Soudan’s strongest subject is cost of living — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Most journeys need a car: 45% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 4% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Incomes are on the low side (C+): 0.7 jobs per working resident; 8.6% unemployment. Health is a weak point: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 9% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns.
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting and employment, INSEE census 2023 · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025). Soudan 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 Soudan 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 Soudan.
Work & commuteJobs & income C+
Soudan is harder to get around on foot than 87% of compared French towns
Half of residents lived on more than €24,390 a year per consumption unit, below both Loire-Atlantique’s towns (€27,630) and compared French towns (€25,970). The census found 3.8% of commuters going to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Of those in the labour force, 8.6% are unemployed.
4%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving89%
On foot2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
Public transport1%
Bicycle1%
600
jobs based in Soudan, 0.7 per working resident
8.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€24,390
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
6%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
D
Walkability: better than 13% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living A−
Estimated advertised rents run lower in Soudan than in Loire-Atlantique’s towns or across compared French towns: €8.93/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The middle sale price: €1,496/m², below Loire-Atlantique’s towns (€2,844/m²) and compared French towns (€2,430/m²) alike. House rents are put at about €8.15/m² a month. Soudan recorded 77 home sales from July 2023 to June 2026.
€1,496/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Soudan€1,496/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Loire-Atlantique median€2,844/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,496/m²
77
€8.93/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.10 to €11.22/m² a month)
4.4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.15/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,830
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Châteaubriant-Derval
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C+
Soudan sees 91 deaths per 100 expected: under what its ages predict, yet above Loire-Atlantique’s towns and compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Women in Loire-Atlantique live to 86.2 on average and men to 80.3 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. From 2016 to 2025, 159 residents of Soudan died, against 174 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 9% fewer. The nearest emergency department to Soudan is Centre hospitalier Chateaubriant, 3.8 mi away.
−9%deaths against expected, after care homesC+Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw91
Adjusted91
Median town88
Expected100
0
GPs in Soudan · 3.7 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
3.8 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Chateaubriant
3.8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Chateaubriant
86.2 · 80.3
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Loire-Atlantique, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Soudan keeps more of its old housing than Loire-Atlantique’s towns or compared French towns: 22% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 1 historic monument in Soudan, none of them classé, France’s highest protection. Its oldest listed monument dates from prehistory.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Who lives here
Fewer people in Soudan hold a degree than in Loire-Atlantique’s towns or compared French towns: 18%
9.8% of residents are 15 to 24, lower than both Loire-Atlantique’s towns (11%) and compared French towns (11%). The 65-and-over age group makes up 23% of residents. Ages in Soudan split evenly at 46.8: half are older, half younger.
46.8median age
SoudanLoire-Atlantique medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
23%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma21%
CAP or BEP37%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education18%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About an even split. Median share of women: Loire-Atlantique 51.0%, France 51.8%.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Soudan
Is Soudan safe?
Soudan has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 5.8 recorded violent incidents and 10.3 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Is Soudan expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Soudan grades A− for cost of living.
About Soudan
Commune in Loire-Atlantique, Pays de la Loire
Soudan is a commune of 1,959 people in the Communauté de communes Châteaubriant-Derval. 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.
