Younger than 92% of compared French towns: half of Méru is under 36.7
Here 18% of households have no car, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 11%. Méru had 13,897 residents in 5,240 households at the 2023 census. The share of households headed by a retired person stands at 26%. At 0.7%, the share of second homes is lower than in 90% of compared French towns.
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 Méru
Immigrants
INSEE counts 2,700 immigrants in Méru (people born abroad who weren’t French at birth, whatever their nationality now): 19% of residents, against 7.4% for the median compared commune in Oise. 14% are foreign nationals. Immigrants and foreign nationals ↓
A young town
Half of Méru’s residents are under 36.7 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 24% are under 15 and 15% are 65 or older. Ages ↓
A town of families
34% of households are couples with children and 15% single parents with children; 24% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Social housing
30% of households rent from a social landlord (HLM), 15% rent privately and 53% own their home. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Méru’s population moved ±0% on 2012, less than in 71% 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 median Oise town changed +2% and the median compared French town +5%; here the first five years brought +5% and the next six −5%.
Méru sits below 90% of compared French towns for residents aged 65 and over (15%)
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Méru 36.7. The median compared French town: 44.
14% of residents are 15 to 24 (typical compared French town: 11%). Set beside that, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Oise 51.7%, France 51.8%.
34% of households are couples with children, more than in 89% 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 Oise median and the France median
Living alone · share
Here 15% of households are single parents, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 10%. Typically, 25% of households are couples with children in the typical compared French town. The average household has 2.6 people. Méru has fewer one-person households than 58% of compared French towns, at 34%.
Méru ranks above 92% of compared French towns on households in social housing: 30%
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
The share of empty homes is 7.8%, against 6.7% in the typical compared French town. Flats: 44% of the total. Set beside that, 12% of households rent social housing (HLM) in the typical compared French town.
A typical living standard of €22,160 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.
The median standard of living in Méru is €22,160 a year per consumption unit: lower than in 88% of compared French towns. The share living below the poverty line is 24.0%.
More households headed by a manual worker than 94% of compared French towns: 24%
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, 9.4% of households are headed by a manager or professional; in Méru, 7.1%. For comparison, 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).
Méru: 19% of residents are immigrants, above 92% 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.
Set against 4.3% in the typical compared French town, 14% of residents are foreign nationals in Méru. On average, 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 larger share of single residents than 88% of compared French towns: 33%
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
In the typical compared French town, the share of married residents is 43%; Méru has 41%. Typically, a quarter of residents 15 and over are single in the typical compared French town.
In Méru, 30% of adults out of school have no qualification, more than in 90% 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
In Méru, 20% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, beside 30% in the typical compared French town. On average, 19% of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town.
7th lowest median age among 41 French towns of 13,434 to 14,359
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population, by median age. Hover for each one’s second homes and immigrants; click for its page.
Fleury-Mérogis is the youngest (30.2); Douarnenez the oldest (55.6).
Median age: 4 of the 6 towns around Méru 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Méru | 36.7 | 15% | 0.7% | 19% |
| Andeville 3,434 · 2.2 mi | 39 | 15% | 1.1% | 6.7% |
| Bornel 4,832 · 3.9 mi | 40.7 | 17% | 1.4% | 6.6% |
| Sainte-Geneviève 3,505 · 4.7 mi | 36.6 | 13% | 1.4% | 5.9% |
| Neuilly-en-Thelle 4,127 · 7 mi | 36.7 | 14% | 0.9% | 6.4% |
| Chambly 9,959 · 7 mi | 40.1 | 17% | 0.9% | 8.6% |
| Noailles 2,877 · 7.1 mi | 40.4 | 18% | 1.2% | 4.9% |
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 Méru
What is the population of Méru?
13,897 at INSEE’s 2023 census, about the same as in 2012 (13,948).
How old are Méru’s residents?
The median age is 36.7, younger than 92% of compared French towns. 29% are under 18 and 15% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Méru?
41, with occasional dwellings: 0.7% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Méru?
INSEE counts 2,680 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 19% of residents, and 1,880 foreign nationals (14%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Méru?
€22,160 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.