 65 or older. Children under 15 make up 20%, higher than both Haute-Savoie’s towns (19%) and compared French towns (17%). 9.5% of residents are aged 15 to 24.
48% women, 52% men
About 109 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Haute-Savoie 51.0%, France 51.8%.
| Alex | Haute-Savoie median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 19% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 9.5% | 9.8% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 28% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 17% | 17% | 22% |
| No diploma | 5.4% | 14% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 18% | 25% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 15% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 59% | 37% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Haute-Savoie median and France median: the median of compared communes
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
France’s death rates at each age would predict 62 deaths in Alex from 2016 to 2025; there were 51, 17% fewer. In Haute-Savoie, life expectancy at birth reaches 86.6 years for women and 81.8 for men (2025), next to 85.9 and 80.3 for France. Adjusted mortality locally: 83 deaths for every 100 expected.
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 · That adjustment for care homes is a model of TownRatings’ own, not official data. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from C− to A.
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Its oldest listed monument dates from the 17th century. Alex has 1 historic monument on the Culture ministry’s list, none at the highest level (classé).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Heritage, museums and other places to visit in and near Alex. Best known first.
Wikidata has nobody with a French article born in Alex yet.
Commune in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Alex is a commune of 1,139 people in the Communauté de communes des Vallées de Thônes. 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
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
Alex has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 3.9 recorded violent incidents and 9.7 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, employment, commuting) · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (income per consumption unit, poverty) · 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 November 4, 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.