Beaufay
A food shop and a school, but nowhere to eat or drink.
Few services 38.4/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 43 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.
Identity
Beaufay (INSEE 72026) is in Sarthe (72), part of CC Maine Saosnois. Population 1,522 (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/72026-beaufay
Vitality score
Vitality score 38.4/100 — Few services (model fr-v0.2).
Confidence: high.
Better served than 43 % of the 11,527 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 | 0.26 | 25 | 6.56 |
| Social | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| Education | 0.39 | 10 | 3.93 |
| Health | 0.63 | 10 | 6.29 |
| Public & culture | 0.39 | 5 | 1.97 |
| Population trend | 0.93 | 10 | 9.32 |
| Housing mix | 0.91 | 5 | 4.53 |
Services
What is here, at a glance
A food shop and a school, but nowhere to eat or drink. [3,4]
1 × Bakery (boulangerie). [3,4]
1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette). [3,4]
1 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE). [3]
4 × GP (médecin généraliste) (JUAN RAMOS, MÉDECIN · ANGÉLA MARIN PERALTA, MÉDECIN · ANA LUQUE PALOMO, MÉDECIN · ALBERTO EUGENIO ECHEVARRIA VASQUEZ, MÉDECIN). [3]
1 × Pharmacy (PHARMACIE GAUTIER). [3,4]
1 × Post office / agence postale (BEAUFAY AP). [3]
1 × Library (PÔLE-LECTURE DE BEAUFAY). [3]
1 × Gym / sports hall (SALLE POLYVALENTE). [3]
1 × Hairdresser (L'HAIR DE LA COUPE). [3,4]
Not counted, because the business register records them as closed: 1 × Bakery (boulangerie), 1 × Hairdresser.
Not found in the commune: Butcher (boucherie), Supermarket, Restaurant, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle). [3,4]
All 25 service types, with per-source counts
| Type | Count | Names | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bakery (boulangerie) | 1 | INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4] | |
| Butcher (boucherie) | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4] | |
| Grocery (épicerie / supérette) | 1 | 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 | 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 PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Collège | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| GP (médecin généraliste) | 4 | JUAN RAMOS, MÉDECIN · ANGÉLA MARIN PERALTA, MÉDECIN · ANA LUQUE PALOMO, MÉDECIN · ALBERTO EUGENIO ECHEVARRIA VASQUEZ, MÉDECIN | INSEE BPE 4 [3] |
| Pharmacy | 1 | PHARMACIE GAUTIER | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4] |
| Nurse | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Dentist | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Post office / agence postale | 1 | BEAUFAY AP | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Library | 1 | PÔLE-LECTURE DE BEAUFAY | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Cinema | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Gym / sports hall | 1 | SALLE POLYVALENTE | INSEE BPE 1 [3] |
| Swimming pool | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Bank | 0 | INSEE BPE 0 [3] | |
| Hairdresser | 1 | L'HAIR DE LA COUPE | INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 4 [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 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 1,402 (2012) → 1,522 (2023): 8.6 % over 10 years. [5,1]
Population 1,063 (1990) → 1,522 (2023): 43.2 % over 30 years. [6,1]
Dwellings (2023): 747, of which 4.7 % second homes and 8.3 % vacant. [7]
Access and surroundings
Which way the everyday services lie
Bakery (Torcé-en-Vallée): 2.8 km to the south-east (straight line). [8]
Food shop (Beaufay): 0.1 km to the north (straight line). [9]
GP (Beaufay): 0.3 km to the east (straight line). [9]
Pharmacy (Beaufay): 0.1 km to the north (straight line). [9]
Primary school (Beaufay): 0.1 km to the south-east (straight line). [9]
Climate
Where this sits nationally
An average of 23 days a year at or above 30 °C and 58 days at or below 0 °C, over 21 complete years in 1995–2024. [10]
Measured at the SAINT CORNEILLE weather station, 7.6 km away at 62 m; the village itself is at 91 m. [10]
Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 1 day a summer. [10]
Humidity measured at LE LUART, 18.7 km away at 112 m, over 20 summers. [10]
An average of 777 mm of rain a year, spread over 124 days — about 6.3 mm on a day it rains. [10]
Rainfall measured at BONNETABLE, 5.7 km away at 106 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. [10]
What property sold for
111 houses sold between 2021 and 2025, at a median of 139,000 € — 1,284 € per m² of built surface. [11]
The median across Sarthe is 1,300 € per m², so this commune sits about level with 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 — 72026/2023
- INSEE density grid 2026
- INSEE BPE 2025
- INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 72026/2012
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 72026/1990
- INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 72026/logement/2023
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 72359
- INSEE BPE 2025 — 72026
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bonnes | 86 | 172 km S | 1,688 | 35.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
| Braud-et-Saint-Louis | 33 | 331 km S | 1,527 | 42.9 | Partly served | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 100 % · winter 50 % · humidity 36 % |
| Cadalen | 81 | 494 km S | 1,547 | 44.9 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 59 % · winter 82 % · humidity 79 % |
| Ayron | 86 | 167 km S | 1,085 | 39 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel more humid.summer 95 % · winter 86 % · humidity 79 % |
| Reignac | 33 | 331 km S | 1,628 | 46.5 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 74 % · winter 77 % · humidity 50 % |
| Dignac | 16 | 288 km S | 1,362 | 39.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
Order by distance instead
| Commune | Dept | Distance | Population | Score | Band | Climate vs here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ayron | 86 | 167 km S | 1,085 | 39 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel more humid.summer 95 % · winter 86 % · humidity 79 % |
| Bonnes | 86 | 172 km S | 1,688 | 35.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
| Dignac | 16 | 288 km S | 1,362 | 39.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
| Reignac | 33 | 331 km S | 1,628 | 46.5 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 74 % · winter 77 % · humidity 50 % |
| Braud-et-Saint-Louis | 33 | 331 km S | 1,527 | 42.9 | Partly served | Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 100 % · winter 50 % · humidity 36 % |
| Cadalen | 81 | 494 km S | 1,547 | 44.9 | Partly served | Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 59 % · winter 82 % · humidity 79 % |
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 Beaufay'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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bonnes | 86 | 172 km S | 1,688 | 35.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
| Dignac | 16 | 288 km S | 1,362 | 39.1 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 92 % · humidity 86 % |
| Villefranche-d'Allier | 03 | 271 km SE | 1,238 | 36.2 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 91 % · humidity 93 % |
| Broût-Vernet | 03 | 310 km SE | 1,217 | 48.2 | Partly served | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 97 % · humidity 100 % |
| Villevocance | 07 | 458 km SE | 1,165 | 39.6 | Few services | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 92 % · humidity 100 % |
| Joze | 63 | 338 km SE | 1,183 | 45.1 | Partly served | Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 85 % · humidity 93 % |
Elsewhere
Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map
Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/72026-beaufay