Villerest (French pronunciation: [vilʁɛ]; Arpitan: Vilarês) is a commune in the Loire department in central France. It is a Medieval-era commune located just south of the city of Roanne. The village is bordered by the river Loire.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 950 —     1800 435 −10.56% 1806 546 +3.86% 1821 587 +0.48% 1831 964 +5.09% 1836 1,030 +1.33% 1841 976 −1.07% 1846 1,006 +0.61% 1851 1,031 +0.49% 1856 1,130 +1.85% 1861 1,211 +1.39% 1866 1,208 −0.05% 1872 1,207 −0.01% 1876 1,227 +0.41% 1881 1,230 +0.05% 1886 1,281 +0.82% 1891 1,270 −0.17% 1896 1,218 −0.83%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 1,204 −0.23% 1906 1,201 −0.05% 1911 1,149 −0.88% 1921 976 −1.62% 1926 1,034 +1.16% 1931 1,127 +1.74% 1936 1,076 −0.92% 1946 1,039 −0.35% 1954 1,286 +2.70% 1962 1,524 +2.15% 1968 1,743 +2.26% 1975 2,239 +3.64% 1982 2,928 +3.91% 1990 4,104 +4.31% 1999 4,243 +0.37% 2007 4,414 +0.50% 2012 4,696 +1.25% 2017 4,902 +0.86%
Source: EHESS and INSEE (1968-2017)

• Le Barrage de Villerest, a hydroelectric dam that also prevents flooding along the Loire. This dam also creates a reservoir, the Lac de Villerest.
• The village itself contains many buildings from the Middle Ages. These include numerous houses, and the Eglise de Saint-Priest. Maybe most famous from this time period are the ramparts that are still mostly intact today.

Villerest is twinned with:

• Piatra Neamţ, Romania and Storrington, West Sussex, England.

• Communes of the Loire department