Argentan grades B overall: better than 59% of compared French towns, and #12 of 19 in Orne. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 13 recorded violent incidents and 21.3 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At the median price of €1,471/m², a 70 m² home costs 4.3 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes Terres d'Argentan Interco. Its strongest is walkability (A): 77% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 25% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work.
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 Argentan 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 Argentan.
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
Argentan has higher unemployment than Orne’s towns or compared French towns: 18.5%
That puts Argentan above both Orne’s towns (11.0%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Argentan has 8,350 jobs for 4,300 working residents, 1.9 per worker. The median disposable income is €21,530 a year per consumption unit.
25%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving69%
On foot18%
Bicycle4%
Public transport2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
8,350
jobs based in Argentan, 1.9 per working resident
18.5%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€21,530
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
5%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A
Walkability: better than 91% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
History
Homes from before 1919 in Argentan: 6%, against 21% in Orne’s towns and 7.4% in compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Per 10,000 residents, Argentan counts 14 protected monuments, close to Orne’s towns (14) and above compared French towns (2.5). The Culture ministry lists 19 historic monuments in Argentan: 7 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 12 inscrit (the second level). Among the classé monuments in Argentan is Ancien château des Ducs.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Safety
Crime per resident in Argentan runs higher than in 89% of compared French towns
Police and gendarmerie recorded 437 offenses in the graded categories in Argentan in 2025. Of the graded crimes in Argentan, criminal damage came up most often (2025). For armed robbery, 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, 0.2% of the index here.
13recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage175
Other physical violence65
Family violence62
Sexual violence58
Burglary47
Vehicle theft19
Theft from vehicles11
Drug use96
Theft without violence85
Fraud62
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.
13
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
21.3
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
437
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.2%
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
HousingCost of living A−
Argentan gets an A− for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
The estimated advertised rent is €9.07/m² a month, close to Orne’s towns (€8.77/m²) and below compared French towns (€12.41/m²). The median price, €1,471/m², comes from 309 sales of houses and apartments in Argentan from July 2023 to June 2026.
€1,471/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Argentan€1,471/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Orne median€1,331/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,515/m²
211
Apartments
€1,416/m²
98
€9.07/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€6.46 to €12.73/m² a month)
4.3
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€7.88/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,000
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Terres d'Argentan Interco
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HealthHealth B
Argentan’s death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is lower than in 57% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 1,666 residents of Argentan died, against 1,684 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 1% fewer. Its three care homes for older people (264 places) count their residents as Argentan’s; allowing for them, deaths were 14% 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.
−14%deaths against expected, after care homesBHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw99
Adjusted86
Median town88
Expected100
12
GPs in Argentan · 2.9 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.3 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Fernand Leger Argentan
0.3 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier Fernand Leger Argentan
84.6 · 79.6
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Orne, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Tour Marguerite: Photo: Mlane78212 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Église Saint-Martin: Photo: Benjism89 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ancienne habitation de l'Abbesse des Bénédictines: Photo: Ikmo-ned · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Colonne dite des Trois Croix: Photo: Vennemann, Wolfgang · CC BY-SA 3.0 de
Fernand Léger: Carl Van Vechten, Public domain · Gérard Saint: Rundvald, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pierre-Antoine Bozo: Lucas Destrem, CC BY-SA 4.0 · André Mare: Thérèse Bonney, CC BY 4.0
Argentan’s 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 Argentan
Is Argentan safe?
It grades D for safety, #16 of 19 in Orne. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 47 burglaries and 175 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Argentan good?
They grade B, better than 63% of compared French towns and #5 of 13 in Orne. 96% of 182 candidates passed the bac at Lycée polyvalent Mézeray Gabriel in 2025, a point below the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Argentan expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,471/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. By type: houses €1,515/m² (211 sales), apartments €1,416/m² (98 sales). Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Argentan grades A− for cost of living.
About Argentan
Commune in Orne, Normandy
Argentan is a commune of 13,527 people in the Communauté de communes Terres d'Argentan Interco. 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.
