Flats: 1%, a lower share than 99% of compared French towns
By its share of households in social housing (2.3%), Courlay is below 96% of compared French towns. At the 2023 Census, 2,387 people lived locally, in 1,040 households. Put another way, about one in 25: 4% of households have no car. Fewer households headed by a manager or professional than in 93% of compared French towns: 3.9%.
Throughout this page, the Deux-Sèvres 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.
−2% since 2012, a pace below 77% 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
In two steps, ±0% to 2017 and −2% after, the town’s change compares with +5% for the median compared French town and +1% in Deux-Sèvres.
In Courlay, 8.5% of residents are 15 to 24, fewer than in 88% 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
■ Courlay 47.9. The median compared French town: 44.
Half of Courlay’s residents are over 47.9, older than in 74% of compared French towns. The usual figure: 11% of residents are 15 to 24 in the typical compared French town. Residents aged 65 and over: 28% of the total.
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About 105 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Deux-Sèvres 51.4%, France 51.8%.
A lower share of single-parent households than 99% of compared French towns, at 4.7%
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 Deux-Sèvres median and the France median
Living alone · share
In the typical compared French town, the share of couples with children is 25%; Courlay has 27%. 30% of households are one person living alone, or about one in three. Typically, 10% of households are single parents in the typical compared French town.
Second homes make up 3.5% in Courlay, more than in 66% 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
Set against 6.7% in the typical compared French town, 8.1% of homes stand empty in Courlay. In the typical compared French town, 2.1% of homes are second homes.
Median living standard: €23,930 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.
Half of residents live in households above €23,930 a year per consumption unit and half below; the level is lower than in 72% of compared French towns. Below the poverty threshold: 11.0% of the population.
24% of households are headed by a manual worker, more than in 94% 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
36% of households are headed by a retired person, against 32% in the typical compared French town. Typically, 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).
4.4% of residents are immigrants, below 70% 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.
Across Courlay, 4.1% of residents are foreign nationals. For immigrants, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 6.5%.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Courlay sits above 95% of compared French towns for married residents (51%)
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
Compared with 25% in the typical compared French town, 20% of residents 15 and over are single here. In the typical compared French town, the share of married residents is 43%.
A lower share of graduates of higher education than 81% of compared French towns, at 21%
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
In the typical compared French town, nearly a fifth of adults out of school have no qualification; in Courlay, 26%. By way of comparison, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
Of 41 French towns its size (2,387 to 2,582 people), the 15th oldest
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).
Older than Courlay: 2 of the 6 towns nearby
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Courlay | 47.9 | 28% | 3.5% | 4.4% |
| Moncoutant-sur-Sèvre 5,121 · 4.3 mi | 48.3 | 27% | 6% | 5.2% |
| Cerizay 4,793 · 5.5 mi | 46.8 | 26% | 1.4% | 15% |
| Bressuire 19,970 · 5.8 mi | 43.7 | 22% | 1.8% | 9.6% |
| Nueil-les-Aubiers 5,483 · 11.7 mi | 45 | 23% | 2.6% | 8.3% |
| La Châtaigneraie 2,600 · 12.2 mi | 55.1 | 35% | 3.1% | 4.5% |
| Pouzauges 5,668 · 12.5 mi | 46.3 | 23% | 3.3% | 3.9% |
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 Courlay
What is the population of Courlay?
2,387 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 2% fewer than in 2012 (2,427).
How old are Courlay’s residents?
The median age is 47.9, older than 74% of compared French towns. 20% are under 18 and 28% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Courlay?
41, with occasional dwellings: 3.5% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Courlay?
INSEE counts 100 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 4.4% of residents, and 98 foreign nationals (4.1%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Courlay?
€23,930 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 11.0% 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 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.