Photo: A. R. (A. Richard, 84 faubourg du Temple - Paris ) · Public domainA median age of 40.4: La Bassée is younger than 77% of compared French towns
The share of households without a car is 20%, against 11% in the typical compared French town. One-person households account for 41%. Few places have as many households in social housing: 22% here, more than in just over four fifths of compared French towns. In 2023, the Census found 6,650 residents in La Bassée, living in 3,110 households.
Throughout this page, the Nord 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.
+4% since 2012: slower than 55% 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
From 2012 to 2017 the population moved ±0%, and from 2017 to 2023 +4%; the median compared French town changed +5% and the median Nord town ±0%.
20% of residents are 65 or over, below 65% 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
■ La Bassée 40.4. The median compared French town: 44.
With residents aged 15 to 24 at 12%, La Bassée is ahead of 77% of compared French towns on that count. Measured more widely, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 92 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Nord 51.9%, France 51.8%.
Couples with children: 22%, a lower share than 65% 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 Nord median and the France median
Living alone · share
Households here average 2.1 people each. At 12%, the share of single-parent households is higher than in 76% of compared French towns. For couples with children, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 25%.
In La Bassée, 0.7% of homes are second homes, fewer than in 91% of compared French towns
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
Here 37% of homes are flats, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 30%. For La Bassée, the census puts empty homes at 6.8%. By way of comparison, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town.
Standard of living at the median: €23,350 a year
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 €23,350 a year per consumption unit, the median standard of living here is lower than in 78% of compared French towns. Living below the poverty line: 18.0% of residents.
29% of households are headed by a retired person, fewer than in 69% 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
Where 9.4% of households are headed by a manager or professional in the typical compared French town, La Bassée has 7.7%. Measured more widely, 32% of households are headed by a retired person in the typical compared French town. Locally, 16% of households are headed by a manual worker.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Fewer immigrants than 86% of compared French towns: 2.6%
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.
Compared with 4.3% in the typical compared French town, 2.1% of residents are foreign nationals here. The wider picture: 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.
A smaller share of married residents than 90% of compared French towns: 35%
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
Single residents: 28% here and 25% in the typical compared French town. As a reference point, 43% of residents 15 and over are married in the typical compared French town.
More adults with no qualification than 76% of compared French towns: 25%
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
Compared with 30% in the typical compared French town, 27% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification here. Typically, 19% of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
Of 41 French towns its size (6,571 to 6,730 people), the 9th 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 Chasse-sur-Rhône (36.3), the oldest Châtelaillon-Plage (59.8).
Around La Bassée, 1 of 6 towns have a higher median age
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Bassée | 40.4 | 20% | 0.7% | 2.6% |
| Violaines 3,839 · 0.9 mi | 42.4 | 20% | 0.8% | 1.2% |
| Salomé 3,182 · 1.3 mi | 38.2 | 15% | 0.6% | 1.9% |
| Douvrin 5,867 · 2 mi | 38.1 | 17% | 0.5% | 1.7% |
| Auchy-les-Mines 4,625 · 2 mi | 40.1 | 16% | 0.2% | 1.2% |
| Haisnes 4,396 · 2 mi | 39.2 | 18% | 0.2% | 1.5% |
| Billy-Berclau 5,093 · 2.8 mi | 40.1 | 18% | 0.5% | 1.6% |
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 La Bassée
What is the population of La Bassée?
6,650 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 4% more than in 2012 (6,413).
How old are La Bassée’s residents?
The median age is 40.4, younger than 77% of compared French towns. 22% are under 18 and 20% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in La Bassée?
23, with occasional dwellings: 0.7% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in La Bassée?
INSEE counts 170 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 2.6% of residents, and 140 foreign nationals (2.1%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in La Bassée?
€23,350 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 9, 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.