Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,347 in Val-d'Oise, Île-de-France.
Mériel grades C overall: better than 27% of compared French towns, and #24 of 73 in Val-d'Oise. Its weakest subject is schools (D): bac results 6 points below the expected rate; brevet results 4.9 points below the expected rate. At the median price of €3,565/m², a 70 m² home costs 7.9 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté de communes de la Vallée de l'Oise et des Trois Forêts. Its strongest is walkability (A): 76% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 21% 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.
The 3 things Mériel does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Mériel 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 1 historic monument in Mériel: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
The oldest protected part dates from the 12th century; the first monument here was protected in 1947.
Museums, other places to visit and heritage in and near Mériel. Best known first.
ChâteauChâteau de Méry-sur-Oise1.5 km southwest, in Méry-sur-Oise
MuseumMusée d'art et d'histoire Louis-Senlecq4.3 km north, in L'Isle-Adam
ChâteauChâteau d'Auvers3 km west, in Auvers-sur-Oise
MuseumMusée Daubigny2.6 km west, in Auvers-sur-OiseAttractionAttractionChaos Rocheuxin townPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Mériel.
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Mériel is 91.0%, above Val-d'Oise’s towns (87.0%) but below compared French towns (92.9%).
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Cécile SorelNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 126 | 94%−2 pts |
| Lycée FragonardNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 416 | 91%−6 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Advertised rents are estimated at €18.81/m² a month, close to Val-d'Oise’s towns (€18.09/m²) and above compared French towns (€12.41/m²). The median price, €3,565/m², comes from 187 sales of houses and apartments in Mériel from July 2023 to June 2026.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €3,598/m² | 140 |
| Apartments | €3,539/m² | 47 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
The median disposable income was €30,350 a year per consumption unit, above both Val-d'Oise’s towns (€28,800) and compared French towns (€25,970). 7.6% of the labour force are out of work. Mériel has 650 jobs for 2,500 working residents, 0.3 per worker.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
11% of residents are 15 to 24 and 16% are 65 or over, against 12% and 15% in the median compared commune of Val-d'Oise. 36% of adults who have left education hold a higher-education diploma (Val-d'Oise 38%, France 30%).
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Val-d'Oise 51.5%, France 51.8%.
| Mériel | Val-d'Oise median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 21% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 12% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 26% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 25% | 26% |
| 65+ | 16% | 15% | 22% |
| No diploma | 14% | 17% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 24% | 20% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 21% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 36% | 38% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Val-d'Oise median and France median: the median of compared communes
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 1 historic monument in Mériel: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 0 inscrit (the second level).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
Police and gendarmerie recorded 114 offenses in the graded categories in Mériel in 2025. For other physical violence, sexual violence and 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, 5.5% of the index here.
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
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 296 residents of Mériel died, against 336 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 12% fewer. 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. A less sure grade: it could be anywhere from C to B+.
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
Mériel has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
Abbaye du Val (ancienne): Photo: Clicsouris · CC BY-SA 3.0
Wikidata places 1 person here, but the articles don’t both confirm Mériel as the birthplace, so nobody is listed.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mériel | 5,347 | — | C | D | B | B− |
| Frépillon | 3,317 | 1.7 | C− | D | C | C− |
| Méry-sur-Oise | 9,983 | 1.7 | C− | D | C+ | B− |
| Auvers-sur-Oise | 6,863 | 2.1 | C | C− | C+ | B− |
| Bessancourt | 8,869 | 2.5 | C | D | B− | B+ |
| Parmain | 5,655 | 2.5 | C+ | C− | B+ | B |
| L'Isle-Adam | 12,493 | 2.8 | C+ | D | C− | A− |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
It grades B for safety, #11 of 73 in Val-d'Oise. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 26 burglaries and 47 acts of criminal damage.
They grade D, better than 11% of compared French towns and #41 of 76 in Val-d'Oise. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Homes cost more than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €3,565/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. By type: houses €3,598/m² (140 sales), apartments €3,539/m² (47 sales). Incomes are higher than in most compared French towns, so Mériel grades D for cost of living.
Commune in Val-d'Oise, Île-de-France
Mériel is a commune of 5,347 people in the Communauté de communes de la Vallée de l'Oise et des Trois Forêts. 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 October 30, 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.