Échassières
A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink.
Partly served 46.6/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 94 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.
Identity
Échassières (INSEE 03108) is in Allier (03), part of CC Saint-Pourçain Sioule Limagne. Population 364 (2023). [1]
INSEE density class: Rural à habitat très dispersé (level 7). [2]
Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026.
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/03108-echassieres
Vitality score
Vitality score 46.6/100 — Partly served (model fr-v0.2).
Confidence: high.
Better served than 94 % of the 18,057 communes of a similar size.
Compare this with communes of a similar size. The score measures how well a place is served relative to its own size band, and larger communes score higher as a rule — so it reads meaningfully against another village, and misleadingly against a town.
Measured but not scored in this model: Market. See the methodology for why.
| Component | Value (0–1) | Weight | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily food | 0.63 | 25 | 15.8 |
| Social | 0.32 | 20 | 6.32 |
| Education | 0.63 | 10 | 6.32 |
| Health | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| Public & culture | 0.63 | 5 | 3.16 |
| Population trend | 0.54 | 10 | 5.43 |
| Housing mix | 0.51 | 5 | 2.54 |
Services
What is here, at a glance
A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink. [3,4]
1 × Bakery (boulangerie) (BOULANGERIE PATISSERIE MALOT). [3,4]
1 × Butcher (boucherie) (BOUCHERIE ECHASSIERES). [3,4]
1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette) (SARL DESCAMPS). [3,4]
1 × Restaurant (LE RIS BLANC). [3,4]
1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE PUBLIQUE). [3]
1 × Post office / agence postale (ECHASSIERES AP). [3]
1 × Library (BIBLIOTHÈQUE D'ECHASSIÈRES). [3]
Not found in the commune: Supermarket, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle), GP (médecin généraliste), Pharmacy. [3,4]
All 25 service types, with per-source counts
| Type | Count | Names | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bakery (boulangerie) | 1 | BOULANGERIE PATISSERIE MALOT | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4] |
| Butcher (boucherie) | 1 | BOUCHERIE ECHASSIERES | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4] |
| Grocery (épicerie / supérette) | 1 | SARL DESCAMPS | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4] |
| Supermarket | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Cheese shop (fromagerie) | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 0 [4] | |
| Fishmonger | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Restaurant | 1 | LE RIS BLANC | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4] |
| Café / bar | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 0 [4] | |
| Nursery school (maternelle) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Primary school (élémentaire) | 1 | ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE PUBLIQUE | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Collège | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| GP (médecin généraliste) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Pharmacy | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Nurse | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Dentist | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Post office / agence postale | 1 | ECHASSIERES AP | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Library | 1 | BIBLIOTHÈQUE D'ECHASSIÈRES | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Cinema | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Gym / sports hall | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Swimming pool | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Bank | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Hairdresser | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [4] | |
| Fuel station | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [4] | |
| Hotel | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Campsite | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] |
Market and village life
Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.
Trajectory
Population 396 (2012) → 364 (2023): -8.1 % over 10 years. [5,1]
Population 349 (1990) → 364 (2023): 4.3 % over 30 years. [6,1]
Dwellings (2023): 268, of which 24.6 % second homes and 16 % vacant. [7]
Access and surroundings
Which way the everyday services lie
Bakery (Échassières): 0.1 km to the north (straight line). [8]
Food shop (Échassières): 0.1 km to the north-west (straight line). [8]
GP (Saint-Éloy-les-Mines): 8.6 km to the west (straight line). [9]
Pharmacy (Saint-Éloy-les-Mines): 8.1 km to the west (straight line). [9]
Primary school (Échassières): 0.2 km to the north (straight line). [8]
Climate
Where this sits nationally
An average of 12 days a year at or above 30 °C and 49 days at or below 0 °C, over 30 complete years in 1995–2024. [10]
Measured at the ECHASSIERES_SAPC weather station, 2 km away at 650 m; the village itself is at 568 m. [10]
The village sits 82 m below the station, so each day's reading was shifted by 6.06 °C per km of altitude before the days were counted. Expect the result to be within about 0.68 °C. [10]
Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 0 days a summer. [10]
Humidity measured at ECHASSIERES_SAPC, 2 km away at 650 m, over 13 summers. [10]
That station sits 82 m above the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 3.69 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. [10]
An average of 849 mm of rain a year, spread over 130 days — about 6.5 mm on a day it rains. [10]
Rainfall measured at ECHASSIERES_SAPC, 2 km away at 650 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. [10]
Uncertainties
No specific uncertainties flagged.
References
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 03108/2023
- INSEE density grid 2026
- INSEE BPE 2025
- INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 03108/2012
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 03108/1990
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 03108/logement/2023
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 03108
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 63338
- Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024
Villages like this one
Matched on size, density, second homes and which everyday shops and services are present — not on the score, so a village of the same kind that is doing better or worse shows up rather than being hidden.
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gilhoc-sur-Ormèze | 07 | 191 km SE | 470 | 40.5 | Partly served | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 84 % · humidity 93 % |
| Frayssinet-le-Gélat | 46 | 225 km SW | 376 | 32.5 | Few services | Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 10 % · winter 64 % · humidity 36 % |
| Varaignes | 24 | 197 km W | 358 | 35.2 | Few services | Warmer summers, similar winters.summer 62 % · winter 95 % |
| Brossac | 16 | 250 km W | 482 | 48.6 | Partly served | Warmer summers, similar winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 72 % · winter 97 % · humidity 79 % |
| Aldudes | 64 | 487 km SW | 332 | 40.8 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 72 % · winter 74 % · humidity 64 % |
| Nadaillac | 24 | 175 km SW | 372 | 39.9 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 64 % · winter 73 % · humidity 57 % |
Order by distance instead
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nadaillac | 24 | 175 km SW | 372 | 39.9 | Few services | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 64 % · winter 73 % · humidity 57 % |
| Gilhoc-sur-Ormèze | 07 | 191 km SE | 470 | 40.5 | Partly served | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 84 % · humidity 93 % |
| Varaignes | 24 | 197 km W | 358 | 35.2 | Few services | Warmer summers, similar winters.summer 62 % · winter 95 % |
| Frayssinet-le-Gélat | 46 | 225 km SW | 376 | 32.5 | Few services | Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 10 % · winter 64 % · humidity 36 % |
| Brossac | 16 | 250 km W | 482 | 48.6 | Partly served | Warmer summers, similar winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 72 % · winter 97 % · humidity 79 % |
| Aldudes | 64 | 487 km SW | 332 | 40.8 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 72 % · winter 74 % · humidity 64 % |
Sort and compare these on the full list →
…and in much the same climate
The same match on size and services, narrowed to communes whose summers, winters and summer humidity are all close to Échassières's. All three are required, so this section is absent for the 11.8 % of communes with no humidity station near enough to measure: two temperature axes alone cannot tell a muggy coast from a dry one.
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lussac-les-Églises | 87 | 137 km W | 462 | 39.4 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 95 % · humidity 86 % |
| Saint-Désiré | 03 | 52 km NW | 424 | 34.3 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 89 % · humidity 93 % |
| Villossanges | 63 | 37 km SW | 359 | 24.4 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 86 % · humidity 100 % |
| Gorses | 46 | 170 km SW | 345 | 32 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 92 % · humidity 93 % |
| Meilhards | 19 | 121 km SW | 545 | 32.3 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 88 % · humidity 93 % |
| Arleuf | 58 | 127 km NE | 637 | 38.5 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 91 % · humidity 93 % |
Elsewhere
Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/03108-echassieres