Pontorson grades A− overall: better than 76% of compared French towns, and #15 of 27 in Manche. Its weakest subject is health (C): after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 6% below expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Its strongest is cost of living (A−): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
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 Pontorson 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 Pontorson.
Who lives here
Older residents shape Pontorson: 37% are 65 or over, above Manche’s towns and compared French towns
Children under 15 make up 11% of residents. 8.3% of residents are 15 to 24, below both Manche’s towns (9.3%) and compared French towns (11%). Among adults, 18% have a degree.
55.7median age
PontorsonManche medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
37%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma27%
CAP or BEP29%
Baccalauréat19%
Higher education18%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 93 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Manche 52.0%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Manche median and France median: the median of compared communes
History
Pontorson keeps more of its old housing than Manche’s towns or compared French towns: 18% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Pontorson has 5 historic monuments on the Culture ministry’s list: 1 classé, the highest protection, and 4 inscrit, the second level. It has 12 protected monuments per 10,000 residents, above both Manche’s towns (6.7) and compared French towns (2.5). Protection here reaches back to the 15th century. Most of the list is churches, chapels and other religious buildings: 3 of 5.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HousingCost of living A−
Buying in Pontorson costs less than in Manche’s towns and across compared French towns: the median sale is €1,553/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The estimated advertised rent is €9.90/m² a month, near Manche’s towns (€9.90/m²) and lower than compared French towns (€12.41/m²). Houses accounted for 85% of sales, apartments for the rest. Sales in Pontorson from July 2023 to June 2026: 182 houses and apartments.
€1,553/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Pontorson€1,553/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Manche median€1,814/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,598/m²
155
€9.90/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.87 to €12.44/m² a month)
4.4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.32/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,720
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Mont-Saint-Michel-Normandie
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Pontorson has less crime per resident than 69% of compared French towns
Violence against people ran at 6.9 per 1,000 residents a year and the graded property crimes at 10.5 (2023–2025 average). Pontorson’s tally for 2025: 82 recorded offenses. Among the graded crimes locally, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
6.9recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearB+Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage35
Family violence21
Sexual violence12
Burglary7
Theft from vehicles7
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence29
Fraud26
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.
6.9
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
10.5
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
82
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
5.7%
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 other physical violence and vehicle theft number five or fewer in a recent year, the figure is withheld, and the index uses the département’s average instead (5.7% of the index here). The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
HealthHealth C
Fewer deaths than expected in Pontorson, 94 per 100, but more than in Manche’s towns and across compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
The nearest emergency department to Pontorson is Hopitaux du Sud Manche site Avranches, 11.6 mi away. 865 deaths here between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 754: 15% above. In Manche, life expectancy at birth reaches 85.5 years for women and 79 for men (2025), next to 85.9 and 80.3 for France. Also worth knowing: for a family doctor, residents of Pontorson can choose among 4 GPs.
−6%deaths against expected, after care homesCHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw115
Adjusted94
Median town88
Expected100
4
GPs in Pontorson · 3.2 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
11.6 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopitaux du Sud Manche site Avranches
11.6 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Hopitaux du Sud Manche site Avranches
85.5 · 79
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Manche, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
People in Pontorson have lower living standards than in 78% of French communes of 1,000+
The median disposable income was €24,150 a year per consumption unit, about level with Manche’s towns (€24,970) and below compared French towns (€25,970). 1,750 jobs are based in Pontorson, for 1,600 working residents (1.1 per worker). The unemployment rate comes to 8.8%.
9%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving81%
On foot6%
Motorbike or scooter3%
Bicycle2%
Public transport2%
1,750
jobs based in Pontorson, 1.1 per working resident
8.8%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€24,150
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
7%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
B−
Walkability: better than 51% of compared French towns
Villa Bailleul, dite aussi Villa La Feuillée: Photo: GO69 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hôtel Guiscard-de-la-Ménardière: Photo: GO69 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Prieuré d'Ardevon: Photo: GO69 · CC0 · Ancien prêche protestant: Photo: GO69 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Famous people from Pontorson
Wikidata places 1 person here, but the articles don’t both confirm Pontorson as the birthplace, so nobody is listed.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Pontorson
Is Pontorson safe?
It grades B+ for safety, #15 of 27 in Manche. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 7 burglaries and 35 acts of criminal damage.
Is Pontorson expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Pontorson grades A− for cost of living.
About Pontorson
Commune in Manche, Normandy
Pontorson is a commune of 4,280 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Mont-Saint-Michel-Normandie. 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.
