Below 99% of compared French towns: 1.5% of homes are flats
6.6% of residents are 15 to 24; in the typical compared French town the figure is 11%. Lower than in 95% of compared French towns: 3.6% of households are headed by a manager or professional. The 2023 Census put Méry-ès-Bois’s population at 533, in 280 households. The census found that 1.8% of households rent social housing (HLM) in the town.
Throughout this page, the Cher 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 Méry-ès-Bois
One home in eight is a second home
The census counted 48 second homes and occasional dwellings in Méry-ès-Bois, 12% of its 400 homes: higher than in 89% 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
Méry-ès-Bois had 590 residents at the 2012 census and 533 in 2023, down 10%: slower growth than in 97% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Empty homes
The census found 71 homes empty (18%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
An older town
Half of Méry-ès-Bois’ residents are under 51.4 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 31% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 9.5% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Méry-ès-Bois ranks above 98% of compared French towns on empty homes: 18%
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
9.4% of households moved in less than two years ago; 25% have been in their home 30 years or more. As a yardstick, 6.7% of homes stand empty in the typical compared French town. Few places have as many second homes: 12% here, more than in 89% of compared French towns. The share of households without a car is 9.1%, against 11% in the typical compared French town.
Slower than most: −10% since 2012, behind 97% 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 first five years brought −2%; the six to 2023, −8%. For comparison, the median compared French town changed +5% and the median Cher town −4%.
A median age of 51.4: Méry-ès-Bois is older than 87% 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
■ Méry-ès-Bois 51.4. The median compared French town: 44.
Set against 22% in the typical compared French town, 31% of residents are 65 or over in Méry-ès-Bois.
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 108 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Cher 52.2%, France 51.8%.
Méry-ès-Bois ranks above 94% of compared French towns on single-parent households: 14%
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 Cher median and the France median
Living alone · share
Just over two in five households are one person living alone; in the typical compared French town the figure is 35%. On couples with children, Méry-ès-Bois sits lower than 83% of compared French towns: 18%. Measured more widely, 10% of households are single parents in the typical compared French town.
€24,150 a year: the median standard of living
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.
At €24,150 a year per consumption unit, the median standard of living here is lower than in 70% of compared French towns.
Méry-ès-Bois sits above 98% of compared French towns for households headed by a manual worker (27%)
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
Just over two in five households are headed by a retired person; in the typical compared French town the figure is 32%. For 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).
Immigrants make up 4.4% in Méry-ès-Bois, less than in 69% 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.
In Méry-ès-Bois, 2.4% of residents are foreign nationals, beside 4.3% in the typical compared French town. As a yardstick, 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.
Single residents make up 20% in Méry-ès-Bois, less than in 93% 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
By its share of married residents (41%), Méry-ès-Bois is below 61% of compared French towns. Measured more widely, 25% of residents 15 and over are single in the typical compared French town.
A higher share of adults with no qualification than 82% of compared French towns, at 26%
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
Here 22% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 30%. Against that, 19% of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
Ranked by age, 10th 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.
The youngest is Villejust (37.2), the oldest Prayssac (62.3).
Of the 6 towns nearest Méry-ès-Bois, 1 are older
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Méry-ès-Bois | 51.4 | 31% | 12% | 4.4% |
| Saint-Martin-d'Auxigny 2,546 · 7.7 mi | 41 | 18% | 2.4% | 3.5% |
| Aubigny-sur-Nère 5,451 · 12.6 mi | 51.8 | 31% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
| Mehun-sur-Yèvre 6,380 · 13.6 mi | 50.7 | 29% | 2.1% | 7.4% |
| Saint-Doulchard 9,647 · 14.2 mi | 51.4 | 29% | 0.8% | 7% |
| Vierzon 25,068 · 15.2 mi | 49.1 | 30% | 2% | 13% |
| Saint-Germain-du-Puy 4,779 · 15.5 mi | 48.6 | 28% | 0.9% | 4.8% |
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 Méry-ès-Bois
What is the population of Méry-ès-Bois?
533 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 10% fewer than in 2012 (590).
How old are Méry-ès-Bois’ residents?
The median age is 51.4, older than 87% of compared French towns. 17% are under 18 and 31% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Méry-ès-Bois?
48, with occasional dwellings: 12% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Méry-ès-Bois?
INSEE counts 24 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 4.4% of residents, and 13 foreign nationals (2.4%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Méry-ès-Bois?
€24,150 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 9, 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.