Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town in Loire, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, home to 1,996 people.
Where it does best is health — after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 28% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Homes sell for a median €2,642/m²: 70 m² comes to 7.8 years of the median income per consumption unit in the Saint-Etienne Métropole. Its weakest subject is walkability — 12% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 8% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for schools and B for jobs & income.
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi. Saint-Joseph 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.
The one thing Saint-Joseph does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Saint-Joseph 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.
Saint-Joseph has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry lists no building in Saint-Joseph as a monument historique. That’s true of 25% of compared French towns too.
The nearest classé monument is Anciennes usines Marrel, in Châteauneuf, 0.9 mi away.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Saint-Joseph.
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 107 residents of Saint-Joseph died, against 149 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 28% fewer. The nearest emergency department to Saint-Joseph is Hopital du Gier Mco, 7.4 mi away. Life expectancy in Loire: 85.6 years for women and 80.8 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3.
Source: INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025; DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 · Licence Ouverte · Note: TownRatings models the care-home adjustment; it is not an official figure.
The median disposable income is €28,530 a year per consumption unit. Saint-Joseph has 250 jobs for 950 working residents, 0.3 per worker. At the census, 7.5% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, below both Loire’s towns (11.9%) and compared French towns (13.4%).
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Advertised rents are estimated at €10.81/m² a month, above Loire’s towns (€10.17/m²) but below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). Behind the median of €2,642/m²: 42 houses and apartments sold in Saint-Joseph between July 2023 and June 2026. From July 2023 to June 2026, 42 homes were sold in the town.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €2,738/m² | 37 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Among adults, 33% have a degree. 12% of the population is aged 15 to 24, above both Loire’s towns (11%) and compared French towns (11%). At 43.2, the median resident of Saint-Joseph sits in the middle of the age range.
49% women, 51% men
About 105 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Loire 52.0%, France 51.8%.
| Saint-Joseph | Loire median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 12% | 11% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 22% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 19% | 25% | 22% |
| No diploma | 12% | 20% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 30% | 29% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| Higher education | 33% | 28% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Loire median and France median: the median of compared communes
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
For collège, the closest is 1.6 mi away.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Notre-Dame des Collines PrivateNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 99 | 91%+9 pts |
| Lycée Georges BrassensNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 293 | 94%−3 pts |
| Collège François TruffautBest against expectations: 2 points above the expected rateCollège | Collège | 154 | 93%+2 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Other places to visit, family days out and museums in and near Saint-Joseph. Best known first.
ZooEspace zoologique de Saint-Martin-la-Plaine3.4 km west, in Saint-Martin-la-PlaineMuseumMuseumLa Mourine - maison des forgerons2.9 km west, in Saint-Martin-la-PlaineAttractionAttractionBarrage détruit par arreté préfectoral 12-714 An 20124.4 km northwest, in Saint-Romain-en-JarezChâteauChâteauChâteau du Mollard3.6 km south, in ChâteauneufAttractionAttractionDouble Ecluse du Rocher Percé3.6 km east, in TartarasPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Nothing in Saint-Joseph is on the monuments historiques list. These are the nearest classé monuments, within 15.5 mi.
Wikidata places 1 person here, but the articles don’t both confirm Saint-Joseph as the birthplace, so nobody is listed.
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Joseph | 1,996 | — | — | C | — | A |
| Saint-Martin-la-Plaine | 3,764 | 1.4 | A | C | A− | A |
| Rive-de-Gier | 15,242 | 1.6 | C− | B | D | C |
| Genilac | 3,839 | 2.5 | B | C | B | A− |
| Chabanière Rhône | 4,323 | 2.9 | A | B | B− | A |
| Lorette | 4,983 | 3.3 | C+ | C+ | B− | B− |
| La Grand-Croix | 4,947 | 4.4 | C+ | C+ | B− | C+ |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Saint-Joseph has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 2.9 recorded violent incidents and 9.1 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
They grade B−, better than 47% of compared French towns. 94% of 293 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Georges Brassens in 2025, 3 points below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Prices are close to the median of compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,642/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Joseph grades C for cost of living.
Commune in Loire, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Saint-Joseph is a commune of 1,996 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
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, employment, commuting) · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (income per consumption unit, poverty) · DGFiP, DVF property sales, July 2023 to June 2026 · Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025 · SSMSI, recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Ministry of Education (DEPP), brevet and bac results and value-added indicators, 2025 · INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses 2012–2023; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025 (care homes, emergency and maternity units, GPs, pharmacies); DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 (provisional) · INSEE, BPE 2025 and Filosofi 200 m grid (walking distances) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking French towns against each other only, updated October 30, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
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.