Écoche

Identity

Écoche (INSEE 42086) is in Loire (42), part of CC Charlieu-Belmont. Population 525 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Rural à habitat dispersé (level 6). ^[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/42086-ecoche

Vitality score

Vitality score 25.2/100 — Few services (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 43 % of the 17,698 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.

Services

A school, but no food shop and nowhere to eat or drink. ^[3,4]

1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE). ^[3]

1 × Post office / agence postale (ECOCHE AP). ^[3]

1 × Library (BIBLIOTHÈQUE - ÉCOCHE). ^[3]

1 × Gym / sports hall (SALLE DES SPORTS). ^[3]

Not found in the commune: Bakery (boulangerie), Butcher (boucherie), Grocery (épicerie / supérette), Supermarket, Restaurant, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle), GP (médecin généraliste), Pharmacy. ^[3,4]

Market and village life

Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.

Trajectory

Population 557 (2012) → 525 (2023): -5.7 % over 10 years. ^[5,1]

Population 371 (1990) → 525 (2023): 41.5 % over 30 years. ^[6,1]

Dwellings (2023): 329, of which 22.2 % second homes and 4.3 % vacant. ^[7]

Access and surroundings

Bakery (Arcinges): 2.8 km to the south-west (straight line). ^[8]

Food shop (Saint-Igny-de-Roche): 3.3 km to the north (straight line). ^[9]

GP (Chauffailles): 5.9 km to the north-east (straight line). ^[10]

Pharmacy (Belmont-de-la-Loire): 3.8 km to the east (straight line). ^[11]

Primary school (Écoche): 0.1 km to the east (straight line). ^[12]

Climate

An average of 27 days a year at or above 30 °C and 83 days at or below 0 °C, over 25 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[13]

Measured at the ST DENIS DE CAB weather station, 6.7 km away at 287 m; the village itself is at 450 m. ^[13]

The village sits 163 m above 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. ^[13]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 1 day a summer. ^[13]

Humidity measured at CHARLIEU, 9.5 km away at 278 m, over 10 summers. ^[13]

That station sits 172 m below the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 3.69 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. ^[13]

An average of 890 mm of rain a year, spread over 124 days — about 7.2 mm on a day it rains. ^[13]

Rainfall measured at ST DENIS DE CAB, 6.7 km away at 287 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. ^[13]

Uncertainties

No specific uncertainties flagged.

References

1. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42086/2023
2. INSEE density grid 2026
3. INSEE BPE 2025
4. INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
5. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42086/2012
6. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42086/1990
7. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 42086/logement/2023
8. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42007
9. INSEE BPE 2025 — 71428
10. INSEE BPE 2025 — 71120
11. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42015
12. INSEE BPE 2025 — 42086
13. Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024