Couples with children make up 42% in Melsheim, more than in 99% of compared French towns
The figure for households headed by a manager or professional is 2.2% in Melsheim and 9.4% in the typical compared French town. This Bas-Rhin town is home to 554 residents in 220 households, by the 2023 Census. Locally, 0.5% of households rent social housing (HLM). Fewer empty homes than in 88% of compared French towns: 3.9%.
Throughout this page, the Bas-Rhin 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 Melsheim
A town of families
42% of households are couples with children and 4.6% single parents with children; 17% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
−4% since 2012: slower than 84% 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
The median Bas-Rhin town changed +6% and the median compared French town +5%; here the first five years brought +3% and the next six −6%.
Half of Melsheim is over 45.6, older than 61% 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
■ Melsheim 45.6. The median compared French town: 44.
A fifth of Melsheim’s residents are 65 or older, against 22% in the median Bas-Rhin town and 22% in the median compared French town; 22% are under 18. The census found that just over one in ten residents are 15 to 24 locally.
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Bas-Rhin 51.5%, France 51.8%.
One-person households make up 19% in Melsheim, less than in 99% 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 Bas-Rhin median and the France median
Living alone · share
With single-parent households at 4.6%, Melsheim is behind 99% of compared French towns on that count. Households here average 2.6 people each. As a reference point, just over a third of households are one person living alone in the typical compared French town.
A smaller share of flats than 90% of compared French towns: 8.4%
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
There is little gap on second homes: 1.3%, about the same as in the typical compared French town. On the census count, 6.6% of households have no car. Against that, 30% of homes are flats in the typical compared French town.
A median standard of living of €28,210 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.
Living standards centre on €28,210 a year per consumption unit: higher than in 73% of compared French towns.
Households headed by a retired person make up 39% in Melsheim, more than in 81% 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
The share of households headed by a manual worker is 18%, against 14% in the typical compared French town. Across the comparison, 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).
Melsheim ranks below 89% of compared French towns on immigrants: 2.3%
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 Bas-Rhin has 8.5%; immigrants here make up a share lower than in 89% of compared French towns. In the typical compared French town, 6.5% of residents are immigrants. Locally, 1.7% of residents are foreign nationals.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Melsheim ranks above 97% of compared French towns on married residents: 52%
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
Single residents make up 21%, against 25% in the typical compared French town. The comparison figure for married residents is 43% in the typical compared French town.
Only 26% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in Melsheim
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
18% of adults out of school have no qualification, a lower share than in 56% of compared French towns. By way of comparison, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
The 21st oldest of 41 French towns of 554 to 2,582 people
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.
Nearby, 3 of 6 towns have older populations than Melsheim
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melsheim | 45.6 | 20% | 1.3% | 2.3% |
| Hochfelden 4,038 · 2.2 mi | 44 | 22% | 1.1% | 2.5% |
| Dettwiller 2,558 · 2.6 mi | 46.1 | 23% | 1.7% | 3.1% |
| Bouxwiller 3,754 · 5.1 mi | 46 | 23% | 2.4% | 9.2% |
| Berstett 2,517 · 7 mi | 44.7 | 21% | 0.9% | 3.5% |
| Saverne 11,460 · 7.4 mi | 46.2 | 24% | 2.8% | 13% |
| Val-de-Moder 5,102 · 7.5 mi | 44.9 | 22% | 1.1% | 6.3% |
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 Melsheim
What is the population of Melsheim?
554 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 4% fewer than in 2012 (575).
How old are Melsheim’s residents?
The median age is 45.6, older than 61% of compared French towns. 22% are under 18 and 20% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Melsheim?
3, with occasional dwellings: 1.3% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Melsheim?
INSEE counts 13 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 2.3% of residents, and 9 foreign nationals (1.7%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Melsheim?
€28,210 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970). 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.