Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 2,273 people, this town lies in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
Its weakest subject is schools: bac results at the expected rate; brevet results 12 points below the expected rate. Cost of living is weaker too (C): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 8.7 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. It also trails on health: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 6% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns.
Figures: employment, INSEE census 2023 · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025). Margencel 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.
The 2 things Margencel does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Margencel 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.
Margencel has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry lists no building in Margencel as a monument historique. That’s true of 25% of compared French towns too.
The nearest classé monument is Pierre dite Pierre des Sacrifices, in Thonon-les-Bains, 1.6 mi away.
Explore the history →Heritage, other places to visit and museums in and near Margencel. Best known first.
Archaeological siteChâteau d'Allinges-Neuf3 km east, in Allinges
Archaeological siteChâteau d'Allinges-Vieux3.3 km east, in AllingesAbbeyAbbeyAbbaye du Petit-Lieu2.9 km south, in PerrignierChâteauChâteauMaison forte de Marclaz2.9 km northeast, in Thonon-les-BainsFortFortChâteau de Coudrée3.2 km west, in SciezChâteauChâteauChâteau de Chignans3.4 km east, in AllingesPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Margencel.
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Margencel is 95.0%, near Haute-Savoie’s towns (93.9%) and higher than compared French towns (92.9%). Vocational results within 5 km: 87% passed the bac pro, of 63 candidates. At the general lycée, 96% of 503 candidates passed the bac, a point below the expected rate.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Théodore MonodNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 133 | 80%−12 pts |
| Lycée général et technologique de la VersoieNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 503 | 96%−1 pt |
| Lycée professionnel du ChablaisBest against expectations: 8 points above the expected rateVocational lycée | Vocational lycée | 63 | 87%+8 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
People 65 and over make up 16% of the town, near Haute-Savoie’s towns (17%) and lower than compared French towns (22%). The share aged 15 to 24 is 8.9%. Margencel has a median age of 42.1.
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Haute-Savoie 51.0%, France 51.8%.
| Margencel | Haute-Savoie median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 19% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 8.9% | 9.8% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 28% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 16% | 17% | 22% |
| No diploma | 11% | 14% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 30% | 25% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 19% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 36% | 37% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Haute-Savoie median and France median: the median of compared communes
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Homes sold for a median €4,171/m², close to Haute-Savoie’s towns (€4,342/m²) and above compared French towns (€2,430/m²). Sales in Margencel from July 2023 to June 2026: 62 houses and apartments. Among the homes sold, 85% were houses.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €4,425/m² | 53 |
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.
124 deaths in Margencel between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 132: 6% below. Women in Haute-Savoie live to 86.6 on average and men to 81.8 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. The nearest emergency department to Margencel is Hopitaux du Leman, 3.1 mi away.
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 · The care-home step is TownRatings’ own calculation, not an official number. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from D to B+.
7.7% of people in the labour force have no job. At the census, 4.0% of working residents in Margencel didn’t travel to work at all. On foot, by bike or by bus and train: that was how 12.5% of commuters travelled at the census.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Nothing in Margencel is on the monuments historiques list. These are the nearest classé monuments, within 15.5 mi.
Wikidata has nobody with a French article born in Margencel 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Margencel | 2,273 | — | — | C | — | C |
| Allinges | 5,019 | 2.1 | — | C | — | A− |
| Sciez | 6,447 | 2.1 | C | C− | B− | B |
| Thonon-les-Bains | 37,928 | 3.5 | C | C− | C | C+ |
| Bons-en-Chablais | 6,343 | 5.6 | C+ | C− | C+ | B+ |
| Douvaine | 6,796 | 6.2 | C | D | C+ | A |
| Publier | 7,864 | 6.7 | B | D | B+ | B− |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Margencel has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 4.2 recorded violent incidents and 9.6 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
They grade C−, better than 21% of compared French towns. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Margencel grades C for cost of living.
Commune in Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Margencel is a commune of 2,273 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Thonon Agglomération. 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.