Residents’ health trails most towns: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 13% above expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Cost of living is weaker too — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 7.2 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here: 97% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 27% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. Schools are another plus (B+): bac results 3.9 points above the expected rate; brevet results 2.5 points above the expected rate. The overall grade comes out at C−, better than nearly a quarter of compared French towns. Its place in the ranking is #18 of 24 in Somme.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · 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 Mers-les-Bains 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 Mers-les-Bains.
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More people in Mers-les-Bains are out of work than in Somme’s towns or across compared French towns: 22.4%
Jobs located in Mers-les-Bains: 2,050, for 700 residents in work (2.9 each). At the census, 26.5% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, higher than both Somme’s towns (17.3%) and compared French towns (13.4%). After tax and benefits, the median income is €22,890 a year per consumption unit.
27%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving67%
On foot21%
Public transport3%
Motorbike or scooter3%
Bicycle3%
2,050
jobs based in Mers-les-Bains, 2.9 per working resident
22.4%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,890
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 93% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Fewer children live in Mers-les-Bains than in Somme’s towns or compared French towns: 9.8% are under 15
People aged 15 to 24 make up 8% of the town, lower than both Somme’s towns (12%) and compared French towns (11%). Over-65s are 38% of the population. Half the people of Mers-les-Bains are older than 58.3.
58.3median age
Mers-les-BainsSomme medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
38%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma39%
CAP or BEP29%
Baccalauréat12%
Higher education13%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 85 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Somme 52.5%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Somme median and France median: the median of compared communes
HealthHealth D
More deaths than Mers-les-Bains’ ages would predict, 113 per 100 expected, above Somme’s towns and compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 416 residents of Mers-les-Bains died, against 369 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 13% more. Life expectancy at birth in Somme is 84 years for women and 78.3 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. For a family doctor, residents of Mers-les-Bains can choose among 5 GPs.
+13%deaths against expected, after care homesDHealth Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw113
Adjusted113
Median town88
Expected100
5
GPs in Mers-les-Bains · 3.5 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
1.6 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Antenne de Smur Eu du Ch de Dieppe
17.1 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Ch Dieppe
84 · 78.3
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Somme, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
A typical home in Mers-les-Bains sells for €2,477/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
No town in Somme costs more to buy into than Mers-les-Bains, at €2,477/m², the highest of 24. A house in Mers-les-Bains goes for €2,156/m², an apartment for €2,780/m². Renting a house costs an estimated €9.13/m² a month.
€2,477/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Mers-les-Bains€2,477/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Somme median€1,799/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,156/m²
126
Apartments
€2,780/m²
133
€11.69/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.29 to €14.72/m² a month)
7.2
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.13/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,010
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes des Villes Sœurs
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Schools
Brevet results near Mers-les-Bains run low: 83.1% passed, below Somme’s towns and compared French towns
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Vocational results within 5 km: 88% passed the bac pro, of 96 candidates at 2 lycées. At the lycées within 5 km of Mers-les-Bains, 94.7% passed the bac, higher than both Somme’s towns (92.6%) and compared French towns (92.9%). For exam results, it comes #8 of 24 in Somme.
98%passed the bac (general and technological)B+School Grade
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Mers-les-Bains ranks above 70% of compared French towns for crime per resident
All told, Mers-les-Bains had 66 recorded offenses in 2025. Graded property crimes ran at 15.4 per 1,000 residents a year, and violence against people at 10.6 (2023–2025 average). Among the graded crimes here, the most frequent was criminal damage (2025).
10.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearCSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage35
Family violence16
Sexual violence10
Theft from vehicles5
Armed robbery0
Theft without violence21
Fraud14
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.
10.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
15.4
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
66
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
5.4%
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 · For other physical violence, burglary and vehicle theft, the count isn’t published when it’s small (five or fewer in a year of the last three), so the index uses the département’s average, 5.4% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
History
Old homes shape Mers-les-Bains: 20% were built before 1919, more than in Somme’s towns and across compared French towns
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry’s list holds 2 historic monuments in Mers-les-Bains; none is classé, France’s top protection. Its heritage reaches back to the 19th century.
2historic monuments
Monuments by protection · Mérimée
Classé0
Inscrit2
19th c.
oldest protected part
2007
first monument protected
1986
protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable)
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Mers-les-Bains
Is Mers-les-Bains safe?
It grades C for safety, #12 of 24 in Somme.
Are schools in Mers-les-Bains good?
They grade B+, better than 74% of compared French towns and #8 of 24 in Somme. The lycée stands out: 98% of 206 candidates passed the bac at Lycée Anguier 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.
Is Mers-les-Bains expensive to live in?
Estimated advertised apartment rents are €11.69/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns, so Mers-les-Bains grades C− for cost of living.
About Mers-les-Bains
Commune in Somme, Hauts-de-France
Mers-les-Bains is a commune of 2,540 people in the Communauté de communes des Villes Sœurs. 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.
