A larger share of households in social housing than 93% of compared French towns: 31%
One in ten households are single parents in the typical compared French town, against 15% in Breteuil. At the 2023 Census Breteuil was home to 4,222 people in 1,890 households. Across Breteuil, 11% of homes stand empty. Higher than in 84% of compared French towns: 21% of households have no car.
Throughout this page, the Oise 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 Breteuil
Fewer residents than in 2012
Breteuil had 4,475 residents at the 2012 census and 4,222 in 2023, down 6%: slower growth than in 90% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Social housing
31% of households rent from a social landlord (HLM), 28% rent privately and 40% own their home. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
−6% since 2012, a pace below 90% 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
Against +5% for the median compared French town and +2% for the median Oise town, the change came in two steps: −3% from 2012 to 2017, then −3% to 2023.
Breteuil: 13% of residents are 15 to 24, above 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
■ Breteuil 42.7. The median compared French town: 44.
With a median age of 42.7, Breteuil is younger than 61% of compared French towns. Measured more widely, 11% of residents are 15 to 24 in the typical compared French town. About one in four: that is how common residents aged 65 and over are in Breteuil (23%).
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Oise 51.7%, France 51.8%.
Breteuil sits below 70% of compared French towns for couples with children (21%)
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 Oise median and the France median
Living alone · share
The typical household size is 2.2 people. On average, a quarter of households are couples with children in the typical compared French town. Roughly four in ten: 39% of households are one person living alone.
Only 1.3% of homes are second homes in Breteuil
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
Some 13% of households are newcomers of under two years, against 17% who have been there 30 years or more. Measured more widely, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. Flats are rarer here than in half of compared French towns.
€21,230 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.
Living standards centre on €21,230 a year per consumption unit: lower than in 93% of compared French towns. Residents below the poverty line make up 24.0%.
25% of households are headed by a manual worker, 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
In the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a manager or professional is 9.4%; Breteuil has 5.2%. The share of households headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town is 14%. Roughly three in ten: 32% of households are headed by a retired person.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
A smaller share of immigrants than 84% of compared French towns: 2.8%
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 figure for foreign nationals is 2.3% in Breteuil and 4.3% in the typical compared French town. Across the comparison, 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.
Breteuil sits below 96% of compared French towns for married residents (32%)
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
Here 31% of residents 15 and over are single, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 25%. Married residents: 43% in the typical compared French town, for comparison.
Below 94% of compared French towns: 16% 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
28% of adults out of school have no qualification (typical compared French town: 19%). In the typical compared French town, graduates of higher education come to 30%.
Of 41 French towns its size (4,189 to 4,258 people), the 11th 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.
Saint-Aubin-du-Cormier is the youngest (35.8); Le Touquet-Paris-Plage the oldest (65.8).
Breteuil sits below 5 of its 6 closest neighbors on 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breteuil | 42.7 | 23% | 1.3% | 2.8% |
| Ailly-sur-Noye 2,648 · 8.9 mi | 45.3 | 25% | 1.2% | 1.2% |
| Crèvecœur-le-Grand 3,462 · 9.7 mi | 43.7 | 24% | 1.2% | 1.9% |
| Saint-Just-en-Chaussée 5,810 · 10.8 mi | 41.2 | 20% | 0.7% | 6.6% |
| Montdidier 5,935 · 12.6 mi | 46.3 | 25% | 1.8% | 2.3% |
| Moreuil 3,936 · 13 mi | 43.9 | 23% | 3% | 1.1% |
| Boves 3,234 · 15.4 mi | 43.3 | 21% | 1.6% | 2.5% |
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 Breteuil
What is the population of Breteuil?
4,222 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 6% fewer than in 2012 (4,475).
How old are Breteuil’s residents?
The median age is 42.7, younger than 61% of compared French towns. 21% are under 18 and 23% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Breteuil?
27, with occasional dwellings: 1.3% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Breteuil?
INSEE counts 120 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 2.8% of residents, and 97 foreign nationals (2.3%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Breteuil?
€21,230 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 24.0% 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 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.