Espalion is older than 91% of compared French towns: a median age of 53.1
The share of households headed by a retired person tops 87% of compared French towns: 41%. Espalion counted 4,605 residents and 2,310 households at the 2023 Census. Across Espalion, 45% of households are one person living alone. Fewer households in social housing than in 96% of compared French towns: 2.5%.
Throughout this page, the Aveyron 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 Espalion
One home in five is a second home
The census counted 650 second homes and occasional dwellings in Espalion, 20% of its 3,280 homes: higher than in 93% of compared French towns. 57% 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 Espalion’s residents are under 53.1 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 35% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 13% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
20% of homes in Espalion 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
Against a figure of 6.7% in the typical compared French town, the share of empty homes in Espalion comes in at 9.7%. Add to that, on flats, Espalion sits higher than 71% of compared French towns: 46%. By way of comparison, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. The share of households without a car stands at 14%.
+7% since 2012, a pace 60% 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
For comparison, the median compared French town changed +5% and the median Aveyron town +1%.
Espalion ranks above 93% of compared French towns on residents aged 65 and over: 35%
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Espalion 53.1. The median compared French town: 44.
Residents aged 15 to 24 make up 8.5%, against 11% in the typical compared French town. As a yardstick, 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: Aveyron 52.1%, France 51.8%. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
In Espalion, 16% of households are couples with children, fewer than in 86% 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 Aveyron median and the France median
Living alone · share
The typical household size is 1.9 people. Typically, a quarter of households are couples with children in the typical compared French town. Put another way, about one in 13: 7.7% of households are single parents.
A median standard of living of €24,860 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.
The midpoint of living standards here is €24,860 a year per consumption unit, lower than in 62% of compared French towns. The poverty rate is 13.0%.
6.3% of households are headed by a manager or professional, below 73% 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
Locally, 13% of households are headed by a manual worker. As a yardstick, 9.4% of households are headed by a manager or professional in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
7.2% of residents in Espalion are immigrants
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.
That is higher than in 55% of compared French towns; the median compared commune in Aveyron has 6.5%. Put another way, about one in 14: 7.2% of residents are immigrants. On foreign nationals, 4.7% here is much the same as 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.
A smaller share of single residents than 78% of compared French towns: 22%
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
45% of residents 15 and over are married, against 43% in the typical compared French town. The comparison figure for single residents is 25% in the typical compared French town.
24% of adults out of school have no qualification, a share 75% of compared French towns don’t reach
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
Graduates of higher education: 25% here and 30% in the typical compared French town. Adults with no qualification make up 19% in the typical compared French town.
Ranked by age, 5th 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 38.5 in Biache-Saint-Vaast to 63 in Leucate.
No nearby town is as old as Espalion
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Espalion | 53.1 | 35% | 20% | 7.2% |
| Bozouls 3,001 · 4.3 mi | 48.4 | 25% | 9.4% | 2.7% |
| Sébazac-Concourès 3,234 · 11.2 mi | 47.4 | 25% | 3.4% | 3.6% |
| Onet-le-Château 12,080 · 13.7 mi | 42.6 | 23% | 2.9% | 14% |
| Rodez 23,981 · 14.9 mi | 41.7 | 24% | 4.3% | 11% |
| Olemps 3,559 · 16.4 mi | 51.6 | 30% | 2% | 3.6% |
| Druelle Balsac 3,187 · 17.2 mi | 43.4 | 18% | 4% | 3.5% |
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 Espalion
What is the population of Espalion?
4,605 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 7% more than in 2012 (4,291).
How old are Espalion’s residents?
The median age is 53.1, older than 91% of compared French towns. 16% are under 18 and 35% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Espalion?
650, with occasional dwellings: 20% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Espalion?
INSEE counts 330 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 7.2% of residents, and 220 foreign nationals (4.7%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Espalion?
€24,860 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 13.0% 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.