Roanne grades B+ overall: better than 71% of compared French towns, and #29 of 48 in Loire. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 14.2 recorded violent incidents and 21.9 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 €1,314/m², a 70 m² home costs 3.7 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté d'agglomération Roannais Agglomération. Its strongest is walkability (A+): 98% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 28% 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 Roanne 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 Roanne.
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More people in Roanne are out of work than in Loire’s towns or across compared French towns: 17.4%
The typical income here, after tax and benefits, is €21,580 a year per consumption unit. 23,600 jobs are based in Roanne, for 12,200 working residents (1.9 per worker). At the census, 27.5% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train.
28%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving67%
On foot15%
Public transport7%
Bicycle6%
Motorbike or scooter1%
23,600
jobs based in Roanne, 1.9 per working resident
17.4%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€21,580
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
4%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A+
Walkability: better than 96% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Recorded crime per resident is higher in Roanne than in 92% of compared French towns
Criminal damage topped the graded crimes in Roanne (2025). 1,199 offenses were reported in Roanne during 2025. The town comes 46th of the 48 compared towns in Loire on the Safety Grade.
14.2recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage502
Other physical violence230
Family violence173
Sexual violence97
Theft from vehicles90
Burglary62
Vehicle theft45
Theft without violence391
Fraud274
Drug use214
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.
14.2
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
21.9
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
1,199
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 · When armed robbery number five or fewer in a recent year, the figure is withheld, and the index uses the département’s average instead (0.1% of the index here). The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
HousingCost of living A
Roanne’s grade for cost of living: an A
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
1,928 sales of houses and apartments in Roanne, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €1,314/m². Advertised rents are estimated at €9.54/m² a month, about level with Loire’s towns (€10.17/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). A house in Roanne goes for €1,775/m², an apartment for €1,222/m².
€1,314/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Roanne€1,314/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Loire median€2,075/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,775/m²
422
Apartments
€1,222/m²
1,506
€9.54/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.34 to €12.40/m² a month)
3.7
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.20/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,630
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Roannais Agglomération
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Schools
89.9% of candidates passed the brevet at the eight collèges within 5 km, 2.4 points above the expected rate
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Vocational results within 5 km: 86% passed the bac pro, of 285 candidates at 4 lycées. The bac pass rate near Roanne is 94.6%, near Loire’s towns (93.4%) and higher than compared French towns (92.9%). The town’s schools place #15 of 50 in Loire on results.
98%passed the bac (general and technological)A−School Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B+
Adjusted for age and care homes, Roanne sees fewer deaths than 68% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 4,289 residents of Roanne died, against 4,660 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 8% fewer. Its nine care homes for older people (606 places) count their residents as Roanne’s; allowing for them, deaths were 18% below expected. 38 GPs practise locally. In Loire, women can expect to live 85.6 years and men 80.8 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France.
−18%deaths against expected, after care homesB+Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw92
Adjusted82
Median town88
Expected100
38
GPs in Roanne · 3.3 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.5 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de Roanne
0.5 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de Roanne
85.6 · 80.8
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Loire, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Students and young workers shape Roanne: 14% are 15 to 24, above Loire’s towns and compared French towns
Degrees are held by nearly a quarter of adults, below Loire’s towns (28%) and compared French towns (30%) alike. The 65-and-over age group makes up 27% of residents. Line up the people of Roanne by age and the one in the middle is 45.
45median age
RoanneLoire medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
14%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma28%
CAP or BEP26%
Baccalauréat17%
Higher education23%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 91 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Loire 52.0%, France 51.8%.
Maison à pans de bois: Photo: Pierre de Montfalcon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Chapelle Saint-Nicolas-du-Port: Photo: Pierre de Montfalcon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Musée Joseph Dechelette: Photo: arneonreloi[at]yahoo[.]fr · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ancien hôtel particulier Goyet de Livron, sous-préfecture de Roanne: Photo: TCY · CC BY-SA 4.0
Pierre Étaix: Odile etaix, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Henri Dentz: Journal Le Matin, Public domain · Joseph Déchelette: Albert Pierre Dawant, Public domain · René Leriche: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain · Jean-Baptiste Nompère de Champagny: Antoine Ansiaux, Public domain · Timothé Vergiat: Timan, CC BY-SA 4.0
Roanne’s neighbors
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Roanne
Is Roanne safe?
It grades D for safety, #46 of 48 in Loire. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 62 burglaries and 502 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Roanne good?
They grade A−, better than 75% of compared French towns and #15 of 50 in Loire. The lycée stands out: 100% of 74 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Saint-Paul in 2025, a point above the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Roanne expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,314/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Roanne grades A for cost of living.
About Roanne
Commune in Loire, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Roanne is a commune of 35,409 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Roannais 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
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.
