Half of Chalinargues is over 54.7, older than 94% of compared French towns
Against a figure of 9.4% in the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a manager or professional in Chalinargues comes in at 3.4%. Census day 2023: 304 residents and 160 households here. Locally, 3.2% of households are single parents. Lower than in 83% of compared French towns: 5.6% of households rent social housing (HLM).
Throughout this page, the Cantal 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 Chalinargues
One home in three is a second home
The census counted 110 second homes and occasional dwellings in Chalinargues, 36% of its 320 homes: higher than in 96% of compared French towns. 98% 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
Chalinargues had 426 residents at the 2012 census and 304 in 2023, down 29%: slower growth than in 99% of compared French towns. Population ↓
An older town
Half of Chalinargues’ residents are under 54.7 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 37% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 8% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Empty homes
The census found 48 homes empty (15%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
In Chalinargues, 36% of homes are second homes, more than in 96% 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
Where 30% of homes are flats in the typical compared French town, Chalinargues has 6.8%. The census found that 15% of homes stand empty here. 16% of households have no car, more than in 72% of compared French towns. Measured more widely, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town.
Chalinargues sits above 96% of compared French towns for residents aged 65 and over (37%)
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Chalinargues 54.7. The median compared French town: 44.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 stands at 11%. The usual figure: 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 107 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Cantal 53.4%, France 51.8%.
More one-person households than 81% of compared French towns: 44%
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 Cantal median and the France median
Living alone · share
The average household has 2 people. The benchmark for one-person households in the typical compared French town: 35%. Chalinargues has fewer couples with children than 57% of compared French towns, at 24%.
Chalinargues sits above 96% of compared French towns for households headed by a retired person (49%)
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
Nearly a fifth of households are headed by a manual worker; in the typical compared French town the figure is 14%. Households headed by a retired person make up 32% in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Below 85% of compared French towns: 2.6% of residents 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.
Set against 4.3% in the typical compared French town, 1.6% of residents are foreign nationals in Chalinargues. In the typical compared French town, 6.5% of residents are immigrants. The median compared commune in Cantal has 3.9%; immigrants here make up a share lower than in 85% of compared French towns.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Single residents: 26%, a higher share than 57% 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
Census figures put married residents at 43% in Chalinargues. In the typical compared French town, the share of single residents is 25%.
In Chalinargues, 18% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, fewer than in 91% 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
27% of adults out of school have no qualification (typical compared French town: 19%). In the typical compared French town, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification.
7th highest median age among 41 French towns of 304 to 2,582
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population, by median age. Hover for each one’s second homes and immigrants; click for its page.
Villejust is the youngest (37.2); Prayssac the oldest (62.3).
Chalinargues and the towns around it
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chalinargues | 54.7 | 37% | 36% | 2.6% |
| Saint-Flour 6,391 · 11.2 mi | 48.5 | 28% | 5.3% | 4.7% |
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 Chalinargues
What is the population of Chalinargues?
304 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 29% fewer than in 2012 (426).
How old are Chalinargues’ residents?
The median age is 54.7, older than 94% of compared French towns. 12% are under 18 and 37% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Chalinargues?
110, with occasional dwellings: 36% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Chalinargues?
INSEE counts 8 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 2.6% of residents, and 5 foreign nationals (1.6%). 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.