Poitiers grades C overall: better than 28% of compared French towns. Its weakest subject is safety (D): an average of 11.6 recorded violent incidents and 27.5 recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025. At the median price of €2,143/m², a 70 m² home costs 5.9 times the median annual income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size) in the Communauté urbaine du Grand Poitiers. Its strongest is walkability (A+): 86% of residents live within 800 m of a bakery, and 35% 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.
Each subject compares Poitiers 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 Poitiers.
Work & commuteJobs & income C−
More commuters in Poitiers walk, cycle or take the bus or train than in Vienne’s towns or compared French towns: 35.4%
Jobs based in Poitiers number 62,700, against 34,150 residents in work (1.8 per worker). 15.6% of the labour force were unemployed, higher than both Vienne’s towns (8.0%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Households’ median disposable income: €22,350 a year per consumption unit.
35%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2023
Driving59%
Public transport17%
On foot12%
Bicycle6%
Motorbike or scooter1%
62,700
jobs based in Poitiers, 1.8 per working resident
15.6%
unemployment rate, ages 15 to 64 in the labor force · median of compared French towns 10.1%
€22,350
median annual income per consumption unit, 2023 · median of compared French towns €25,970
4%
worked without traveling (at or from home)
A+
Walkability: better than 96% of compared French towns
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Safety
For crime per resident, Poitiers sits above 95% of compared French towns
Poitiers ranks last of the 29 compared towns in Vienne on the Safety Grade. For 2025, the figures show 3,352 offenses locally. Criminal damage topped the graded crimes in Poitiers (2025).
11.6recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a yearDSafety Grade
Recorded by type · 2025
Criminal damage1,210
Other physical violence521
Theft from vehicles488
Family violence394
Sexual violence275
Burglary264
Vehicle theft183
Armed robbery17
Theft without violence1,292
Fraud600
Drug use370
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.
11.6
recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
27.5
recorded burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average
3,352
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.
History
A secteur sauvegardé since 1966, and 85 historic monuments
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
The earliest of these monuments dates from prehistory. Since 1966, part of the town has been a site patrimonial remarquable, a protected historic area. Per 10,000 residents, Poitiers counts 9.5 protected monuments, above Vienne’s towns (6.7) and compared French towns (2.5) alike. Among the classé monuments here is Dolmen dit La Pierre-Levée.
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
HealthHealth A−
Fewer deaths than expected: Poitiers is below 80% of compared French towns once ages and care homes are allowed for
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
Life expectancy at birth in Vienne is 85.8 years for women and 79.8 for men (2025), against 85.9 and 80.3 across France. Adjusted for age and care homes, Poitiers records 76 deaths per 100 expected, near Vienne’s towns (80) and lower than compared French towns (88). France’s death rates at each age would predict 7,378 deaths here from 2016 to 2025; there were 6,317, 14% fewer.
−24%deaths against expected, after care homesA−Health Grade
Deaths per 100 expected · 2016–2025
Raw86
Adjusted76
Median town88
Expected100
101
GPs in Poitiers · 4.7 GP consultations a year per resident within reach (APL)
1.5 mi
to the nearest emergency department, Polyclinique de Poitiers
0.9 mi
to the nearest maternity unit, Clinique du Fief de Grimoire
85.8 · 79.8
years of life expectancy at birth, women · men, Vienne, 2025 (provisional) · France 85.9 · 80.3
A young town: 27% of people in Poitiers are 15 to 24, more than in Vienne’s towns or compared French towns
14% are under 15, lower than both Vienne’s towns (16%) and compared French towns (17%). Over-65s are 16% of the population. Degrees are held by just over two in five adults.
30median age
PoitiersVienne medianFrance median
Ages · share of residents
27%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Highest diploma · residents 15 and older who have left education
No diploma17%
CAP or BEP18%
Baccalauréat18%
Higher education42%
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
WomenFrance medianMen
About 87 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Vienne 52.1%, France 51.8%.
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
HousingCost of living C+
Poitiers is graded a C+ for cost of living
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
Houses in Poitiers sell for €2,054/m² and apartments for €2,197/m². The median price, €2,143/m², comes from 3,602 sales of houses and apartments locally from July 2023 to June 2026. For a house, the estimated advertised rent is €9.91/m² a month.
€2,143/m²median sale price
Median sale price per m² · Jul 2023 to Jun 2026
Poitiers€2,143/m²
Median of towns€2,430/m²
Vienne median€1,790/m²
By type
Median per m²
Sales
Houses
€2,054/m²
1,227
Apartments
€2,197/m²
2,375
€12.18/m²
estimated advertised apartment rent a month, charges included (€9.83 to €15.08/m² a month)
5.9
times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality, for 70 m² at the median price
€9.91/m²
estimated advertised house rent a month, charges included
€25,460
median annual income per consumption unit, Communauté urbaine du Grand Poitiers
Dolmen dit La Pierre-Levée: Photo: Arseni Mourzenko · CC BY 3.0 · Baptistère Saint-Jean: Photo: Sumolari, B25es · Public domain · Hypogée des Dunes: Photo: Sapiens92 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Hilaire de Poitiers: Richard de Montbaston et collaborateurs., Public domain · Jean-Pierre Thiollet: Lénix, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Louis Vierne: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain · Brian Joubert: David W. Carmichael, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lionel Charbonnier: Christophe95, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Abel Bonnard: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
Poitiers’ 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 Poitiers
Is Poitiers safe?
It grades D for safety. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 264 burglaries and 1,210 acts of criminal damage.
Are schools in Poitiers good?
They grade C, better than 35% of compared French towns and #16 of 26 in Vienne. The lycée stands out: 100% of 91 candidates passed the bac at Lycée privé l'Union Chrétienne 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 Poitiers expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €2,143/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Estimated advertised apartment rents are €12.18/m² a month, charges included. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Poitiers grades C+ for cost of living.
About Poitiers
Commune in Vienne, Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Poitiers is a commune of 89,916 people in the Communauté urbaine du Grand Poitiers. 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.
