A town of second homes: 15% of its homes
18% of homes are flats; in the typical compared French town the figure is 30%. On households in social housing, Bessan sits lower than 69% of compared French towns: 8.4%. This Hérault town had 5,838 residents in 2,570 households at the 2023 Census. Households headed by a manager or professional account for 7%.
Throughout this page, the Hérault 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 Bessan
One home in seven is a second home
The census counted 500 second homes and occasional dwellings in Bessan, 15% of its 3,290 homes: higher than in 91% of compared French towns. 50% of them are houses. Their owners live elsewhere, so they aren’t in the population figures on this page. Homes & cars ↓
Growing fast
Bessan had 4,690 residents at the 2012 census and 5,838 in 2023, up 24%: faster growth than in 94% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Only 7.5% of households have no car in Bessan
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 that moved in under two years ago: 12%. Those in their home 30 years or more: 16%. 6.5% of homes stand empty, a lower share than in 53% of compared French towns. As a yardstick, 11% of households have no car in the typical compared French town.
Bessan’s population changed by +24% since 2012, more than in 94% 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 years 2012 to 2017 brought +8%; 2017 to 2023, +15%. Over the whole period the median compared French town changed +5%, and the median Hérault town +13%.
9.3% of residents are 15 to 24, below 76% 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
■ Bessan 44.6. The median compared French town: 44.
The median age in Bessan is 44.6, higher than in 53% of compared French towns. For comparison, 11% of residents are 15 to 24 in the typical compared French town. In Bessan, nearly a quarter of residents are 65 or over.
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Hérault 52.0%, France 51.8%.
A larger share of single-parent households than 80% of compared French towns: 12%
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 Hérault median and the France median
Living alone · share
On average, 2.2 people share a household. Elsewhere, one in ten households are single parents in the typical compared French town. 32% of households are one person living alone, fewer than in 67% of compared French towns. Bessan sits close to the norm on couples with children: 25%, about the same as in the typical compared French town.
€23,200 a year is the median standard of living here
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 €23,200 a year per consumption unit, the median standard of living here is lower than in 80% of compared French towns. 19.0% of residents have a standard of living below 60% of France’s median.
35% of households are headed by a retired person, more than in 64% 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
Here, 13% of households are headed by a manual worker. Set beside that, nearly a third of households are headed by a retired person in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
6.9% of Bessan’s 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.
The median compared commune in Hérault has 6.8%; immigrants here make up a share higher than in 53% of compared French towns. Put another way, about one in 14: 6.9% of residents are immigrants. Foreign nationals are about as common here as in the typical compared French town: 4%.
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 24% in Bessan, less than in 59% 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
On the census count, 42% of residents 15 and over are married. For single residents, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 25%.
22% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, below 80% 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
In the typical compared French town, 19% of adults out of school have no qualification; in Bessan, 22%. By way of comparison, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
Among 41 French towns of 5,802 to 5,875 people, the 20th 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.
The youngest is Viry (35.9), the oldest Montmorillon (57.4).
Older than Bessan: 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bessan | 44.6 | 23% | 15% | 6.9% |
| Saint-Thibéry 3,132 · 2.4 mi | 42.5 | 21% | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| Florensac 5,254 · 2.8 mi | 49.8 | 28% | 8.7% | 7.5% |
| Montblanc 2,932 · 3.6 mi | 46.7 | 26% | 6.8% | 7.3% |
| Vias 5,952 · 3.7 mi | 52.2 | 31% | 46% | 8.2% |
| Agde 29,939 · 5.3 mi | 56.2 | 36% | 66% | 8.3% |
| Marseillan 8,414 · 5.6 mi | 57.8 | 38% | 60% | 8.2% |
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 Bessan
What is the population of Bessan?
5,838 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 24% more than in 2012 (4,690).
How old are Bessan’s residents?
The median age is 44.6, older than 53% of compared French towns. 22% are under 18 and 23% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Bessan?
500, with occasional dwellings: 15% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Bessan?
INSEE counts 410 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 6.9% of residents, and 230 foreign nationals (4%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Bessan?
€23,200 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 19.0% 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 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.