Fewer households in social housing than 99% of compared French towns: 0.9%
14% of households are headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town, against 25% in Sarralbe. Flats account for 35%. Higher than in 60% of compared French towns: 13% of households have no car. The town had 4,364 residents in 1,940 households at the 2023 census.
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 Sarralbe
Empty homes
The census found 320 homes empty (14%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Fewer residents than in 2012
Sarralbe had 4,572 residents at the 2012 census and 4,364 in 2023, down 5%: slower growth than in 87% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
−5% since 2012: slower than 87% 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
Over those years, the median Moselle town changed −1% and the median compared French town +5%. Between 2012 and 2017 the population moved ±0%, then −4% to 2023.
In Sarralbe, 10% of residents are 15 to 24, fewer than in 60% 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
■ Sarralbe 44.5. The median compared French town: 44.
Half of Sarralbe’s residents are over 44.5, older than in 53% of compared French towns. For comparison, 11% of residents are 15 to 24 in the typical compared French town. Residents aged 65 and over account for 22%.
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Moselle 51.8%, France 51.8%.
37% of households are one person living alone, more than in 57% 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 Moselle median and the France median
Living alone · share
A household here holds 2.2 people on average. The benchmark for one-person households in the typical compared French town: 35%. Higher than in 55% of compared French towns: 26% of households are couples with children. At 9.7%, the share of single-parent households is in line with the figure in the typical compared French town.
Sarralbe sits above 93% of compared French towns for empty homes (14%)
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
Of all households, 11% moved in during the last two years and 26% have stayed three decades or more. In the typical compared French town, the share of empty homes is 6.7%. Fewer second homes than in 66% of compared French towns: 1.4%.
Half above, half below €24,110 a year in 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.
At €24,110 a year per consumption unit, the median standard of living here is lower than in 70% of compared French towns. 18.0% of residents have a standard of living below 60% of France’s median.
29% of households are headed by a retired person, fewer than in 67% 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: 7.1% here and 9.4% in the typical compared French town. Typically, 32% 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).
Immigrants make up 6% of Sarralbe’s residents
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 make up a share lower than in 54% of compared French towns; the median compared commune in Moselle has 12%. Census figures put foreign nationals at 3.6% in Sarralbe.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
More single residents than 53% of compared French towns: 26%
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
Married residents: 43% of the total. For single residents, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 25%.
Graduates of higher education make up 20% in Sarralbe, less than in 86% 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
The figure for adults with no qualification is 28% in Sarralbe and 19% in the typical compared French town. In the typical compared French town, graduates of higher education come to 30%.
Ranked by age, 7th youngest 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 Labège (33), the oldest Le Château-d'Oléron (55).
Sarralbe is younger than 5 of its 6 nearest neighbors
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarralbe | 44.5 | 22% | 1.4% | 6% |
| Sarre-Union 2,731 · 4.9 mi | 48.8 | 28% | 1.8% | 10% |
| Hambach 2,766 · 4.9 mi | 47.8 | 23% | 1.3% | 9.3% |
| Woustviller 2,786 · 5.6 mi | 50 | 26% | 0.1% | 12% |
| Puttelange-aux-Lacs 3,016 · 6.1 mi | 50.3 | 28% | 8.1% | 15% |
| Sarreguemines 20,143 · 8.5 mi | 48.8 | 26% | 1.6% | 15% |
| Farébersviller 5,224 · 10.8 mi | 39.8 | 19% | 0.7% | 28% |
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 Sarralbe
What is the population of Sarralbe?
4,364 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 5% fewer than in 2012 (4,572).
How old are Sarralbe’s residents?
The median age is 44.5, older than 53% of compared French towns. 21% are under 18 and 22% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Sarralbe?
32, with occasional dwellings: 1.4% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Sarralbe?
INSEE counts 260 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 6% of residents, and 160 foreign nationals (3.6%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Sarralbe?
€24,110 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 18.0% 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.