Each year Allauch pays about €200,000 for missing social housing in order to reach the 20% required by the Urban Renewal Law (SRU).

The first obstacle is that the commune owns little suitable land in built-up areas to build social housing (near schools, shops, services, transport, etc.

A Coat of Arms was adopted by the town in 1727 and refers to the commune being the seat for the Saracens: in the 10th century the Moors besieged the village.

On the eve of the Revolution more than three-quarters of Allauch soil belonged to the peasants who worked it, about 20% by the nobles and bourgeois, and only 3% by the clergy.

Throughout the 19th century Allauch declined: Agriculture and livestock stagnated as did the production of plaster and chalk extracted using traditional methods.

In contrast to the early 19th century, during the suppression of the free port of Marseille, Allauch was the scene of contraband tobacco.

Probably practiced initially by only a few it soon became generalized and became the main industry of Allauch during the century[11] ahead of the stone quarries, the plasterworks, and the bauxite deposits.

The construction of the Canal de Marseille started a recovery: running water arrived in Allauch in 1888.

This is the result of political will of the various mayors who have never ceased to protect the hills, to restrict urbanisation, and contained demographic change.

[15] The politics of the commune management of land use plan has both limited building areas in order not to distort the landscape and allowed only normal sized housing so that there would be sound economic development respecting the environment and refusing any infrastructure that denaturalises Allauch (highways, supermarkets, industries creating nuisances etc.

[21] Percentage Distribution of Age Groups in Allauch and Bouches-du-Rhône Department in 2017 Source: INSEE[23][24] Of the 20,791 inhabitants in 2017, 10,991 (56.8%) lived in the same housing as in 2007.

Sports instructors and lifeguards are involved in each class so that children can engage in physical activity provided by a professional.

A spectacle is offered for all kindergarten children at Christmas and elementary classes benefit from €120 per teacher to complete their library and buy CDs.

[citation needed] During the night before Christmas there is a Midnight Mass and a Provençal living Nativity runs down the descent of the shepherds to the sound of fifes, tambourines, bells, and bleating.

Two major events are organized by the Tourist Office: The crib in black light by Gilbert Orsini in December and January of each year[26] and the Biennial of Contemporary Art.

[27] Allauch has a rare Museum of Sacred Art of France with a permanent collection of international renown and offers a range of temporary exhibitions on the theme of Religion or local culture.

The commune also has five community centres that offer activities close to home[28] such as ballet, modern jazz, hip-hop, gymnastics, martial arts, painting workshops, mosaic and sculpture, theatre, guitar or piano lessons, yoga, sports, and scholastic support courses.

Every year there are: the "La Ronde Allauch" foot race, the Cyclo-Cross, and the Trail of the Green Canton.

[25] Of the 3,661 jobs in the commune (2017), 47.1% were in the public sector (administration, education, health, social work) and 39.4% in trade and transport.

The criterion for acceptable settlement by the council is based on respect for the living environment by installing activities which do not create a nuisance or pollution.

Near the Business Park the Laphal laboratory, a pharmaceutical company of international renown, provides more than 130 jobs in the commune.

Allauch has over a hundred shops spread over three main urban centres: le Village, Logis Neuf, and Pounche: food, health and hygiene, home furnishings, bars, restaurants, and services.

In January during the festival of gastronomy some fifty craftsmen and farmers hold a market: there are honey, olive oil, AOC Côtes de Provence wine, Navettes de Marseille (Provençal pastries), Tapenade, Gibassier, Calisson, and Eggplant salads and appetizers on sale.

The commune has a number of buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments: The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments: The Massif of Garlaban, also called the hills of Marcel Pagnol, overlooks the urban area.