Biches
A school, but no food shop and nowhere to eat or drink.
No daily shops 16.4/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 37 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.
Identity
Biches (INSEE 58030) is in Nièvre (58), part of CC Bazois Loire Morvan. Population 240 (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/58030-biches
Vitality score
Vitality score 16.4/100 — No daily shops (model fr-v0.2).
Confidence: high.
Better served than 37 % of the 17,060 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 | 25 | 0 |
| Social | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| Education | 0.63 | 10 | 6.32 |
| Health | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| Public & culture | 0.63 | 5 | 3.16 |
| Population trend | 0.26 | 10 | 2.59 |
| Housing mix | 0.38 | 5 | 1.88 |
Services
What is here, at a glance
A school, but no food shop and nowhere to eat or drink. [3,4]
1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE). [3]
1 × Post office / agence postale (BICHES AP). [3]
1 × Library (POINT LECTURE DE BICHES RÉSEAU DES MÉDIATHÈQUES DU BAZOIS). [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]
All 25 service types, with per-source counts
| Type | Count | Names | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bakery (boulangerie) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Butcher (boucherie) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Grocery (épicerie / supérette) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [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 | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Café / bar | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 0 [4] | |
| Nursery school (maternelle) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Primary school (élémentaire) | 1 | ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE | 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 | BICHES AP | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Library | 1 | POINT LECTURE DE BICHES RÉSEAU DES MÉDIATHÈQUES DU BAZOIS | 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 BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Fuel station | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Hotel | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Campsite | 0 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [4] |
Market and village life
Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.
Trajectory
Population 315 (2012) → 240 (2023): -23.8 % over 10 years. [5,1]
Population 316 (1990) → 240 (2023): -24.1 % over 30 years. [6,1]
Dwellings (2023): 263, of which 31.2 % second homes and 13.7 % vacant. [7]
Access and surroundings
Which way the everyday services lie
Bakery (Châtillon-en-Bazois): 5 km to the north (straight line). [8]
Food shop (Châtillon-en-Bazois): 4.3 km to the north (straight line). [8]
GP (Châtillon-en-Bazois): 5.5 km to the north (straight line). [8]
Pharmacy (Châtillon-en-Bazois): 5 km to the north (straight line). [8]
Primary school (Biches): 0 km to the south-east (straight line). [9]
Climate
Where this sits nationally
An average of 21 days a year at or above 30 °C and 75 days at or below 0 °C, over 18 complete years in 1995–2024. [10]
Measured at the ANLEZY weather station, 12.1 km away at 220 m; the village itself is at 247 m. [10]
Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 2 days a summer. [10]
Humidity measured at ANLEZY, 12.1 km away at 220 m, over 17 summers. [10]
An average of 1,002 mm of rain a year, spread over 135 days — about 7.4 mm on a day it rains. [10]
Rainfall measured at CHATILLON EN BA, 4.1 km away at 250 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. [10]
What property sold for
37 houses sold between 2021 and 2025, at a median of 72,000 € — 1,008 € per m² of built surface. [11]
The median across Nièvre is 893 € per m², so this commune sits above it. [11]
These are recorded sale prices, not valuations or asking prices, and a median over five years spans five different markets. Built surface excludes land, which carries much of a rural property's value.
Uncertainties
No specific uncertainties flagged.
References
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 58030/2023
- INSEE density grid 2026
- INSEE BPE 2025
- INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 58030/2012
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 58030/1990
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 58030/logement/2023
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 58065
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 58030
- Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024
- DVF (DGFiP property transactions) 2021-2025
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vitrac | 15 | 265 km SW | 268 | 18.2 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 77 % · winter 93 % · humidity 86 % |
| Lachaux | 63 | 113 km S | 273 | 18.3 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.summer 85 % · winter 85 % |
| Saint-Yrieix-les-Bois | 23 | 165 km SW | 275 | 17.6 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 72 % · winter 88 % · humidity 93 % |
| Saint-Floret | 63 | 167 km S | 243 | 19.6 | No daily shops | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 77 % · humidity 86 % |
| Barret-sur-Méouge | 05 | 345 km SE | 193 | 17.1 | No daily shops | Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 36 % · winter 66 % · humidity 86 % |
| Ars | 23 | 164 km SW | 239 | 17.6 | No daily shops | Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 72 % · humidity 93 % |
Order by distance instead
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lachaux | 63 | 113 km S | 273 | 18.3 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.summer 85 % · winter 85 % |
| Ars | 23 | 164 km SW | 239 | 17.6 | No daily shops | Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 72 % · humidity 93 % |
| Saint-Yrieix-les-Bois | 23 | 165 km SW | 275 | 17.6 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 72 % · winter 88 % · humidity 93 % |
| Saint-Floret | 63 | 167 km S | 243 | 19.6 | No daily shops | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 77 % · humidity 86 % |
| Vitrac | 15 | 265 km SW | 268 | 18.2 | No daily shops | Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 77 % · winter 93 % · humidity 86 % |
| Barret-sur-Méouge | 05 | 345 km SE | 193 | 17.1 | No daily shops | Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 36 % · winter 66 % · humidity 86 % |
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 Biches'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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manlay | 21 | 54 km E | 199 | 18.5 | No daily shops | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 97 % · humidity 86 % |
| Saint-Didier-sur-Arroux | 71 | 40 km SE | 232 | 9.5 | No daily shops | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 96 % · humidity 100 % |
| Lenax | 03 | 80 km S | 257 | 14.4 | No daily shops | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 89 % · humidity 100 % |
| Ozenay | 71 | 104 km SE | 237 | 24.5 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 95 % · humidity 100 % |
| Murat | 03 | 88 km SW | 264 | 26.3 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 91 % · humidity 100 % |
| Saint-Paul | 19 | 240 km SW | 232 | 25.7 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 85 % · humidity 86 % |
Elsewhere
Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/58030-biches