Le Chaffal is older than 97% of compared French towns: a median age of 57.5
Against a figure of 32% in the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a retired person in Le Chaffal comes in at 25%. Higher than in 98% of compared French towns: 18% of homes stand empty. The 2023 Census counted 35 residents in 20 households. Flats account for 23%.
Throughout this page, the Drôme 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 Le Chaffal
One home in three is a second home
The census counted 16 second homes and occasional dwellings in Le Chaffal, 36% of its 44 homes: higher than in 96% of compared French towns. 75% 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
Le Chaffal had 49 residents at the 2012 census and 35 in 2023, down 29%: slower growth than in 99% of compared French towns. Population ↓
An older town
Half of Le Chaffal’s residents are under 57.5 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 40% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 14% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Many people living alone
50% of Le Chaffal’s households are one person: higher than in 94% of compared French towns; 43% of residents 65 and over live alone. Households ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Le Chaffal ranks above 96% of compared French towns on second homes: 36%
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
Households without a car: 5% here and 11% in the typical compared French town. On average, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. Recent arrivals (under two years) make up 10% of households; long-stayers (30 years or more) 40%.
−29% since 2012: slower than 99% 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
For comparison, the median compared French town changed +5% and the median Drôme town +8%. The first five years brought −20%; the six to 2023, −10%.
More residents aged 65 and over than 98% of compared French towns: 40%
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Le Chaffal 57.5. The median compared French town: 44.
There is little gap on residents aged 15 to 24: 11%, about the same as in the typical compared French town. Typically, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
37% women, 63% men
About 59 women for every 100 men. Median share of women: Drôme 51.8%, France 51.8%.
In Le Chaffal, 50% of households are one person living alone, more than in 94% 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 Drôme median and the France median
Living alone · share
Each household has 1.8 people on average. For comparison, 35% of households are one person living alone in the typical compared French town. Single-parent households are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. Couples with children: 25%, near enough the figure in the typical compared French town.
25% of households are headed by a manual worker, a share 96% of compared French towns don’t reach
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
Households headed by a manager or professional are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. Across the 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).
0% of residents in Le Chaffal 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.
Immigrants are rarer here than in 99% 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.
More married residents than 99% of compared French towns: 55%
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
25% of residents 15 and over are single in the typical compared French town, against 30% in Le Chaffal. The comparison figure for married residents is 43% in the typical compared French town.
Adults with no qualification: 25%, a higher share than 78% 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
Graduates of higher education: 28% here and 30% in the typical compared French town. In the typical compared French town, adults with no qualification come to 19%.
5th highest median age among 41 French towns of 35 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).
Every neighbor is younger than Le Chaffal
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Le Chaffal | 57.5 | 40% | 36% | 0% |
| Chabeuil 6,833 · 8.6 mi | 46.9 | 24% | 2.8% | 3.5% |
| Montélier 4,323 · 8.8 mi | 46.5 | 25% | 0.7% | 4.1% |
| Chatuzange-le-Goubet 6,523 · 10.2 mi | 40.9 | 19% | 1.8% | 3.2% |
| Saint-Jean-en-Royans 2,874 · 10.5 mi | 50.9 | 30% | 6.5% | 6% |
| Alixan 2,729 · 10.5 mi | 39.7 | 15% | 2.2% | 3.6% |
| Montmeyran 2,960 · 10.7 mi | 48.1 | 24% | 3.1% | 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 Le Chaffal
What is the population of Le Chaffal?
35 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 29% fewer than in 2012 (49).
How old are Le Chaffal’s residents?
The median age is 57.5, older than 97% of compared French towns. 8.6% are under 18 and 40% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Le Chaffal?
16, with occasional dwellings: 36% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Le Chaffal?
INSEE counts 0 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 0% 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 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.