Saint-Étienne-le-Molard’s strongest is cost of living — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.2 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Most journeys need a car (D). 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. Homes change hands at a median €1,598/m².
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025). Saint-Étienne-le-Molard 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 Saint-Étienne-le-Molard 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.
Château de la Bastie-d'Urfé · Classé · Photo: Daniel VILLAFRUELA . · CC BY-SA 4.0
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard’s story
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard in pictures
The Culture ministry lists 2 historic monuments in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard: 2 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
The oldest protected part dates from the 12th century; the first monument here was protected in 1912.
21% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
1912First protected: Château de la Bastie-d'Urfé
1972Most recently protected: Croix de cimetière (ancienne)
The Culture ministry lists 2 historic monuments in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard: 2 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
Croix de cimetière (ancienne): Photo: Frédérique Défrade · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Château de la Bastie-d'Urfé: Photo: Daniel VILLAFRUELA . · CC BY-SA 4.0
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard.
Work & commuteJobs & income B
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard is harder to get around on foot than 93% of compared French towns
3%walk, cycle or take transit
6.1% of the labour force were unemployed, lower than both Loire’s towns (8.6%) and compared French towns (10.1%). On foot, by bike or by bus and train: that was how 3.5% of commuters travelled at the census. Saint-Étienne-le-Molard has 150 jobs for 500 working residents, 0.3 per worker.
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving89%
Public transport2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
On foot1%
Bicycle1%
150
jobs based in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard, 0.3 per working resident
6.1%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€26,570
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 7% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living A−
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard is graded an A− for cost of living
€1,598/m²median sale price
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Advertised rents are estimated at €10.52/m² a month, close to Loire’s towns (€10.17/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). For a house, the estimated advertised rent is €8.17/m² a month. Saint-Étienne-le-Molard recorded 31 home sales from July 2023 to June 2026.
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard€1,598/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Loire median€2,075/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,598/m²
31
€10.52/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€8.10 to €13.66/m² a month)
4.2
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.17/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€26,420
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Loire Forez Agglomération
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Few people in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard are 65 or over: 17%, below Loire’s towns and compared French towns
42.3median age
Degrees are held by a quarter of adults. 19% are under 15, higher than both Loire’s towns (17%) and compared French towns (17%). The share aged 15 to 24 is 9.8%.
Saint-Étienne-le-MolardLoire medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
10%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma22%
CAP or BEP32%
Baccalauréat16%
Higher education25%
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 111 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
HealthHealth C
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard sees 94 deaths per 100 expected: under what its ages predict, yet above Loire’s towns and compared French towns
−6%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
The nearest emergency department to Saint-Étienne-le-Molard is Ch du Forez site de Montbrison, 8.7 mi away. France’s death rates at each age would predict 74 deaths here from 2016 to 2025; there were 69, 6% fewer. At birth, a girl in Loire can expect 85.6 years and a boy 80.8 (2025); across France, 85.9 and 80.3.
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw94
Adjusted94
Median town88
Expected100
0
GPs in Saint-Étienne-le-Molard · 3.5 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
8.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Ch du Forez site de Montbrison
8.6 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Ch du Forez site de Montbrison
85.6 · 80.8
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Loire, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard is a commune of 1,033 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Loire Forez 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
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Saint-Étienne-le-Molard
Is Saint-Étienne-le-Molard safe?
Saint-Étienne-le-Molard has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 5.6 recorded violent incidents and 7.7 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Is Saint-Étienne-le-Molard expensive to live in?
Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Étienne-le-Molard grades A− for cost of living.
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.
