Background. Analyzing social inequalities in perinatal health is essential for guiding public health policies. We examine the relationship between the social characteristics of mothers’ places of residence and perinatal health indicators to assess their usefulness for monitoring inequalities in France. Population and methods. Data on births (2003 and 2010 National Perinatal Surveys, birth reports and neonatal death certificates from 2000 to 2008) and on the socioeconomic characteristics of the municipalities where mothers reside (census) were used to analyze rates of fetal and neonatal mortality and preterm birth according to municipal characteristics. A social deprivation index and its components (income, unemployment, educational attainment, manual workers), proposed by the CépiDc, and two other characteristics (homeowners and single-parent families) were used. Health indicators were compared by birth quintile for each characteristic. Results. The social disadvantage index is significantly associated with the three perinatal health indicators. However, two components—the percentage of manual workers and the percentage of residents with a low level of education—are only weakly or not at all related. The other socioeconomic characteristics (homeowners and single-parent families) show a stronger relationship. Discussion and conclusions. There are inequalities in perinatal health based on the socioeconomic characteristics of the place of residence, but certain commonly used characteristics appear to be of little relevance to perinatal health.