Méras ranks below 97% of compared French towns on couples with children: 12%
In Méras, 3.6% of homes are flats, beside 30% in the typical compared French town. The 2023 Census put the town’s population at 94, in 40 households. 4.7% of households have no car, or about one in 21. Households in social housing are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns.
Throughout this page, the Ariège 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 Méras
One home in seven is a second home
The census counted 7 second homes and occasional dwellings in Méras, 14% of its 51 homes: higher than in 90% of compared French towns. 100% of them are houses. Their owners live elsewhere, so they aren’t in the population figures on this page. Homes & cars ↓
Fewer residents than in 2012
Méras had 102 residents at the 2012 census and 94 in 2023, down 8%: slower growth than in 94% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Méras ranks above 90% of compared French towns on second homes: 14%
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
By its share of empty homes (8%), Méras is above 63% of compared French towns. In the typical compared French town, 2.1% of homes are second homes.
Méras changed by −8% from 2012 to 2023, behind 94% 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
Medians for comparison: +5% across compared French towns, +2% in Ariège. Here the change came as +9% to 2017, then −15% to 2023.
Méras is older than 77% of compared French towns: a median age of 48.5
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Méras 48.5. The median compared French town: 44.
In Méras, 21% of residents are 65 or over, beside 22% in the typical compared French town. Locally, 8.9% of residents are 15 to 24.
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
About 115 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Ariège 52.2%, France 51.8%.
Méras sits above 99% of compared French towns for single-parent households (37%)
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 Ariège median and the France median
Living alone · share
The share of one-person households is 25%, against 35% in the typical compared French town. The benchmark for single-parent households in the typical compared French town: 10%. Households average 2.3 people.
Households headed by a manual worker make up 25% in Méras, more than in 96% of compared French towns
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
Against a figure of 32% in the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a retired person in Méras comes in at 25%. At the same time, on households headed by a manager or professional, Méras sits higher than nearly two thirds of compared French towns: 12%. By way of comparison, 14% of households are headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
A higher share of immigrants than 74% of compared French towns, at 11%
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.
By its share of foreign nationals (9%), Méras is above 78% of compared French towns. The usual figure: 6.5% of residents are immigrants 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.
In Méras, 35% of residents 15 and over are married, fewer than in 90% of compared French towns
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
In Méras, 34% of residents 15 and over are single, beside 25% in the typical compared French town. For married residents, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 43%.
Méras sits below 86% of compared French towns for adults with no qualification (13%)
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
The figure for graduates of higher education is 38% in Méras and 30% in the typical compared French town. Typically, nearly a fifth of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
Ranked by age, 15th oldest of 41 French towns this size
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population, by median age. Hover for each one’s second homes and immigrants; click for its page.
Ages run from 37.2 in Villejust to 62.3 in Prayssac.
Around Méras, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Méras | 48.5 | 21% | 14% | 11% |
| Montesquieu-Volvestre 3,050 · 4.6 mi | 51.1 | 28% | 6.5% | 5.1% |
| Rieux-Volvestre 2,639 · 7.8 mi | 47.4 | 25% | 4.8% | 4.8% |
| Carbonne 5,563 · 9.5 mi | 47.7 | 25% | 1.2% | 5.9% |
| Cazères 4,854 · 11.4 mi | 44.6 | 24% | 2.5% | 7.8% |
| Noé 3,067 · 12.2 mi | 42.8 | 18% | 1.9% | 7% |
| Longages 3,392 · 12.7 mi | 39.3 | 16% | 1.6% | 5.7% |
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 Méras
What is the population of Méras?
94 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 8% fewer than in 2012 (102).
How old are Méras’ residents?
The median age is 48.5, older than 77% of compared French towns. 19% are under 18 and 21% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Méras?
7, with occasional dwellings: 14% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Méras?
INSEE counts 10 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 11% of residents, and 8 foreign nationals (9%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
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 October 30, 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.