A median age of 61.5: Bessonies is older than 99% of compared French towns
The figure for households headed by a retired person is 50% in Bessonies and 32% in the typical compared French town. Its 37 households held 72 residents at the 2023 Census. 4.5% of homes are flats, or about one in 22. Few places have so few households without a car: 5.1% here, fewer than in 87% of compared French towns.
Throughout this page, the Lot 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 Bessonies
One home in four is a second home
The census counted 15 second homes and occasional dwellings in Bessonies, 23% of its 65 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 ↓
An older town
Half of Bessonies’ residents are under 61.5 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 45% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 16% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Fewer residents than in 2012
Bessonies had 100 residents at the 2012 census and 72 in 2023, down 28%: slower growth than in 99% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Empty homes
The census found 12 homes empty (19%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Bessonies sits above 94% of compared French towns for second homes (23%)
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
Compared with 6.7% in the typical compared French town, 19% of homes stand empty here. Households in social housing are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. The comparison figure for second homes is 2.1% in the typical compared French town.
Bessonies changed by −28% from 2012 to 2023, 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 Lot town −1%. The first five years brought −19%; the six to 2023, −11%.
Bessonies sits above 99% of compared French towns for residents aged 65 and over (45%)
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Bessonies 61.5. The median compared French town: 44.
By its share of residents aged 15 to 24 (6.7%), Bessonies is below 98% of compared French towns. As a yardstick, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Lot 53.3%, France 51.8%.
A lower share of couples with children than 97% of compared French towns, at 13%
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 Lot median and the France median
Living alone · share
Households average 1.9 people. The comparison figure for couples with children is 25% in the typical compared French town. Single-parent households are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. One-person households: 38%, above three fifths of compared French towns.
Households headed by a manual worker make up 25% in Bessonies, more than in 96% 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
Households headed by a manager or professional are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. Measured more widely, 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).
2.7% of residents are immigrants, below 85% 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.
In the typical compared French town, the share of foreign nationals is 4.3%; Bessonies has 2.7%. To put it in context, 6.5% of residents are immigrants 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.
71% of residents 15 and over are married, a share 99% of compared French towns don’t reach
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
Set against 25% in the typical compared French town, 16% of residents 15 and over are single in Bessonies. In the typical compared French town, the share of married residents is 43%.
Below 99% of compared French towns: 12% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification
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, the share of adults with no qualification is 19%; Bessonies has 31%. As a reference point, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
Ranked by age, 2nd oldest of 41 French towns this size
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).
No nearby town is as old as Bessonies
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bessonies | 61.5 | 45% | 23% | 2.7% |
| Saint-Céré 3,429 · 13 mi | 54.6 | 36% | 7.6% | 8% |
| Ytrac 4,339 · 13.1 mi | 48.3 | 25% | 3.1% | 1.8% |
| Figeac 9,793 · 14.9 mi | 48.2 | 29% | 4.3% | 8.7% |
| Aurillac 26,214 · 16.3 mi | 48.4 | 28% | 4.6% | 6.7% |
| Arpajon-sur-Cère 6,361 · 16.6 mi | 49.8 | 26% | 4.4% | 2% |
| Capdenac-Gare 4,440 · 16.8 mi | 51.4 | 30% | 5.9% | 7.9% |
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 Bessonies
What is the population of Bessonies?
72 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 28% fewer than in 2012 (100).
How old are Bessonies’ residents?
The median age is 61.5, older than 99% of compared French towns. 9.3% are under 18 and 45% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Bessonies?
15, with occasional dwellings: 23% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Bessonies?
INSEE counts 2 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 2.7% of residents, and 2 foreign nationals (2.7%). 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.