Where it falls short is cost of living — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 9.6 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Saint-Denis grades D− overall, better than 2% of compared French towns. Its place in the ranking is #30 of 39 in Seine-Saint-Denis. Police record more crime here than in most towns: an average of 14.4 recorded violent incidents and 26.1 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here (A+): 100% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 71% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Work and incomes lag (D): 1.7 jobs per working resident; 18.3% unemployment.
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 · recorded crime, SSMSI (Ministry of the Interior).
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-Denis 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 Saint-Denis.
Who lives here
Saint-Denis skews young, with 15% of residents aged 15 to 24, more than in Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns and across compared French towns
People 65 and over make up just over a tenth of the town, below Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns (13%) and compared French towns (22%) alike. The under-15s are 21% of the population here. Typical age in the town: 33.7, the median.
33.7median age
Saint-DenisSeine-Saint-Denis medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
15%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma33%
CAP or BEP15%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education29%
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 105 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Seine-Saint-Denis 51.1%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Seine-Saint-Denis median and France median: the median of compared communes
Work & commuteJobs & income D
Money is tighter in Saint-Denis than in Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns or compared French towns: the median disposable income is €18,130 a year per consumption unit
Unemployment stood at 18.3%, higher than both Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns (14.6%) and compared French towns (10.1%). At the census, 2.9% of working residents in Saint-Denis didn’t travel to work at all. 71.1% of Saint-Denis’ working residents walked, cycled or took public transport to work in the 2023 census, against 13% for the median of compared French towns; 24% drove.
71%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Public transport61%
Driving24%
On foot7%
Bicycle3%
Motorbike or scooter2%
101,900
jobs based in Saint-Denis, 1.7 per working resident
18.3%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€18,130
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 almost every compared French town
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living D−
Renting in Saint-Denis costs more than in Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns and across compared French towns, at an estimated advertised €20.97/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
At the median, a home went for €3,854/m², above Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns (€3,477/m²) and compared French towns (€2,430/m²) alike. Houses sell for €3,533/m² locally, apartments for €3,887/m². The sales split: 14% houses, the rest apartments.
€3,854/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Saint-Denis€3,854/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Seine-Saint-Denis median€3,477/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€3,533/m²
352
Apartments
€3,887/m²
2,096
€20.97/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€16.37 to €26.88/m² a month)
9.6
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€17.96/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€28,050
median annual income per consumption unit, Métropole du Grand Paris
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Saint-Denis records more crime per resident than 96% of compared French towns
For 2025, the figures show 5,511 offenses in Saint-Denis. With 101,900 jobs for 58,850 working residents, Saint-Denis draws people in from neighbouring communes. Among the graded crimes in the town, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
14.4recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearD−Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage1,564
Theft from vehicles1,295
Other physical violence822
Family violence734
Vehicle theft421
Sexual violence389
Burglary225
Armed robbery61
Theft without violence3,432
Drug use1,252
Fraud979
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.
14.4
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
26.1
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
5,511
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.
Schools
75.7% of candidates passed the brevet at the 59 collèges within 5 km, 2.7 points above the expected rate
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Near Saint-Denis, 85.7% of lycée candidates passed the bac, below Seine-Saint-Denis’ towns (89.0%) and compared French towns (92.9%) alike. By results, schools here place #31 of 39 in Seine-Saint-Denis.
89%passed the bac (general and technological)C−School Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
History
Saint-Denis has 17 historic monuments, 6 classé
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Among the classé monuments in Saint-Denis is Basilique Saint-Denis. Its oldest listed monument dates from the 12th century. Before 1919: that is when 5.7% of homes were built.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth B−
Allowing for age and care homes, deaths in Saint-Denis run lower than in 50% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
62 GPs practise in Saint-Denis. Its 13 care homes for older people (1,106 places) count their residents as Saint-Denis’; allowing for them, deaths were 12% below expected. 7,424 deaths in the town between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 6,915: 7% above. In Seine-Saint-Denis, women can expect to live 85.7 years and men 81 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France.
−12%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw107
Adjusted88
Median town88
Expected100
62
GPs in Saint-Denis · 4.1 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.7 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier de St Denis Hopital Delafontaine
0.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier de St Denis Hopital Delafontaine
85.7 · 81
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Seine-Saint-Denis, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Basilique Saint-Denis: Photo: Chabe01 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ancien couvent des Ursulines: Photo: Lionel Allorge · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Carmel (ancien): Photo: Claude Shoshany · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ancienne abbaye Saint-Denis, actuellement maison d'éducation de la Légion d'Honneur: Photo: Ordifana75 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Jean-Christophe Bahebeck: PSGMAG.NET, CC BY 2.0 · Thievy Bifouma: Liondartois, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Anne Vernon: Anne_Vernon_1957_in_Il_conte_Max.JPG : Caceo at the Italian Wikipedia project. derivative work: Cavarrone, Public domain · Robert Dhéry: Studio Harcourt., Public domain · Fella El Djazairia: Achraf kmd, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Paul Vialar: Studio Harcourt, Public domain
Saint-Denis’ 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 Saint-Denis
Is Saint-Denis safe?
It grades D− for safety, #34 of 39 in Seine-Saint-Denis. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 225 burglaries and 1,564 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Saint-Denis good?
They grade C−, better than 24% of compared French towns and #31 of 39 in Seine-Saint-Denis. The lycée stands out: 84% of 493 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Paul Éluard in 2025, 4 points above the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Saint-Denis expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns, so Saint-Denis grades D− for cost of living.
About Saint-Denis
Commune in Seine-Saint-Denis, Île-de-France
Saint-Denis is a commune of 149,077 people in the Métropole du Grand Paris. 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.
