Saint-James grades A− overall: better than 76% of compared French towns, and #14 of 27 in Manche. Its weakest subject is schools (C): brevet results 2 points below the expected rate. Its strongest is cost of living (A): at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 3.8 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 Saint-James 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.
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Crime per resident in Saint-James runs lower than in 81% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 83 offenses in the graded categories in Saint-James in 2025. Violence against people ran at 10.3 per 1,000 residents a year and the graded property crimes at 5 (2023–2025 average). For burglary, vehicle theft and theft from vehicles, 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, 5.0% of the index here.
10.3recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearA−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Family violence33
Sexual violence22
Other physical violence16
Criminal damage12
Armed robbery0
Fraud23
Theft without violence19
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.
10.3
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
5
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
83
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
5.0%
of the index rests on the département’s average, used where small counts aren’t published
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Degrees are less common in Saint-James than in Manche’s towns or across compared French towns: 17% of adults
In the comparison, Saint-James comes below both Manche’s towns (22%) and compared French towns (30%). Those aged 15 to 24 account for 8.4% of residents.
49.3median age
Saint-JamesManche medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
29%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma32%
CAP or BEP30%
Baccalauréat16%
Higher education17%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 96 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Manche 52.0%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Manche median and France median: the median of compared communes
History
Old homes shape Saint-James: 25% were built before 1919, more than in Manche’s towns or compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
For Saint-James, that is above both Manche’s towns (12%) and compared French towns (7.4%). The Culture ministry lists 4 historic monuments in Saint-James: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 3 inscrit (the second level). Among the classé monuments in Saint-James is Polissoir dit La pierre Saint-Benoit.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Work & commuteJobs & income C+
People in Saint-James have lower living standards than in 80% of French communes of 1,000+
9.2% of Saint-James’ working residents walked, cycled or took public transport to work in the 2023 census, against 13% for the median of compared French towns; 82% drove.
9%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving82%
On foot7%
Bicycle1%
Motorbike or scooter1%
Public transport1%
2,200
jobs based in Saint-James, 1.1 per working resident
9.1%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€23,940
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
7%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
C+
Walkability: better than 42% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B−
Saint-James’ death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 53% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 852 residents of Saint-James died, against 778 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 10% more. Its care home for older people (158 places) counts its residents as Saint-James’; allowing for it, deaths were 11% below expected. The adjustment lowers most towns’ figures, so the comparison is what counts: the median of compared French towns is 12% below expected. The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
−11%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw110
Adjusted89
Median town88
Expected100
5
GPs in Saint-James · 2.8 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
11.9 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Hopitaux du Sud Manche site Avranches
11.9 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
Polissoir dit La pierre Saint-Benoit: Photo: Xfigpower · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Château de Boucéel: Photo: Ikmo-ned · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Château de la Paluelle: Photo: Ikmo-ned · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Chapelle Sainte-Barbe: Photo: Xfigpower · CC BY-SA 3.0
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Saint-James
Is Saint-James safe?
It grades A− for safety, #13 of 27 in Manche.
Are schools in Saint-James good?
They grade C, better than 27% of compared French towns and #27 of 29 in Manche. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Saint-James expensive to live in?
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €9.05/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Saint-James grades A for cost of living.
About Saint-James
Commune in Manche, Normandy
Saint-James is a commune of 5,018 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.
