Couples with children: 42%, a higher share than 99% of compared French towns
A third of households are headed by a manager or professional, against 9.4% in the typical compared French town. For Châtelus, the census puts flats at 8.2%. The median age locally is 40.4, lower than in 77% of compared French towns. The 2023 Census put the town’s population at 143, in 54 households.
Throughout this page, the Loire 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 Châtelus
One home in five is a second home
The census counted 13 second homes and occasional dwellings in Châtelus, 19% of its 66 homes: higher than in 93% 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 ↓
A town of families
42% of households are couples with children and 8.3% single parents with children; 25% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
19% of homes are second homes, a share 93% of compared French towns don’t reach
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
Newcomers of less than two years account for 3.4% of households, residents of 30 years or more for 22%. Households in social housing are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. Against that, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town.
Since 2012, Châtelus has grown +14%, faster than 81% 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, +10% to 2017 and +4% after, the town’s change compares with +5% for the median compared French town and +3% in Loire.
16% of residents are 65 or over, fewer than in 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
■ Châtelus 40.4. The median compared French town: 44.
In the typical compared French town, the share of residents aged 15 to 24 is 11%; Châtelus has 8.9%. The wider picture: 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
46% women, 54% men
About 118 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Loire 52.0%, France 51.8%.
25% of households are one person living alone, fewer 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 Loire median and the France median
Living alone · share
The share of single-parent households is 8.3%, against 10% in the typical compared French town. One-person households: 35% in the typical compared French town, for comparison. Households average 2.7 people.
The median resident lives on €27,600 a year per consumption unit
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.
Per consumption unit, half of residents live on more than €27,600 a year: higher than in 67% of compared French towns.
Only 17% of households are headed by a retired person in Châtelus
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 manual worker are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. In the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a retired person is 32%.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Châtelus ranks below 93% of compared French towns on immigrants: 1.9%
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 the typical compared French town, the share of foreign nationals is 4.3%; Châtelus has 1.3%. Immigrants make up 6.5% 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.
42% of residents 15 and over are married, below 54% 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
Châtelus has more single residents than just over half of compared French towns, at 25%. The benchmark for married residents in the typical compared French town: 43%.
Châtelus ranks below 80% of compared French towns on adults with no qualification: 14%
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
Against a figure of 30% in the typical compared French town, the share of graduates of higher education in Châtelus comes in at 36%. The wider picture: 19% of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
4th lowest median age among 41 French towns of 143 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.
The youngest is Villejust (37.2), the oldest Prayssac (62.3).
Châtelus is younger than every town around it
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Châtelus | 40.4 | 16% | 19% | 1.9% |
| Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise 3,785 · 2.7 mi | 47.2 | 29% | 1.7% | 4.6% |
| Chazelles-sur-Lyon 5,543 · 4.7 mi | 46.8 | 25% | 1.3% | 3.3% |
| Saint-Héand 3,665 · 6.3 mi | 47.6 | 26% | 2.4% | 1.9% |
| Saint-Martin-en-Haut 3,942 · 6.5 mi | 47.6 | 25% | 3.6% | 2% |
| Sorbiers 8,116 · 7 mi | 44.8 | 23% | 1.2% | 5% |
| Genilac 3,839 · 7 mi | 42.5 | 19% | 1.6% | 4.5% |
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 Châtelus
What is the population of Châtelus?
143 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 14% more than in 2012 (125).
How old are Châtelus’ residents?
The median age is 40.4, younger than 77% of compared French towns. 29% are under 18 and 16% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Châtelus?
13, with occasional dwellings: 19% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Châtelus?
INSEE counts 3 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 1.9% of residents, and 2 foreign nationals (1.3%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Châtelus?
€27,600 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 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.