Les Houches

Haute-Savoie · CC de la Vallée de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc · INSEE 74143

A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink.

Partly served 48.7/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 48 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.

Identity

Les Houches (INSEE 74143) is in Haute-Savoie (74), part of CC de la Vallée de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Population 3,515 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Petites villes (level 3). ^[2]

Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026 · Commune website 2026-10-24.

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/74143-les-houches

Vitality score

Vitality score 48.7/100 — Partly served (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 48 % of the 6,258 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	0.2	25	5.12
Social	0.76	20	15.25
Education	0.53	10	5.28
Health	0.47	10	4.67
Public & culture	0.22	5	1.11
Population trend	1	10	10
Housing mix	0	5	0

Services

What is here, at a glance

Food 4 of 6

Eating out 1 of 1

Cafés and bars 1 of 1

Schools 1 of 3

Health 2 of 4

Public services 1 of 1

Culture 1 of 2

Sport 0 of 2

Everyday services 3 of 3

Lodging 2 of 2

One square per service type, shaded by how many: none, one, a few, five or more. A blank square means none was counted — the sources do not distinguish “none here” from “not counted”.

A food shop, a school and somewhere to eat or drink. ^[3,4]

1 × Bakery (boulangerie) (ERIC JACQUIER PATISSERIE). ^[3,4]

2 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette) (ERIC JACQUIER PATISSERIE SNC · LE REFUGE PAYOT). ^[3,4]

2 × Supermarket (SUPER MARCHE PAYOT PERTIN SA · CARREFOUR CONTACT). ^[3,4]

1 × Fishmonger. ^[3,4]

24 × Restaurant (RESTAURANT LE HORS-PISTES · PERERA HEWATANTRIGE · LA BARAQUE A PIZZ · AUBERGE DU BALCON DE MERLET). ^[3,4]

3 × Café / bar (THE WINE FACTORY · CHEZ LOUIS). ^[4]

3 × Primary school (élémentaire) (ECOLE PRIMAIRE PRIVEE LES GLACIERS · ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE · ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE PRIVEE POUSSIERES D'ETOILES). ^[3]

5 × GP (médecin généraliste) (MATHILDE LARUE, MÉDECIN · NATHALIE PACHE-VILLE, MÉDECIN · MARIE-EUGENIE COTTIN-EUZIOL, MÉDECIN · MALLORY ANDRIANTAVY GUYON, MÉDECIN · EMELINE DUCHENE, MÉDECIN). ^[3]

1 × Pharmacy (PHARMACIE DES HOUCHES). ^[3,4]

1 × Post office / agence postale (LES HOUCHES AGENCE POSTALE AP). ^[3]

1 × Library (BIBLIOTHÈQUE DES HOUCHES SITE DE LA CCVCMB). ^[3]

1 × Bank (CAHS LES HOUCHES). ^[3]

3 × Hairdresser (ATELIER 141). ^[3,4]

2 × Fuel station (STATION SERVICE). ^[3,4]

6 × Hotel (FONTAINE DU MONT-BLANC HOTEL · CHALET HÔTEL CLUB LES CAMPANULES · ROCKY POP HOTEL · LE SAINT ANTOINE · HOTEL DU BOIS). ^[3,4]

1 × Campsite (CAMPING BELLEVUE). ^[3]

Not counted, because the business register records them as closed: 1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette), 6 × Restaurant, 2 × Hairdresser, 2 × Hotel.

Not found in the commune: Butcher (boucherie), Nursery school (maternelle). ^[3,4]

All 25 service types, with per-source counts

Type	Count	Names	Sources
Bakery (boulangerie)	1	ERIC JACQUIER PATISSERIE	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 2 [3,4]
Butcher (boucherie)	0		INSEE BPE 0 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3,4]
Grocery (épicerie / supérette)	2	ERIC JACQUIER PATISSERIE SNC · LE REFUGE PAYOT	INSEE SIRENE 2 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4]
Supermarket	2	SUPER MARCHE PAYOT PERTIN SA · CARREFOUR CONTACT	INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 2 [3,4]
Cheese shop (fromagerie)	0		INSEE SIRENE 0 [4]
Fishmonger	1		INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Restaurant	24	RESTAURANT LE HORS-PISTES · PERERA HEWATANTRIGE · LA BARAQUE A PIZZ · AUBERGE DU BALCON DE MERLET	INSEE BPE 24 / INSEE SIRENE 34 [3,4]
Café / bar	3	THE WINE FACTORY · CHEZ LOUIS	INSEE SIRENE 3 [4]
Nursery school (maternelle)	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Primary school (élémentaire)	3	ECOLE PRIMAIRE PRIVEE LES GLACIERS · ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE · ECOLE ELEMENTAIRE PRIVEE POUSSIERES D'ETOILES	INSEE BPE 3 [3]
Collège	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
GP (médecin généraliste)	5	MATHILDE LARUE, MÉDECIN · NATHALIE PACHE-VILLE, MÉDECIN · MARIE-EUGENIE COTTIN-EUZIOL, MÉDECIN · MALLORY ANDRIANTAVY GUYON, MÉDECIN · EMELINE DUCHENE, MÉDECIN	INSEE BPE 5 [3]
Pharmacy	1	PHARMACIE DES HOUCHES	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	LES HOUCHES AGENCE POSTALE AP	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Library	1	BIBLIOTHÈQUE DES HOUCHES SITE DE LA CCVCMB	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	1	CAHS LES HOUCHES	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Hairdresser	3	ATELIER 141	INSEE BPE 3 / INSEE SIRENE 4 [3,4]
Fuel station	2	STATION SERVICE	INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 3 [3,4]
Hotel	6	FONTAINE DU MONT-BLANC HOTEL · CHALET HÔTEL CLUB LES CAMPANULES · ROCKY POP HOTEL · LE SAINT ANTOINE · HOTEL DU BOIS	INSEE BPE 6 / INSEE SIRENE 38 [3,4]
Campsite	1	CAMPING BELLEVUE	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3]

Market and village life

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

Trajectory

1968: 1,243 2023: 3,515 axis from zero, so the slope compares with any other commune

Population 2,967 (2012) → 3,515 (2023): 18.5 % over 10 years. ^[5,1]

Population 1,947 (1990) → 3,515 (2023): 80.5 % over 30 years. ^[6,1]

Dwellings (2023): 4,725, of which 61.5 % second homes and 3.7 % vacant. ^[7]

Access and surroundings

Which way the everyday services lie

In the commune Bakery, Food shop, Primary school, GP, Pharmacy Straight-line, from the mairie, in the direction given. Services in the same town share a spoke. Distance is not travel time: a pass or an estuary can double it.

Bakery (Les Houches): 0.1 km to the north-west (straight line). ^[8]

Food shop (Les Houches): 0 km to the south (straight line). ^[8]

GP (Les Houches): 0 km to the south-west (straight line). ^[8]

Pharmacy (Les Houches): 0.1 km to the south-west (straight line). ^[8]

Primary school (Les Houches): 0.2 km to the north (straight line). ^[8]

Climate

Where this sits nationally

Days at or above 30 °C 6.8

Days at or below 0 °C 133.4▸

Muggy days a summer 0

Each track runs from the 5th to the 95th percentile of the 34,141 communes with that measurement; the tick is the median. A value beyond either end sits at the end and is marked ▸.

An average of 7 days a year at or above 30 °C and 133 days at or below 0 °C, over 30 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[9]

Measured at the HOUCHES (LES) weather station, 0.3 km away at 1,004 m; the village itself is at 1,014 m. ^[9]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 0 days a summer. ^[9]

Humidity measured at CHAMONIX, 7.5 km away at 1,042 m, over 30 summers. ^[9]

An average of 1,246 mm of rain a year, spread over 127 days — about 9.8 mm on a day it rains. ^[9]

Rainfall measured at HOUCHES (LES), 0.3 km away at 1,004 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. ^[9]

Uncertainties

No specific uncertainties flagged.

References

INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 74143/2023
INSEE density grid 2026
INSEE BPE 2025
INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 74143/2012
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 74143/1990
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 74143/logement/2023
INSEE BPE 2025 — 74143
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
Amélie-les-Bains-Palalda	66	503 km SW	3,529	55.8	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 0 % · humidity 21 %
Saint-Martin-de-Ré	17	631 km W	2,355	58.4	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 95 % · winter 0 % · humidity 64 %
Deauville	14	634 km NW	3,539	62.9	Served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %
Bray-Dunes	59	656 km NW	4,189	48.6	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %
Roscoff	29	871 km NW	3,334	53.9	Partly served	Cooler summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 82 % · winter 0 % · humidity 93 %
Bénodet	29	857 km W	3,849	57.4	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %

Order by distance instead

Commune	Dept	Distance	Population	Score	Band	Climate vs here
Amélie-les-Bains-Palalda	66	503 km SW	3,529	55.8	Partly served	Warmer summers and milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 0 % · humidity 21 %
Saint-Martin-de-Ré	17	631 km W	2,355	58.4	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 95 % · winter 0 % · humidity 64 %
Deauville	14	634 km NW	3,539	62.9	Served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %
Bray-Dunes	59	656 km NW	4,189	48.6	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %
Bénodet	29	857 km W	3,849	57.4	Partly served	Similar summers, milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 90 % · winter 0 % · humidity 86 %
Roscoff	29	871 km NW	3,334	53.9	Partly served	Cooler summers and milder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 82 % · winter 0 % · humidity 93 %

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 Les Houches'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
Villard-de-Lans	38	133 km SW	4,328	62.4	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 97 % · humidity 100 %
Morteau	25	131 km N	6,953	67.8	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 85 % · humidity 100 %
Megève	74	15 km W	2,893	69.9	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 91 % · humidity 100 %
Saint-Chaffrey	05	108 km S	1,494	55.7	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 97 % · humidity 100 %
Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via	66	535 km SW	1,762	58.1	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 85 % · humidity 100 %
Maîche	25	152 km N	4,254	55.5	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 92 % · winter 86 % · humidity 100 %

Elsewhere

Commune website · Wikipedia (en) ·Wikipedia (fr) · INSEE dossier complet · OpenStreetMap · Web search · Map

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/74143-les-houches