More weak spots than strong ones. Crime runs high: an average of 21.1 recorded violent incidents and 28.3 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Health outcomes fall short of most towns: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 4% above expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Its best grade is for walkability (A+): 93% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 30% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. At the median price of €1,813/m², a 70 m² home costs 5.8 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the Communauté d'agglomération Valenciennes Métropole. The overall grade comes out at D−, #183 of 189 in Nord. That leaves it better than 3% of compared French towns.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior) · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi.
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 Valenciennes 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 Valenciennes.
Safety
Recorded crime per resident is higher in Valenciennes than in 98% of compared French towns
In all, 2,268 offenses reached the police record in Valenciennes in 2025. With 33,450 jobs for 16,700 working residents, Valenciennes draws people in from neighbouring communes. The commonest graded crime here was criminal damage (2025).
21.1recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage753
Other physical violence481
Family violence357
Theft from vehicles228
Sexual violence186
Vehicle theft130
Burglary120
Armed robbery13
Theft without violence849
Drug use449
Fraud334
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.
21.1
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
28.3
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
2,268
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
under 0.1%
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 · The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses. Crimes are counted in the commune where they happen, then divided by its residents, so a town that draws people in from around can look higher.
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More commuters in Valenciennes walk, cycle or take the bus or train than in Nord’s towns or compared French towns: 30.3%
Unemployment stands at 18.8%. The median disposable income was €22,180 a year per consumption unit, below both Nord’s towns (€23,900) and compared French towns (€25,970). Public transport took 13.7% of Valenciennes’ working residents to work at the census.
30%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving66%
Public transport14%
On foot13%
Bicycle3%
Motorbike or scooter1%
33,450
jobs based in Valenciennes, 2 per working resident
18.8%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,180
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
3%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A+
Walkability: better than 96% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth C−
Adjusted for age and care homes, Valenciennes sees more deaths than 85% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
France’s death rates at each age would predict 3,537 deaths in Valenciennes from 2016 to 2025; there were 4,321, 22% more. After the care-home adjustment, Valenciennes’ deaths ran at 104 per 100 expected, close to Nord’s towns (105) and above compared French towns (88). In Nord, women can expect to live 84.5 years and men 78.8 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. There are 62 general practitioners here.
+4%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw122
Adjusted104
Median town88
Expected100
62
GPs in Valenciennes · 4.4 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.3 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Polyclinique Vauban
0.8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier General de Valenciennes
84.5 · 78.8
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Nord, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
37 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2002
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The earliest of these monuments dates from the 14th century. Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 2002. Valenciennes has 8.5 protected monuments for every 10,000 residents. Among the classé monuments here is Ancien collège des Jésuites.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HousingCost of living C
Valenciennes gets a C for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Behind the median of €1,813/m²: 1,754 houses and apartments sold in Valenciennes between July 2023 and June 2026. In Valenciennes, houses go for €1,612/m² and apartments for €1,981/m². Also worth knowing: among the homes sold, 50% were houses.
€1,813/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Valenciennes€1,813/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Nord median€1,810/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,612/m²
878
Apartments
€1,981/m²
876
€12.11/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.72 to €15.08/m² a month)
5.8
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.64/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€22,000
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté d'agglomération Valenciennes Métropole
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Schools
83.4% of candidates passed the brevet at the 14 collèges within 5 km, 0.7 points below the expected rate
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Vocational results within 5 km: 76% passed the bac pro, of 607 candidates at 6 lycées. On results, collèges and lycées here come #148 of 195 in Nord. At the seven general lycées, 95% of 1,494 candidates passed the bac, at the expected rate.
95%passed the bac (general and technological)CSchool Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
A young town: 19% of people in Valenciennes are 15 to 24, more than in Nord’s towns or compared French towns
Degrees are held by 37% of adults, higher than both Nord’s towns (26%) and compared French towns (30%). Retirement age and beyond: 17% of residents are 65 or older. Typical age in Valenciennes: 36.4, the median.
36.4median age
ValenciennesNord medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
19%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma19%
CAP or BEP21%
Baccalauréat17%
Higher education37%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 95 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Nord 51.9%, France 51.8%.
Antoine Watteau: Rosalba Carriera, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Henri VII du Saint-Empire: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Jean Froissart: Marie-Lan Nguyen, Public domain · Philippa de Hainaut: Jean Froissart, Public domain · Baudouin Ier de Constantinople: Renardeau, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Gérald Darmanin: UK Home Office, CC BY 2.5
Valenciennes’ neighbors
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Valenciennes
Is Valenciennes safe?
It grades D− for safety, #180 of 189 in Nord. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 120 burglaries and 753 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Valenciennes good?
They grade C, better than 30% of compared French towns and #148 of 195 in Nord. 87% of 93 candidates passed the bac at Lycée du Hainaut in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Valenciennes expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,813/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Estimated advertised apartment rents are €12.11/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Valenciennes grades C for cost of living.
About Valenciennes
Commune in Nord, Hauts-de-France
Valenciennes is a commune of 43,468 people in the Communauté d'agglomération Valenciennes 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
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.
