Photo: JÄNNICK Jérémy · Public domainHarnes ranks above 98% of compared French towns on households in social housing: 40%
With a median age of 40.2, Harnes is younger than 78% of compared French towns. The census found that just over a fifth of households are headed by a manual worker locally. Its 5,330 households held 12,247 residents at the 2023 Census. In the typical compared French town, 11% of households have no car; locally, 20%.
Throughout this page, the Pas-de-Calais 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 Harnes
Social housing
40% of households rent from a social landlord (HLM), 12% rent privately and 46% own their home. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
A change of ±0% since 2012 leaves Harnes behind 69% 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
Here the change came as +1% to 2017, then −1% to 2023.
Only 20% of residents are 65 or over in Harnes
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Harnes 40.2. The median compared French town: 44.
On residents aged 15 to 24, 11% here is much the same as in the typical compared French town. Typically, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Pas-de-Calais 52.0%, France 51.8%.
Single-parent households make up 12% in Harnes, more than in 77% 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 Pas-de-Calais median and the France median
Living alone · share
The typical household size is 2.3 people. For single-parent households, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 10%. 27% of households are couples with children, or about one in four. At 36%, the share of one-person households is higher than in 52% of compared French towns.
Harnes ranks below 99% of compared French towns on second homes: 0.2%
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
Car-free households: one in five, where the median compared French town has 11%. Typically, 2.1% of homes are second homes in the typical compared French town. 16% of homes are flats. Higher than in 55% of compared French towns: 7.2% of homes stand empty.
A median of €21,070 a year per consumption unit
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 Harnes’ residents live in households with a standard of living below €21,070 a year per consumption unit, and half above: lower than in 93% of compared French towns. Living below the poverty line: 27.0% of residents.
In Harnes, 5.2% of households are headed by a manager or professional, fewer than in 84% 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 retired person make up about one in three here (32%). In the typical compared French town, the share of households headed by a manager or professional is 9.4%.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
In Harnes, 4.3% of residents are immigrants, fewer than in 71% 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.
3% of residents are foreign nationals; in the typical compared French town the figure is 4.3%. For immigrants, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 6.5%.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Only 39% of residents 15 and over are married in Harnes
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
Across Harnes, 25% of residents 15 and over are single. Married residents: 43% in the typical compared French town, for comparison.
18% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, fewer 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
Here 26% of adults out of school have no qualification, where the figure in the typical compared French town is 19%. Elsewhere, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
The 11th youngest of 41 French towns of 11,993 to 12,510 people
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 Saint-Pierre-du-Perray (33.7), the oldest Saint-Cyprien (61.1).
Among its 6 nearest neighbors, 2 are older than Harnes
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harnes | 40.2 | 20% | 0.2% | 4.3% |
| Annay 4,571 · 1.3 mi | 41 | 19% | 0.4% | 1.6% |
| Fouquières-lès-Lens 6,087 · 1.5 mi | 39.2 | 20% | 0.4% | 3.6% |
| Noyelles-sous-Lens 6,854 · 1.7 mi | 40 | 20% | 0.3% | 4.7% |
| Montigny-en-Gohelle 9,743 · 1.8 mi | 38.1 | 20% | 0.1% | 4.4% |
| Loison-sous-Lens 5,169 · 1.9 mi | 40.6 | 20% | 0.3% | 3% |
| Pont-à-Vendin 3,062 · 2 mi | 35.9 | 13% | 0.8% | 1.7% |
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 Harnes
What is the population of Harnes?
12,247 at INSEE’s 2023 census, about the same as in 2012 (12,220).
How old are Harnes’ residents?
The median age is 40.2, younger than 78% of compared French towns. 23% are under 18 and 20% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Harnes?
12, with occasional dwellings: 0.2% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Harnes?
INSEE counts 520 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 4.3% of residents, and 370 foreign nationals (3%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Harnes?
€21,070 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 27.0% 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.