L'Épine

Vendée · CC de l'Ile de Noirmoutier · INSEE 85083

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

Partly served 51.9/100 · confidence: high· Better served than 80 % of the {n|commune|communes} of a similar size.

Identity

L'Épine (INSEE 85083) is in Vendée (85), part of CC de l'Ile de Noirmoutier. Population 1,636 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Bourgs ruraux (level 5). ^[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/85083-l-epine

Vitality score

Vitality score 51.9/100 — Partly served (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 80 % of the 10,978 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	0.47	25	11.83
Social	0.88	20	17.59
Education	0.39	10	3.93
Health	0.39	10	3.93
Public & culture	0.39	5	1.97
Population trend	0.49	10	4.9
Housing mix	0	5	0

Services

What is here, at a glance

Food 5 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 1 of 2

Everyday services 2 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]

2 × Bakery (boulangerie) (AUX PAINS DES DUNES · LE MOULIN DE L'EPINE). ^[3,4]

1 × Butcher (boucherie) (CHARSAV). ^[3,4]

1 × Grocery (épicerie / supérette) (MARIELOUISE). ^[3,4]

1 × Supermarket (LES ETIERS II). ^[3,4]

2 × Fishmonger. ^[3,4]

8 × Restaurant (RESTAURANT L ETIER · TOUT UN PLAT · LES SAUNIERS · AU P'TIT PLAISIR · LE POISSON BULLE). ^[3,4]

3 × Café / bar (CADILLAC BAR · LABAYA). ^[4]

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

1 × GP (médecin généraliste) (LUC TANGUY, MÉDECIN). ^[3]

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

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

1 × Library (BIBLIOTHÈQUE MUNICIPALE ANGÈLE BLANCHARD). ^[3]

6 × Swimming pool (PLAGE DE LA BOSSE · PLAGE DE LA MARTINIERE · PLAGE DE L OCEAN · PLAGE DU DEVIN · PLAGE SAINT JEAN). ^[3]

2 × Hairdresser (AZURA). ^[3,4]

1 × Fuel station (STATION SERVICE). ^[3]

1 × Hotel. ^[3,4]

2 × Campsite (CAMPING GRAND MARAIS · CAMPING DE LA BOSSE). ^[3,4]

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

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

All 25 service types, with per-source counts

Type	Count	Names	Sources
Bakery (boulangerie)	2	AUX PAINS DES DUNES · LE MOULIN DE L'EPINE	INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 2 [3,4]
Butcher (boucherie)	1	CHARSAV	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Grocery (épicerie / supérette)	1	MARIELOUISE	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Supermarket	1	LES ETIERS II	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 1 [3,4]
Cheese shop (fromagerie)	0		INSEE SIRENE 0 [4]
Fishmonger	2		INSEE SIRENE 2 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4]
Restaurant	8	RESTAURANT L ETIER · TOUT UN PLAT · LES SAUNIERS · AU P'TIT PLAISIR · LE POISSON BULLE	INSEE BPE 8 / INSEE SIRENE 13 [3,4]
Café / bar	3	CADILLAC BAR · LABAYA	INSEE SIRENE 3 [4]
Nursery school (maternelle)	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Primary school (élémentaire)	1	ECOLE PRIMAIRE PUBLIQUE LES TILLEULS	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Collège	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
GP (médecin généraliste)	1	LUC TANGUY, MÉDECIN	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Pharmacy	1	PHARMACIE MARINE	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	L EPINE AP	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Library	1	BIBLIOTHÈQUE MUNICIPALE ANGÈLE BLANCHARD	INSEE BPE 1 [3]
Cinema	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Gym / sports hall	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Swimming pool	6	PLAGE DE LA BOSSE · PLAGE DE LA MARTINIERE · PLAGE DE L OCEAN · PLAGE DU DEVIN · PLAGE SAINT JEAN	INSEE BPE 6 [3]
Bank	0		INSEE BPE 0 [3]
Hairdresser	2	AZURA	INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 2 [3,4]
Fuel station	1	STATION SERVICE	INSEE BPE 1 / INSEE SIRENE 0 [3]
Hotel	1		INSEE SIRENE 1 / INSEE BPE 0 [3,4]
Campsite	2	CAMPING GRAND MARAIS · CAMPING DE LA BOSSE	INSEE BPE 2 / INSEE SIRENE 3 [3,4]

Market and village life

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

Trajectory

1968: 1,660 peak 2007: 1,707 2023: 1,636 axis from zero, so the slope compares with any other commune

Population 1,684 (2012) → 1,636 (2023): -2.9 % over 10 years. ^[5,1]

Population 1,653 (1990) → 1,636 (2023): -1 % over 30 years. ^[6,1]

Dwellings (2023): 2,359, of which 61.9 % second homes and 1.5 % 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 (L'Épine): 0.1 km to the south (straight line). ^[8]

Food shop (L'Épine): 0.2 km to the north-west (straight line). ^[8]

GP (L'Épine): 0.3 km to the south (straight line). ^[8]

Pharmacy (L'Épine): 0.1 km to the north (straight line). ^[8]

Primary school (L'Épine): 0.2 km to the south-west (straight line). ^[8]

Climate

Where this sits nationally

Days at or above 30 °C 6.5

Days at or below 0 °C 8.3▸

Muggy days a summer 3.7

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 8 days at or below 0 °C, over 30 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[9]

Measured at the NOIRMOUTIER EN weather station, 2.9 km away at 3 m; the village itself is at 3 m. ^[9]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 4 days a summer. ^[9]

Humidity measured at NOIRMOUTIER EN, 2.9 km away at 3 m, over 22 summers. ^[9]

An average of 779 mm of rain a year, spread over 119 days — about 6.5 mm on a day it rains. ^[9]

Rainfall measured at LA GUERINIERE, 2.1 km away at 2 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 — 85083/2023
INSEE density grid 2026
INSEE BPE 2025
INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 85083/2012
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 85083/1990
INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 85083/logement/2023
INSEE BPE 2025 — 85083
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
La Bourboule	63	415 km E	1,727	60.7	Served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel drier.summer 90 % · winter 26 % · humidity 71 %
Saint-Florent	2B	1,029 km SE	1,694	64.4	Served	Warmer summers, similar winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 97 % · humidity 36 %
Barneville-Carteret	50	270 km N	2,223	63.7	Served	Cooler summers, similar winters.summer 85 % · winter 99 %
Notre-Dame-de-Monts	85	19 km SE	2,420	67.6	Served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 72 % · humidity 93 %
Longeville-sur-Mer	85	86 km SE	2,625	63.9	Served	Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 62 % · winter 68 % · humidity 93 %
Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue	50	299 km N	1,648	59.1	Partly served	Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel drier.summer 85 % · winter 96 % · humidity 79 %

Order by distance instead

Commune	Dept	Distance	Population	Score	Band	Climate vs here
Notre-Dame-de-Monts	85	19 km SE	2,420	67.6	Served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 72 % · humidity 93 %
Longeville-sur-Mer	85	86 km SE	2,625	63.9	Served	Warmer summers and colder winters.Summers feel about as humid.summer 62 % · winter 68 % · humidity 93 %
Barneville-Carteret	50	270 km N	2,223	63.7	Served	Cooler summers, similar winters.summer 85 % · winter 99 %
Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue	50	299 km N	1,648	59.1	Partly served	Cooler summers, similar winters.Summers feel drier.summer 85 % · winter 96 % · humidity 79 %
La Bourboule	63	415 km E	1,727	60.7	Served	Similar summers, colder winters.Summers feel drier.summer 90 % · winter 26 % · humidity 71 %
Saint-Florent	2B	1,029 km SE	1,694	64.4	Served	Warmer summers, similar winters.Summers feel more humid.summer 0 % · winter 97 % · humidity 36 %

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 L'Épine'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
Jard-sur-Mer	85	82 km SE	3,235	62.3	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 97 % · winter 86 % · humidity 93 %
Rivedoux-Plage	17	119 km SE	2,483	65.5	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 85 % · humidity 93 %
Grandcamp-Maisy	14	283 km N	1,522	46.5	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 87 % · winter 85 % · humidity 86 %
La Guérinière	85	2.8 km SE	1,377	43.6	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 100 % · winter 100 % · humidity 100 %
Piriac-sur-Mer	44	49 km NW	2,685	63	Served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · winter 89 % · humidity 93 %
Saint-Gildas-de-Rhuys	56	72 km NW	2,004	57.8	Partly served	Much the same temperatures.Summers feel about as humid.summer 95 % · 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/85083-l-epine