Couples with children make up 35% in Limonest, more than in 92% of compared French towns
The figure for residents aged 65 and over is 18% in Limonest and 22% in the typical compared French town. The town had 4,012 residents in 1,620 households at the 2023 census. Nearly a quarter of households are headed by a manager or professional, or about one in four. Lower than in just over two thirds of compared French towns: 7.8% of households have no car.
Throughout this page, the Rhône 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 Limonest
A town of families
35% of households are couples with children and 8.5% single parents with children; 20% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Many graduates
56% of residents 15 and over who have left education hold a diploma above the bac, 28% a master’s or more (bac+5). Qualifications ↓
Growing fast
Limonest had 3,418 residents at the 2012 census and 4,012 in 2023, up 17%: faster growth than in 86% of compared French towns. Population ↓
Empty homes
The census found 230 homes empty (12%): for sale, to let, awaiting work or simply unused. Homes & cars ↓
Written from INSEE’s census 2023 on this page, against compared French towns.
Limonest grew +17% from 2012 to 2023, faster than 86% 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 Rhône town changed +10% and the median compared French town +5%; here the first five years brought +7% and the next six +9%.
Half of Limonest is under 40.4, younger than 77% 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
■ Limonest 40.4. The median compared French town: 44.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 is 13%, against 11% in the typical compared French town.
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Median share of women: Rhône 51.5%, France 51.8%.
Limonest sits below 73% of compared French towns for one-person households (31%)
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 Rhône median and the France median
Living alone · share
Households here average 2.4 people each. Compared with other places, single-parent households are scarce here: 8.5%, fewer than in 73% of compared French towns. The benchmark for one-person households in the typical compared French town: 35%.
In Limonest, 12% of homes stand empty, more than in 89% 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
Against a figure of 30% in the typical compared French town, the share of flats in Limonest comes in at 43%. 13% of households rent social housing (HLM). More second homes than in 55% of compared French towns: 2.5%. On average, 6.7% of homes stand empty in the typical compared French town.
The median resident lives on €37,180 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.
The midpoint of living standards here is €37,180 a year per consumption unit, higher than in 97% of compared French towns. As for poverty, 7.0% of residents are below the line.
A smaller share of households headed by a manual worker than 94% of compared French towns: 6%
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
24% of households are headed by a retired person (typical compared French town: 32%). The share of households headed by a manual worker in the typical compared French town is 14%.
Each household is counted once, by the occupation of its reference person (usually the oldest working adult).
5.4% of residents are foreign nationals, a share 59% of compared French towns don’t reach
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 median compared commune in Rhône has 8.2%; immigrants here make up a share higher than in 57% of compared French towns. For comparison, 4.3% of residents are foreign nationals in the typical compared French town. On the census count, 7.6% of residents are immigrants.
INSEE publishes no country of birth or ethnicity by commune in these tables, and the census doesn’t ask about religion.
Married residents make up 48% in Limonest, more than in 83% 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
Single residents: just over a quarter of the total. The benchmark for married residents in the typical compared French town: 43%.
In Limonest, 56% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification, more than in 96% 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 the typical compared French town, the share of adults with no qualification is 19%; Limonest has 11%. As a yardstick, 30% of adults out of school hold a higher-education qualification in the typical compared French town.
Among 41 French towns of 3,992 to 4,036 people, the 5th 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 Fay-de-Bretagne (36.3), the oldest Vaux-sur-Mer (66.9).
5 in 6 nearby towns have a higher median age than Limonest
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by median age. Source: INSEE, census 2023.
| Town | Median age | 65+ | Second homes | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Limonest | 40.4 | 18% | 2.5% | 7.6% |
| Dardilly 9,221 · 1.6 mi | 42.5 | 19% | 5.1% | 8.2% |
| Saint-Didier-au-Mont-d'Or 7,435 · 1.9 mi | 48.4 | 27% | 2.9% | 5.4% |
| Lissieu 3,181 · 2.1 mi | 43.4 | 20% | 6.9% | 8.1% |
| Champagne-au-Mont-d'Or 6,311 · 2.6 mi | 40.2 | 21% | 1.9% | 12% |
| Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d'Or 6,327 · 2.6 mi | 45.8 | 25% | 6.1% | 8% |
| Couzon-au-Mont-d'Or 2,619 · 2.8 mi | 42.8 | 21% | 1.8% | 9.7% |
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 Limonest
What is the population of Limonest?
4,012 at INSEE’s 2023 census, 17% more than in 2012 (3,418).
How old are Limonest’s residents?
The median age is 40.4, younger than 77% of compared French towns. 24% are under 18 and 18% 65 or older.
How many second homes are there in Limonest?
47, with occasional dwellings: 2.5% of all homes, against 2.1% for the median compared French town.
How many immigrants live in Limonest?
INSEE counts 300 immigrants (born abroad, not French at birth), 7.6% of residents, and 220 foreign nationals (5.4%). The medians of compared French towns are 6.5% and 4.3%.
What is the median income in Limonest?
€37,180 a year per consumption unit in 2023 (median of compared French towns €25,970); 7.0% 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.