Older than 98% of compared French towns: half of Espinasse is over 59.2
In the typical compared French town, the share of households in social housing is 12%; Espinasse has 2%. The 2023 Census put the town’s population at 274, in 150 households. The share of households headed by a retired person stands at 48%. 16% of households are single parents, a higher share than in 97% of compared French towns.
Throughout this page, the Puy-de-Dôme 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 Espinasse
One home in four is a second home
The census counted 70 second homes and occasional dwellings in Espinasse, 23% of its 300 homes: higher than in 94% of compared French towns. 94% of them are houses. Their owners live elsewhere, so they aren’t in the population figures on this page. Homes & cars ↓
An older town
Half of Espinasse’s residents are under 59.2 and half over; the median of compared French towns is 44. 40% are 65 or older (France median 22%), 9.2% 80 or older. Ages ↓
Empty homes
The census found 79 homes empty (26%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Fewer residents than in 2012
Espinasse had 297 residents at the 2012 census and 274 in 2023, down 8%: slower growth than in 94% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
26% of homes stand empty, a share 99% of compared French towns don’t reach
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
One household in 17 has no car (median compared French town: 11%). Second homes are more common here than in 94% of compared French towns. The share of empty homes in the typical compared French town is 6.7%. For Espinasse, the census puts flats at 5%.
−8% since 2012, a pace below 94% 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
In two steps, −1% to 2017 and −7% after, the town’s change compares with +5% for the median compared French town and +4% in Puy-de-Dôme.
More residents aged 65 and over than 98% of compared French towns: 40%
Shares of residents by age at the 2023 census.
Age groups · share of residents
Median age of the 3,798 compared French towns
■ Espinasse 59.2. The median compared French town: 44.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 is 5.6%, against 11% in the typical compared French town. As a yardstick, 22% of residents are 65 or over in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Puy-de-Dôme 52.2%, France 51.8%.
Espinasse ranks below 99% of compared French towns on couples with children: 9.2%
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 Puy-de-Dôme median and the France median
Living alone · share
In Espinasse, 43% of households are one person living alone, beside 35% in the typical compared French town. The share of couples with children in the typical compared French town is 25%. A household here holds 1.8 people on average.
€20,700 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.
The midpoint of living standards here is €20,700 a year per consumption unit, lower than in 95% of compared French towns.
In Espinasse, 3.2% of households are headed by a manager or professional, fewer than in 97% 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
Across Espinasse, 13% of households are headed by a manual worker. By way of comparison, nearly one in ten households are headed by a manager or professional in the typical compared French town.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
Espinasse ranks above 81% of compared French towns on foreign nationals: 9.9%
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 6.5% in the typical compared French town, 11% of residents are immigrants here. The usual figure: 4.3% of residents are foreign nationals in the typical compared French town. Immigrants make up a share higher than in nearly three quarters of compared French towns; the median compared commune in Puy-de-Dôme has 5.9%.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Single residents: 24%, a lower share than 60% of compared French towns
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, 43% of residents 15 and over are married; in Espinasse, 42%. Single residents make up 25% in the typical compared French town.
23% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, below 76% 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
Where 19% of adults out of school have no qualification in the typical compared French town, Espinasse has 24%. For graduates of higher education, the comparison in the typical compared French town is 30%.
Of 41 French towns its size (274 to 2,582 people), the 4th oldest
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 Villejust (37.2), the oldest Prayssac (62.3).
Every neighbor is younger than Espinasse
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Espinasse | 59.2 | 40% | 23% | 11% |
| Saint-Éloy-les-Mines 3,480 · 10.6 mi | 53.4 | 32% | 4.8% | 6.2% |
| Commentry 6,017 · 17.4 mi | 53.8 | 33% | 2.4% | 4.6% |
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 Espinasse
What is the population of Espinasse?
274 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 8% fewer than in 2012 (297).
How old are Espinasse’s residents?
The median age is 59.2, older than 98% of compared French towns. 10% are under 18 and 40% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Espinasse?
70, with occasional dwellings: 23% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Espinasse?
INSEE counts 30 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 11% of residents, and 27 foreign nationals (9.9%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Espinasse?
€20,700 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970). 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.