For the 6th year running, the association Villes et villages où il fait bon vivre (Towns and villages where life is good) has compiled its ranking of the best places to live in France – and indeed, the worst too. The list shows that, in 2025, Toulouse will continue the slide that began last year, falling 10 places in the rankings. So, is Toulouse a good place to live? We tell you all about it.
Toulouse’s “bon vivre” compared to other French cities
How was this ranking achieved? To obtain this ranking, the association Villes et villages où il fait bon vivre classified all the communes in mainland France. A total of 34,795.
They were based on 12 categories (quality of life, safety, transport, shops, health, education, etc.) and 187 criteria (broadband internet connection, real estate attractiveness, etc.). And three new criteria came into play this year: seismic risk, flood risk and recurrence of natural disasters.
As a result,Toulouse is now ranked 73rd (it was 63rd in 2024 and 53rd in 2023, already 20 places down on 2022, when Toulouse was 33rd).
A staggering drop, to be sure, but one that needs to be weighed against the fact that this ranking is based on 34,827 municipalities. The problem is that the trend has been persistent and downward for 5 years now… Will Toulouse make it back into the top 50 best towns and villages to live in?
Locally, in relation to the Occitanie region
On a more local level, the Ville Rose ranks very well, coming first out of the 586 départements that make up the Haute-Garonne region. Elsewhere in Occitanie, we find Castres (Tarn) in 84th place, Carcassonne (Aude) in 123rd place, Albi (Tarn) in 129th place, Narbonne (Aude) in 135th place, Tarbes (Hautes-Pyrénées) in 106th place and Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne) in 103rd place. Could this general downward trend be reversed in 2026?
For your information, Biarritz tops the list of cities and villages where life is good. It takes the place of Angers, which held the title for two years running. See you in 2026 to see if Toulouse manages to regain its position!