Cost of living is its strong suit (A−) — at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 3.4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Few people walk, cycle or take the bus to work (C). Work and incomes lag: 0.6 jobs per working resident; 9.1% unemployment. 14% of homes here are second homes.
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025 · commuting and employment, INSEE census 2023. Foussais-Payré has subject grades but no overall grade: French towns get one from 2,500 residents.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas.
Each subject compares Foussais-Payré 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 Foussais-Payré.
HousingCost of living A−
Buying in Foussais-Payré costs less than in both Vendée’s towns and compared French towns: the median sale is €1,188/m²
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Advertised rents are estimated at €9.85/m² a month, below Vendée’s towns (€11.32/m²) and compared French towns (€12.41/m²) alike. Renting a house costs an estimated €7.93/m² a month. From July 2023 to June 2026, 75 homes were sold in Foussais-Payré.
€1,188/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Foussais-Payré€1,188/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Vendée median€2,339/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€1,188/m²
75
€9.85/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€7.67 to €12.65/m² a month)
3.4
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€7.93/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€24,500
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté de communes Pays de Fontenay-Vendée
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Work & commuteJobs & income C
Money is tighter in Foussais-Payré than in Vendée’s towns or compared French towns: the median disposable income is €24,430 a year per consumption unit
At the census, 6.6% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, lower than both Vendée’s towns (7.6%) and compared French towns (13.4%). Nearly a tenth of people in the labour force have no job.
7%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving84%
On foot4%
Bicycle2%
Motorbike or scooter1%
Public transport1%
300
jobs based in Foussais-Payré, 0.6 per working resident
9.1%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€24,430
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
9%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
C
Walkability: better than 26% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Who lives here
Foussais-Payré skews older, with 27% of residents 65 or over, more than in both Vendée’s towns and compared French towns
People aged 15 to 24 make up nearly a tenth of the town, below both Vendée’s towns (9.9%) and compared French towns (11%). Among adults, 28% have a degree. The median resident of Foussais-Payré is 49.2 years old.
49.2median age
Foussais-PayréVendée medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
27%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma15%
CAP or BEP31%
Baccalauréat19%
Higher education28%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About an even split. Median share of women: Vendée 50.9%, France 51.8%.
INSEE, census 2023 · Vendée median and France median: the median of compared communes
History
Foussais-Payré keeps more of its old housing than Vendée’s towns or compared French towns: 39% built before 1919
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The Culture ministry lists 4 historic monuments in Foussais-Payré: 1 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 3 inscrit (the second level). A protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable) has covered part of the town since 2000. Protection here reaches back to the 13th century.
4historic monuments
Monuments by protection · Mérimée
Classé1
Inscrit3
13th c.
oldest protected part
1862
first monument protected
2000
protected historic area (site patrimonial remarquable)
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth B−
Foussais-Payré has a higher adjusted death rate than 52% of compared French towns
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Life expectancy in Vendée: 85.5 years for women and 80.2 for men (2025); France averages 85.9 and 80.3. 112 deaths in Foussais-Payré between 2016 and 2025, where France’s rates at each age predict 126: 11% below. Also worth knowing: the nearest emergency department to Foussais-Payré is Centre hospitalier site du Pole Sante Sud Vendee, 8 mi away.
−11%deaths against expected, after care homesB−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw89
Adjusted89
Median town88
Expected100
0
GPs in Foussais-Payré · 2.5 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
8 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Centre hospitalier site du Pole Sante Sud Vendee
8 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Centre hospitalier site du Pole Sante Sud Vendee
85.5 · 80.2
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Vendée, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
Questions about Foussais-Payré
Is Foussais-Payré safe?
Foussais-Payré has no Safety Grade: over a quarter of its index would rest on the département’s average. Recorded figures: an average of 6.5 recorded violent incidents and 9.2 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Is Foussais-Payré expensive to live in?
Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Foussais-Payré grades A− for cost of living.
About Foussais-Payré
Commune in Vendée, Pays de la Loire
Foussais-Payré is a commune of 1,168 people in the Communauté de communes Pays de Fontenay-Vendée. 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.
