Photo: Nicolas Van Leekwijck fabrikgrafik · CC0A median age of 58.6: Les Vans is older than 97% of compared French towns
Here 14% of households are couples with children, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 25%. At 6.4%, the share of households headed by a manager or professional is lower than in 73% of compared French towns. The 2023 Census put Les Vans’s population at 2,662, in 1,420 households. The share of households in social housing stands at 8.4%.
Throughout this page, the Ardèche median and the France median are the median of compared communes (those with an overall grade), each figure its own median. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
What stands out about the people of Les Vans
One home in four is a second home
The census counted 580 second homes and occasional dwellings in Les Vans, 25% of its 2,300 homes: higher than in 94% of compared French towns. 81% of them are houses. Their owners live elsewhere, so they aren’t in the population figures on this page. Homes & cars ↓
An older town
Half of Les Vans’ residents are under 58.6 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 39% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 12% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Many people living alone
47% of Les Vans’ households are one person: higher than in 89% of compared French towns; 35% of residents 65 and over live alone. Households ↓
Empty homes
The census found 290 homes empty (13%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Above 94% of compared French towns: 25% of homes are second homes
Every home the census counted: main residences, second homes and occasional dwellings (INSEE counts them together), and empty homes. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
All homes · share of homes
Type of home
Cars per household · share of households
In the typical compared French town, 11% of households have no car; in Les Vans, 15%. At 13%, the share of empty homes is higher than in 91% of compared French towns. Against that, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. Locally, a third of homes are flats.
Les Vans changed by −4% from 2012 to 2023, behind 85% of compared French towns
Residents at INSEE’s last three censuses, each recast in the 2026 commune boundaries. France has no yearly estimate by commune between censuses.
2012 to 2023
2017 to 2023
Against +5% for the median compared French town and +4% for the median Ardèche town, the change came in two steps: −4% from 2012 to 2017, then ±0% to 2023.
In Les Vans, 39% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 97% of compared French towns
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Les Vans 58.6. The median compared French town: 44.
6.4% of residents are 15 to 24 (typical compared French town: 11%). By way of comparison, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 87 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ardèche 52.7%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
Les Vans ranks above 89% of compared French towns on one-person households: 47%
A household is everyone who shares a main home (résidence principale). Household types come from INSEE’s fuller sample of a quarter of census forms.
Against the Ardèche median and the France median
Living alone · share
11% of households are single parents; in the typical compared French town the figure is 10%. Set beside that, 35% of households are one person living alone in the typical compared French town. On average, 1.8 people share a household.
Half of residents have a standard of living above €22,180 a year
The standard of living (niveau de vie) is a household’s disposable income after taxes and benefits, divided by its consumption units (UC) to allow for its size and make-up: 1 for the first adult, 0.5 for each other person 14 or older, 0.3 for each child under 14.
Medians of compared communes. Source: INSEE, Filosofi 2023.
Half of residents live in households above €22,180 a year per consumption unit and half below; the level is lower than in 88% of compared French towns. Poverty touches 25.0% of residents.
A larger share of households headed by a retired person than 95% of compared French towns: 47%
Households by the socio-professional group (PCS) of their reference person, INSEE’s own categories. Jobs and commuting are on the Work & commute page.
Households by reference person’s group · share of households
Where 14% of households are headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town, Les Vans has 8.9%. Against that, 32% of households are headed by a retired person in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Foreign nationals: 6.8%, a higher share than 68% of compared French towns
INSEE publishes two measures, which overlap but aren’t the same. Neither is the UK’s “born abroad”.
Share of residents · census 2023
Immigrant (immigré)
Born abroad, not French at birth. Someone stays an immigrant after becoming French. A French citizen born abroad (for example in Algeria before 1962) is not one.
Foreign national (étranger)
Not a French citizen today, wherever born. A child born in France to foreign parents can be a foreign national without being an immigrant.
The median compared commune in Ardèche has 9.3%; immigrants here make up a share higher than in 64% of compared French towns. Immigrants make up about one in 11 here (8.7%). To put it in context, 4.3% of residents are foreign nationals in the typical compared French town.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Les Vans sits below 75% of compared French towns for married residents (39%)
Residents 15 and over by how they live: the census asks both the legal status and whether people live as a couple.
Residents 15 and over · share
Just over a quarter of residents 15 and over are single. The share of married residents in the typical compared French town is 43%.
In Les Vans, 22% of adults out of school have no qualification, more than in 63% of compared French towns
Highest diploma of residents 15 and over who have left education, in French terms: the levels don’t map one-to-one to UK or U.S. ones.
Highest diploma · 15 and over, out of education
Against a figure of 30% in the typical compared French town, the share of graduates of higher education in Les Vans comes in at 28%. For adults with no qualification, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 19%.
Among 41 French towns of 2,631 to 2,693 people, the 4th oldest
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population, by median age. Hover for each one’s second homes and immigrants; click for its page.
Roissy-en-France is the youngest (34); Piriac-sur-Mer the oldest (63.6).
Around Les Vans, 1 of 6 towns have a higher median age
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Les Vans | 58.6 | 39% | 25% | 8.7% |
| Bessèges 2,606 · 7.9 mi | 59.4 | 40% | 9.6% | 4.7% |
| Saint-Ambroix 3,445 · 10.7 mi | 56.1 | 37% | 7.8% | 5% |
| La Grand-Combe 4,783 · 14 mi | 46.3 | 27% | 1% | 11% |
| Rousson 4,456 · 15.2 mi | 46.3 | 24% | 1.8% | 4.1% |
| Saint-Julien-les-Rosiers 3,533 · 15.8 mi | 47.4 | 25% | 2.1% | 4.3% |
| Salindres 3,648 · 16.2 mi | 44.6 | 23% | 2.2% | 4% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Census 2023. INSEE’s census is a rolling survey: a fifth of small communes each year, 8% of homes in large ones each year. “2023” pools the surveys of 2021 to 2025, so the figures describe the town around 2023, not on one day.
- Medians of compared communes. The comparisons are the median of the département’s compared communes and of France’s (those with an overall grade), each figure its own median: not the total for the département or for France, which large cities pull towards their own figures.
- Immigrants and foreign nationals. INSEE’s two measures: an immigrant was born abroad without French nationality; a foreign national isn’t French today. Neither is a count of people born abroad, which INSEE doesn’t publish by commune.
- Second homes. Homes used for holidays or weekends, with occasional dwellings (kept for work, for example), which INSEE counts together. Their owners are counted where they live, not here.
- Standard of living. INSEE’s Filosofi: disposable income per consumption unit, from tax and benefit files, 2023. The poverty rate is the share of residents below 60% of France’s median. Not published for the smallest communes.
- What France doesn’t ask. The French census asks nothing about ethnicity, religion, language or health, so this page has no such section.
Questions about who lives in Les Vans
What is the population of Les Vans?
2,662 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 4% fewer than in 2012 (2,774).
How old are Les Vans’ residents?
The median age is 58.6, older than 97% of compared French towns. 14% are under 18 and 39% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Les Vans?
580, with occasional dwellings: 25% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Les Vans?
INSEE counts 230 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 8.7% of residents, and 180 foreign nationals (6.8%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Les Vans?
€22,180 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 25.0% of residents live below the poverty line. Source: INSEE, Filosofi.
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, ages, households, homes, marital status, diplomas, immigrants, foreign nationals, employment), 2026 geography · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (standard of living, poverty) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 4, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.