Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The town has 7,839 residents and lies in Nord, Hauts-de-France.
Jobs and pay trail most towns: 0.5 jobs per working resident; 11.9% unemployment. Cappelle-la-Grande ranks #104 of 189 in Nord, with a C− overall. That leaves it better than 24% of compared French towns. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here (A−): 90% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 11% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Buying 70 m² at the median €1,862/m² takes 5.6 years of the median income per consumption unit in the Communauté urbaine de Dunkerque. It lags on health as well — after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 9% above expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting and employment, INSEE census 2023 · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025).
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
The 2 things Cappelle-la-Grande does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Cappelle-la-Grande 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.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry lists no building in Cappelle-la-Grande as a monument historique. That’s true of 25% of compared French towns too.
The nearest classé monument is Église Saint-Éloi, in Dunkerque, 2.6 mi away.
1.3% of its homes were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town.
Explore the history →Other places to visit, museums and heritage in and near Cappelle-la-Grande. Best known first.
MuseumPalais de l'univers et des sciences de Cappelle-la-Grandein town
MuseumMusée portuaire de Dunkerque4.4 km north, in Dunkerque
Art galleryMusée des Beaux-Arts de Dunkerque4.2 km north, in Dunkerque
Historic shipPrincess Elizabeth4.1 km north, in DunkerqueAttractionAttractionBeffroi de Dunkerque4.1 km north, in DunkerqueAttractionAttractionDuchesse Anne4.3 km north, in DunkerquePhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Cappelle-la-Grande.
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Cappelle-la-Grande has 2 family doctors. In Nord, life expectancy at birth reaches 84.5 years for women and 78.8 for men (2025), next to 85.9 and 80.3 for France. From 2016 to 2025, 634 residents of Cappelle-la-Grande died, against 584 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 9% more.
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.
Just over a tenth of the labour force were unemployed, between Nord’s towns (13.2%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Households’ median disposable income: €23,460 a year per consumption unit. At the census, 2.1% of working residents in Cappelle-la-Grande didn’t travel to work at all.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Each year (2023–2025 average), violence against people came to 6.8 per 1,000 residents and the graded property crimes to 11.7. All told, Cappelle-la-Grande had 145 recorded offenses in 2025. The commonest graded crime locally was criminal damage (2025).
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.
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte · The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Between July 2023 and June 2026, buyers took 260 homes in Cappelle-la-Grande. Estimated advertised rent for houses: €11.59/m² a month. Houses accounted for 94% of sales, apartments for the rest.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €1,886/m² | 245 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
19% are under 15, near Nord’s towns (19%) and higher than compared French towns (17%). People 65 and over make up 19% of the town. The middle age in Cappelle-la-Grande is 40.6.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Nord 51.9%, France 51.8%.
| Cappelle-la-Grande | Nord median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 19% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 12% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 24% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 25% | 26% |
| 65+ | 19% | 19% | 22% |
| No diploma | 23% | 23% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 27% | 26% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 22% | 18% | 18% |
| Higher education | 22% | 26% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Nord median and France median: the median of compared communes
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Cappelle-la-Grande is 89.7%, near Nord’s towns (90.4%) and lower than compared French towns (92.9%). Vocational results within 5 km: 80% passed the bac pro, of 769 candidates at 8 lycées. School results put the town #119 of 195 in Nord.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Maxence Van Der MeerschNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 98 | 78%±0 pts |
| Lycée de l'EuropeNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 259 | 95%+1 pt |
| Collège René Bonpain PrivateBest against expectations: 11 points above the expected rateCollège | Collège | 50 | 98%+11 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Nothing in Cappelle-la-Grande is on the monuments historiques list. These are the nearest classé monuments, within 15.5 mi.
2 notable people were born in Cappelle-la-Grande.
Alain Vasseur: Panini, Public domain · Albert Mahieu: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cappelle-la-Grande | 7,839 | — | C− | C+ | B+ | D |
| Coudekerque-Branche | 20,787 | 1.8 | C− | C | B− | D |
| Dunkerque | 86,263 | 2.5 | D | C− | C− | D |
| Téteghem-Coudekerque-Village | 8,247 | 3.1 | B− | D | A | D |
| Grande-Synthe | 20,239 | 3.2 | D | B− | C | D− |
| Bergues | 3,525 | 3.5 | B | C | B | D |
| Hoymille | 3,259 | 3.9 | — | C | — | B |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
It grades B+ for safety, #44 of 189 in Nord. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 17 burglaries and 54 acts of criminal damage.
They grade C+, better than 43% of compared French towns and #119 of 195 in Nord. The lycée stands out: 95% of 259 candidates passed the bac at Lycée de l'Europe 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.
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €11.57/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Cappelle-la-Grande grades C+ for cost of living.
Commune in Nord, Hauts-de-France
Cappelle-la-Grande is a commune of 7,839 people in the Communauté urbaine de Dunkerque. 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 November 9, 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.
