In Thou, 14% of households are headed by a retired person, fewer than in 99% of compared French towns
Just over a third of households are one person living alone in the typical compared French town, against 43% in Thou. There were 37 households in the town at the 2023 Census, home to 77 residents. Locally, 8.1% of households have no car. This Cher town has fewer residents aged 15 to 24 than 80% of compared French towns, at 9.1%.
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 Thou
One home in four is a second home
The census counted 15 second homes and occasional dwellings in Thou, 25% of its 59 homes: higher than in 94% 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 ↓
Empty homes
The census found 7 homes empty (12%): 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 Thou, 25% of homes are second homes, more than in 94% 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
By its share of empty homes (12%), Thou is above 88% of compared French towns. Flats are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. For comparison, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. Recent arrivals (under two years) make up 14% of households; long-stayers (30 years or more) 16%.
Thou changed by +3% from 2012 to 2023, slower than 59% 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
Against +5% for the median compared French town and −4% for the median Cher town, the change came in two steps: +1% from 2012 to 2017, then +1% to 2023.
Thou ranks above 58% of compared French towns on residents aged 65 and over: 23%
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Thou 43.8. The median compared French town: 44.
With a median age of 43.8, Thou is younger than 52% of compared French towns. For comparison, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
About 114 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Cher 52.2%, France 51.8%.
Above 68% of compared French towns: 29% of households are couples with children
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
Single-parent households are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. For couples with children, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 25%. The average household has 2.1 people.
A higher share of households headed by a manual worker than 99% of compared French towns, at 29%
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
14% of households are headed by a manager or professional; in the typical compared French town the figure is 9.4%.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
In Thou, 1.3% of residents are immigrants, fewer than in 98% 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.
Foreign nationals are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. Immigrants: 6.5% in the typical compared French town, for comparison.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
A larger share of married residents than 82% of compared French towns: 48%
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
Where a quarter of residents 15 and over are single in the typical compared French town, Thou has 29%. The comparison figure for married residents is 43% in the typical compared French town.
25% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, below 70% 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
Few places have so few adults with no qualification: 18% here, fewer than in 56% of compared French towns. In the typical compared French town, the share of graduates of higher education is 30%.
Of 41 French towns its size (77 to 2,582 people), the 15th youngest
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 older than Thou
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thou | 43.8 | 23% | 25% | 1.3% |
| Aubigny-sur-Nère 5,451 · 11.5 mi | 51.8 | 31% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
| Châtillon-sur-Loire 3,065 · 11.8 mi | 48.6 | 27% | 11% | 2.7% |
| Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire 9,733 · 12.7 mi | 54.4 | 36% | 8.3% | 6.7% |
| Briare 4,911 · 15.3 mi | 54.1 | 34% | 9.7% | 12% |
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 Thou
What is the population of Thou?
77 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 3% more than in 2012 (75).
How old are Thou’s residents?
The median age is 43.8, younger than 52% of compared French towns. 18% are under 18 and 23% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Thou?
15, with occasional dwellings: 25% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Thou?
INSEE counts 1 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 1.3% of residents, and 0 foreign nationals (0%). 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 October 30, 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.