Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 3,515 people live in this town, in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Les Houches’s strongest subject is jobs & income (A) — 0.6 jobs per working resident; 4.7% unemployment. Add health to its strengths (B+) — after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 21% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Housing is expensive: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 18.1 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Holiday and other second homes account for 62% of homes.
Figures: employment, INSEE census 2023 · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi. Les Houches has no overall grade because safety and schools aren’t graded here.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
The 2 things Les Houches does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Les Houches 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.
Les Houches has no overall grade because safety and schools aren’t graded here.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry’s list holds 1 historic monument in Les Houches; none is classé, France’s top protection.
The oldest protected part dates from the 20th century; the first monument here was protected in 2020.
Other places to visit, family days out and heritage in and near Les Houches. Best known first.
ZooParc animalier de Merletin town
AttractionCompagnie des guides de Chamonix4.2 km northeast, in Chamonix-Mont-BlancRuinsRuinsChâteau Saint-Michelin townMuseumMuseumMusée Montagnardin townAttractionAttractionLe Brévent5 km northeast, in Chamonix-Mont-BlancAttractionAttractionNid d'Aigle4.5 km south, in Saint-Gervais-les-BainsPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Les Houches.
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The middle sale price: €7,504/m², above Haute-Savoie’s towns (€4,342/m²) and compared French towns (€2,430/m²) alike. Houses in Les Houches sell for €8,890/m² and apartments for €7,297/m². Among the homes sold, 28% were houses.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €8,890/m² | 96 |
| Apartments | €7,297/m² | 253 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Ages and care homes taken into account, deaths in Les Houches come to 79 per 100 predicted. From 2016 to 2025, 176 residents of Les Houches died, against 222 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 21% fewer. Life expectancy in Haute-Savoie: 86.6 years for women and 81.8 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3. For a family doctor, residents of Les Houches can choose among 5 GPs.
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 · Allowing for care homes is a TownRatings estimate, not a published statistic. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from C+ to A.
Young adults of 15 to 24 are 7.8% of the population. 17% of residents are 65 or over, near Haute-Savoie’s towns (17%) and lower than compared French towns (22%). Half the people of Les Houches are older than 43.3.
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Haute-Savoie 51.0%, France 51.8%.
| Les Houches | Haute-Savoie median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 19% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 7.8% | 9.8% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 28% | 28% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 31% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 17% | 17% | 22% |
| No diploma | 10% | 14% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 21% | 25% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 19% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 46% | 37% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Haute-Savoie median and France median: the median of compared communes
Households’ median disposable income: €29,060 a year per consumption unit. Public transport took 9.4% of Les Houches’ working residents to work at the census.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Protection here reaches back to the 20th century. Homes from before 1919 make up 6.8% of the total, between Haute-Savoie’s towns (4.9%) and compared French towns (7.4%).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Les Houches has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
Wikidata has nobody with a French article born in Les Houches 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Les Houches | 3,515 | — | — | D− | — | B+ |
| Chamonix-Mont-Blanc | 8,705 | 4 | B | D− | C− | B |
| Saint-Gervais-les-Bains | 5,755 | 4.4 | B | D− | B+ | B+ |
| Passy | 10,856 | 4.9 | B− | D | B | B |
| Sallanches | 17,319 | 8.4 | B+ | D | B− | C+ |
| Megève | 2,893 | 9.3 | B− | D− | C | B+ |
| Magland | 3,220 | 11 | B | C− | A | C |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Les Houches has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 1.9 recorded violent incidents and 6.4 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Les Houches grades D− for cost of living.
Commune in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Les Houches is a commune of 3,515 people in the Communauté de communes de la Vallée de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. 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 November 9, 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.