Vias grades D− overall: behind almost every compared French town. Its weakest subject is safety (D−): an average of 19.6 recorded violent incidents and 34.8 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 €2,953/m², a 70 m² home costs 8.9 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté d'agglomération Hérault-Méditerranée. Its strongest is walkability (B+): 84% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 10% 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 Vias 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 Vias.
Safety
Crime per resident in Vias runs higher than in 99% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 354 offenses in the graded categories in Vias in 2025. Vias comes 83rd of the 84 compared towns in Hérault on the Safety Grade. For armed robbery, this figure isn’t published when it’s small (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the index uses the département’s average instead, 0.3% of the index here.
19.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage86
Burglary67
Family violence52
Other physical violence43
Theft from vehicles36
Sexual violence35
Vehicle theft35
Theft without violence113
Fraud58
Drug use35
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.
19.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
34.8
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
354
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: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C−
Vias’ death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 85% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Vias records 104 deaths per 100 expected, above both Hérault’s towns (89) and compared French towns (88). From 2016 to 2025, 816 residents of Vias died, against 714 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 14% more. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
+4%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw114
Adjusted104
Median town88
Expected100
4
GPs in Vias · 3.2 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
3.4 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopital Saint Loup Hopitaux Bassin Thau Agde
8.5 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de Beziers
86.3 · 80.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Hérault, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Older residents shape Vias: 31% are 65 or over, above Hérault’s towns and compared French towns
That puts Vias above both Hérault’s towns (24%) and compared French towns (22%). People aged 15 to 24 make up 8.5% of the town.
52.2median age
ViasHérault medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
31%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma22%
CAP or BEP31%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education20%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 92 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Hérault 52.0%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Hérault median and France median: the median of compared communes
Work & commuteJobs & income D
Unemployment in Vias, 17.4%, runs above Hérault’s towns and compared French towns
On this, Vias is above both Hérault’s towns (11.8%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Vias has 1,500 jobs for 1,900 working residents, 0.8 per worker. The median disposable income is €22,400 a year per consumption unit.
10%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving83%
On foot5%
Public transport3%
Bicycle2%
Motorbike or scooter2%
1,500
jobs based in Vias, 0.8 per working resident
17.4%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,400
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B+
Walkability: better than 70% of compared French towns
Château de Preignes-le-Vieux: Photo: FHd · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Maison Benezis: Photo: Fagairolles 34 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Canal du Midi: Photo: Maarten Sepp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Église Saint-Jean-Baptiste: Photo: Fagairolles 34 · CC BY-SA 4.0
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Vias
Is Vias safe?
It grades D− for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 67 burglaries and 86 acts of criminal damage.
Is Vias expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,953/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. By type: houses €2,960/m² (312 sales), apartments €2,949/m² (97 sales). Estimated advertised apartment rents are €12.97/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns, so Vias grades D for cost of living.
About Vias
Commune in Hérault, Occitanie
Vias is a commune of 5,952 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Hérault-Méditerranée. 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.
