Firminy grades B− overall: better than 51% of compared French towns, and #39 of 48 in Loire. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 13.3 recorded violent incidents and 23.8 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 €1,121/m², a 70 m² home costs 3.3 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Saint-Etienne Métropole. Its strongest is walkability (A): 83% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 21% 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 Firminy 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 Firminy.
Safety
Recorded crime per resident is higher in Firminy than in 93% of compared French towns
Over 2025, Firminy logged 550 recorded offenses. The town comes 47th of the 48 compared towns in Loire on the Safety Grade. With 7,650 jobs for 5,400 working residents, Firminy draws people in from neighbouring communes. Criminal damage topped the graded crimes in Firminy (2025).
13.3recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage213
Family violence97
Other physical violence96
Burglary53
Theft from vehicles32
Vehicle theft31
Sexual violence28
Drug use255
Theft without violence159
Fraud110
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.
13.3
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
23.8
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
550
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.1%
of the index rests on the département’s average, used where small counts aren’t published
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte · 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, 0.1% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses. Crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its residents, so a town that draws people in from around can look higher.
Work & commuteJobs & income D
Unemployment in Firminy, 18.6%, runs above Loire’s towns and compared French towns
Half of residents lived on more than €21,080 a year per consumption unit, below Loire’s towns (€25,635) and compared French towns (€25,970) alike. At the census, 20.6% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train.
21%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving77%
On foot11%
Public transport9%
Bicycle1%
Motorbike or scooter0%
7,650
jobs based in Firminy, 1.4 per working resident
18.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€21,080
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
2%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A
Walkability: better than 91% 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 Firminy than in Loire’s towns or across compared French towns: €9.41/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The split in Firminy: €2,094/m² for houses, €1,000/m² for apartments. Behind the median of €1,121/m²: 496 houses and apartments sold here between July 2023 and June 2026. This Loire town is the second cheapest of the 53 towns in Loire, at €1,121/m².
€1,121/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Firminy€1,121/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Loire median€2,075/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,094/m²
146
Apartments
€1,000/m²
350
€9.41/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.18 to €12.32/m² a month)
3.3
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.95/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,640
median annual income per consumption unit, Saint-Etienne Métropole
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Fewer people in Firminy hold a degree than in Loire’s towns or compared French towns: 18%
27% of residents are 65 or over, higher than both Loire’s towns (25%) and compared French towns (22%). Young adults of 15 to 24 account for just over a tenth of the town. Firminy has a median age of 46.1 years.
46.1median age
FirminyLoire medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
27%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma28%
CAP or BEP30%
Baccalauréat17%
Higher education18%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 88 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Loire 52.0%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Loire median and France median: the median of compared communes
History
7 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2006
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Among the classé monuments in Firminy is Église Saint-Pierre de Firminy. The earliest of these monuments dates from the 12th century. Per 10,000 residents, Firminy counts 4.1 protected monuments, higher than both Loire’s towns (1.9) and compared French towns (2.5).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth B
Fewer deaths than expected: Firminy is below 62% of compared French towns once ages and care homes are allowed for
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Average lifespans in Loire: 85.6 years for women, 80.8 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 nationally. From 2016 to 2025, 2,285 residents of Firminy died, against 2,409 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 5% fewer. Its four care homes for older people (307 places) count their residents as Firminy’s; allowing for them, deaths were 16% below expected. 11 GPs practise in the town.
−16%deaths against expected, after care homesBHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw95
Adjusted84
Median town88
Expected100
11
GPs in Firminy · 3.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.1 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Firminy
0.1 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de Firminy
85.6 · 80.8
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Loire, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Firminy
Is Firminy safe?
It grades D for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 53 burglaries and 213 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Firminy good?
They grade B−, better than 51% of compared French towns and #37 of 50 in Loire. 90% of 110 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Jacob Holtzer in 2025, 4 points below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Firminy expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,121/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Firminy grades A for cost of living.
About Firminy
Commune in Loire, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Firminy is a commune of 17,060 people in the Saint-Etienne Métropole. 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.
