A higher share of couples with children than 97% of compared French towns, at 38%
Residents aged 65 and over: 16%, below 88% of compared French towns. Households headed by a manager or professional are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. In Desseling, 7.1% of homes are flats.
Throughout this page, the Moselle 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 Desseling
One home in six is a second home
The census counted 10 second homes and occasional dwellings in Desseling, 18% of its 57 homes: higher than in 92% 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
38% of households are couples with children and 13% single parents with children; 15% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Fewer residents than in 2012
Desseling had 108 residents at the 2012 census and 97 in 2023, down 10%: slower growth than in 97% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
A higher share of second homes than 92% of compared French towns, at 18%
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
In the last two years, 2.3% of households moved in; at the other end, 16% have stayed 30 years or more. Households in social housing are rarer here than in 99% of compared French towns. For second homes, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 2.1%. The share of empty homes is 5.3%, against 6.7% in the typical compared French town.
Desseling’s population moved −10% on 2012, less than in 97% 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 first five years brought −5%; the six to 2023, −6%.
8.4% of residents are 15 to 24, fewer than in 89% 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
■ Desseling 47.3. The median compared French town: 44.
The median age in Desseling is 47.3, higher than in 71% of compared French towns. By way of comparison, 11% of residents are 15 to 24 in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Moselle 51.8%, France 51.8%.
Fewer one-person households than 94% of compared French towns: 25%
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 Moselle median and the France median
Living alone · share
Compared with 10% in the typical compared French town, 13% of households are single parents here. In the typical compared French town, 35% of households are one person living alone.
€25,620 a year: the median standard of living
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 €25,620 a year per consumption unit and half below; the level is lower than in 53% of compared French towns.
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
In the typical compared French town, 32% of households are headed by a retired person; in Desseling, 25%. The benchmark for households headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town: 14%.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
A lower share of foreign nationals than 93% of compared French towns, at 1.1%
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 Moselle has 12%; immigrants here make up a share lower than in 99% of compared French towns. In the typical compared French town, the share of foreign nationals is 4.3%.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Single residents: 19%, a lower share than 97% 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
The share of married residents stands at 42%. Measured more widely, 25% of residents 15 and over are single in the typical compared French town.
A smaller share of graduates of higher education than 81% of compared French towns: 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
By its share of adults with no qualification (17%), Desseling is below three fifths of compared French towns. The benchmark for graduates of higher education in the typical compared French town: 30%.
41 French towns of 97 to 2,582 people: this is 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.
Villejust is the youngest (37.2); Prayssac the oldest (62.3).
Of the 5 towns nearest Desseling, 2 are older
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desseling | 47.3 | 16% | 18% | 0% |
| Dieuze 2,770 · 5.9 mi | 51.9 | 30% | 1.1% | 3.5% |
| Sarrebourg 12,170 · 10.1 mi | 41.8 | 23% | 3.3% | 11% |
| Morhange 3,308 · 13.4 mi | 45.8 | 25% | 1.3% | 15% |
| Sarre-Union 2,731 · 15.4 mi | 48.8 | 28% | 1.8% | 10% |
| Sarralbe 4,364 · 16.6 mi | 44.5 | 22% | 1.4% | 6% |
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 Desseling
What is the population of Desseling?
97 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 10% fewer than in 2012 (108).
How old are Desseling’s residents?
The median age is 47.3, older than 71% of compared French towns. 18% are under 18 and 16% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Desseling?
10, with occasional dwellings: 18% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Desseling?
INSEE counts 0 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 0% of residents, and 1 foreign nationals (1.1%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Desseling?
€25,620 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 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.