Several subjects drag its grade down. Schools lag (D): bac results 9 points below the expected rate; brevet results 4.2 points below the expected rate. At C− overall, Valréas is better than 16% of compared French towns and ranks #26 of 38 in Vaucluse. Residents’ health trails most towns: after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 1% above expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. Fewer journeys need a car (A−): 80% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 13% of working residents walk, cycle or take public transport to work. It is strong on cost of living as well (B+) — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 5.5 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality.
Figures: amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting, INSEE census 2023 · prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025).
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 Valréas 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 Valréas.
Schools
Fewer pass the bac at the lycées near Valréas than in Vaucluse’s towns or compared French towns: 74.0%
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Schools rank #34 of 36 in Vaucluse. Near Valréas, nearly four fifths of collège pupils passed the brevet, below both Vaucluse’s towns (83.5%) and compared French towns (87.5%). For the general bac, the closest lycée is 7.5 mi away.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
History
10 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2026
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Its heritage reaches back to the 14th century. Part of the town has been a protected historic area, a site patrimonial remarquable, since 2026. Valréas has 11 protected monuments per 10,000 residents, above both Vaucluse’s towns (5.3) and compared French towns (2.5). Among the classé monuments locally is Ancien couvent des Cordeliers.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth C−
Valréas’ death rate, adjusted for age and care homes, is higher than in 81% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Adjusted for age and care homes, Valréas records 101 deaths per 100 expected, above both Vaucluse’s towns (91) and compared French towns (88). 1,417 deaths locally between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 1,181: 20% above. Women in Vaucluse live to 85.7 on average and men to 80.3 (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. For a family doctor, residents of Valréas can choose among 3 GPs.
+1%deaths against expected, after care homesC−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw120
Adjusted101
Median town88
Expected100
3
GPs in Valréas · 2.9 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
0.1 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier Jules Niel de Valreas
16.7 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Groupement hospitalier Portes Provence Montelimar
85.7 · 80.3
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Vaucluse, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
Incomes in Valréas run lower than in Vaucluse’s towns or compared French towns: a median €20,770 a year per consumption unit
Unemployment stood at 12.6%, above both Vaucluse’s towns (11.1%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Per resident in work, Valréas counts 1.2 jobs (3,750 jobs, 3,100 workers). 4.6% of Valréas’ working residents had no journey to work at the census.
13%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving81%
On foot9%
Bicycle3%
Public transport1%
Motorbike or scooter1%
3,750
jobs based in Valréas, 1.2 per working resident
12.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€20,770
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 77% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Valréas skews older, with 30% of residents 65 or over, more than Vaucluse’s towns or compared French towns
Young adults of 15 to 24 account for 9.4% of the town. The median resident of Valréas is 49.4 years old. Children under 15 make up 16%, close to both Vaucluse’s towns (17%) and compared French towns (17%).
49.4median age
ValréasVaucluse medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
30%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma29%
CAP or BEP28%
Baccalauréat17%
Higher education20%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 92 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Vaucluse 51.9%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
INSEE, census 2023 · Vaucluse median and France median: the median of compared communes
HousingCost of living B+
Estimated advertised rents run lower in Valréas than in Vaucluse’s towns or across compared French towns: €9.35/m² a month
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Valréas is the cheapest of the 47 towns in Vaucluse: its median sale is €1,867/m². 327 sales of houses and apartments locally, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €1,867/m². Houses sell for €2,080/m² locally, apartments for €981/m².
€1,867/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Valréas€1,867/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Vaucluse median€2,616/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,080/m²
244
Apartments
€981/m²
83
€9.35/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.34 to €11.89/m² a month)
5.5
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€8.58/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€23,790
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Enclave des Papes-Pays de Grignan
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
Per resident, Valréas sees more crime than 63% of compared French towns
On average over 2023–2025, every 1,000 residents saw 9.6 violent offenses and 14.7 graded property crimes a year. Valréas’s tally for 2025: 213 recorded offenses. Of the graded crimes locally, criminal damage came up most often (2025).
9.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearC+Safety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage89
Other physical violence38
Family violence34
Burglary26
Vehicle theft9
Theft from vehicles9
Sexual violence8
Fraud66
Theft without violence41
Drug use30
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.
9.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
14.7
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
213
offenses recorded in the graded categories in 2025
0.8%
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 · Small counts of armed robbery go unpublished (five or fewer in at least one of the last three years); the département’s average stands in, 0.8% of the index here. The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Nearby attractions
Couvent des Cordeliers de Valréas and 3 more in and around Valréas
Heritage, museums and other places to visit in and near Valréas. Best known first.
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Valréas
Is Valréas safe?
It grades C+ for safety, #28 of 38 in Vaucluse. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 26 burglaries and 89 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Valréas good?
They grade D, better than 6% of compared French towns and #34 of 36 in Vaucluse. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Is Valréas expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,867/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Valréas grades B+ for cost of living.
About Valréas
Commune in Vaucluse, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Valréas is a commune of 9,224 people in the Communauté de communes Enclave des Papes-Pays de Grignan. 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
Population
9,224 (INSEE, census 2023)
Intercommunality
Communauté de communes Enclave des Papes-Pays de Grignan
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.
