Saint-Michel is older than 93% of compared French towns: a median age of 54.3
In Saint-Michel, 25% of households are one person living alone, beside 35% in the typical compared French town. The town had 92 residents in 41 households at the 2023 Census. Across Saint-Michel, 2.6% of households have no car. 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 Saint-Michel
An older town
Half of Saint-Michel’s residents are under 54.3 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 33% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 7.1% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Growing fast
Saint-Michel had 74 residents at the 2012 census and 92 in 2023, up 24%: faster growth than in 94% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Immigrants
INSEE counts 0 immigrants in Saint-Michel (people born abroad who weren’t French at birth, whatever their nationality now): 16% of residents, against 9.1% for the median compared commune in Ariège. 14% are foreign nationals. Immigrants and foreign nationals ↓
Empty homes
The census found 6 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.
+24% since 2012, a pace 94% of compared French towns didn’t match
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
Over the whole period the median compared French town changed +5%, and the median Ariège town +2%. The years 2012 to 2017 brought −3%; 2017 to 2023, +28%.
A larger share of residents aged 65 and over than 92% of compared French towns: 33%
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Saint-Michel 54.3. The median compared French town: 44.
Set against 11% in the typical compared French town, 9.4% of residents are 15 to 24 in Saint-Michel. Across the comparison, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Ariège 52.2%, France 51.8%.
In Saint-Michel, 12% of households are single parents, more than in 83% of compared French towns
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
There are 2.2 people in the average household. On average, 10% of households are single parents in the typical compared French town. A quarter of households are couples with children, a lower share than in 51% of compared French towns.
2.2% of homes are flats, below 99% of compared French towns
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, 6.7% of homes stand empty; in Saint-Michel, 13%. Set beside that, 30% of homes are flats in the typical compared French town. About one in 45: that is how common second homes are in Saint-Michel (2.2%).
Households headed by a retired person: 37%, a higher share than 76% 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
In the typical compared French town, 14% of households are headed by a manual worker; in Saint-Michel, 12%. Set beside that, nearly a third of households are headed by a retired person in the typical compared French town. Households headed by a manager or professional are more common here than in 66% of compared French towns.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Immigrants: 16%, a higher share than 88% 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.
Against a figure of 4.3% in the typical compared French town, the share of foreign nationals in Saint-Michel comes in at 14%. To put it in context, 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 Saint-Michel, 35% of residents 15 and over are married, fewer than in 89% 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 Saint-Michel, 27% of residents 15 and over are single, beside 25% in the typical compared French town. The share of married residents in the typical compared French town is 43%.
Adults with no qualification: 15%, a lower share than 71% 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
At 29%, the share of graduates of higher education is lower than in 53% of compared French towns. Typically, nearly a fifth of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
Ranked by age, 7th 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.
Every neighbor is younger than Saint-Michel
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-Michel | 54.3 | 33% | 2.2% | 16% |
| Pamiers 16,473 · 5.6 mi | 39.8 | 21% | 2.7% | 13% |
| Saint-Jean-du-Falga 2,851 · 6.8 mi | 50 | 30% | 1.8% | 7.6% |
| La Tour-du-Crieu 3,230 · 7.7 mi | 44.8 | 23% | 1.3% | 6.3% |
| Saverdun 4,808 · 7.8 mi | 44 | 21% | 2.4% | 7.3% |
| Varilhes 3,487 · 8.6 mi | 46.7 | 26% | 3.7% | 4.1% |
| Mazères 3,852 · 11.6 mi | 44.9 | 24% | 5.3% | 4.5% |
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 Saint-Michel
What is the population of Saint-Michel?
92 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 24% more than in 2012 (74).
How old are Saint-Michel’s residents?
The median age is 54.3, older than 93% of compared French towns. 9.4% are under 18 and 33% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Saint-Michel?
1, with occasional dwellings: 2.2% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Saint-Michel?
INSEE counts 15 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 16% of residents, and 13 foreign nationals (14%). 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 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.