The department of Pyrénées-Orientales had 492,964 inhabitants on January 1, 2022, according to figures published by INSEE, this Thursday, December 19, 2024. The increase is nearly 4,000 inhabitants per year since 2016. At this rate, the The 500,000 mark will therefore be crossed for the first time in 2025. With just over 120 000 inhabitants, Perpignan, on the other hand, sees its population stagnating.
The Pyrénées-Orientales will cross the 500,000 inhabitants barrier for the first time in 2025. This is predicted by INSEE. This Thursday, December 19, 2024, it formalizes the statistical state of the department’s population as of January 1, 2022. It shows 492,964 inhabitants, according to this census published this Thursday, December 19. Unsurprisingly, the population therefore continues to grow every year. Over the period 2016-2022, the Pyrénées-Orientales will gain 18,595 inhabitants, an increase of 3,099 inhabitants per year. And therefore a bar of 500,000 which will be exceeded in 2025. More precisely, the natural balance (births-deaths) is negative (- 0.3%) but the migratory balance remains positive (+ 0.9%), driving this growth . The Pyrénées-Orientales remains the fourth most populated department in Occitanie behind Haute-Garonne (1,456,261), Hérault (1,217,331) and Gard (764,010). Aude has 377,773 inhabitants.
Perpignan down slightly
While the population is declining in Paris, declining and progressing slowly in Marseille and Lyon, it is still increasing sharply.
in Toulouse (+ 1.2% per year between 2016 and 2022), which remains the 4th city in France with 511,684 inhabitants as of January 1, 2022, specifies INSEE. The progression is even stronger in Montpellier (+ 1.5% per year) which is the 7th commune in France with 307,101 inhabitants. Conversely, in Nîmes and Perpignan, the 3rd and 4th cities of Occitanie with respectively 150,444 inhabitants and 120,996 inhabitants, the natural surplus barely compensates for the migratory deficit and the population is therefore almost stationary. With 120,996 inhabitants, Perpignan recorded a slight decline, unlike Canet, Saint-Cyprien, Pia, Rivesaltes, Cabestany, Canohès and others.
The 20 most populated municipalities in the Pyrénées-Orientales as of January 1, 2022
(in parentheses the change in % since 2016)
1. Perpignan 120,996 (- 0.12)
2. Canet-en-Roussillon 13,005 (+ 1.25)
3. Saint-Cyprien 11,995 (+ 2.03)
4. Saint-Estève 11,673 (-0.2)
5. Pia 11 174 (+ 3,89)
6. Argelès-sur-Mer 10,779 (+ 0.54)
7. Capestany 10 414 (+ 0.98)
8. Saint-Laurent-de-la-Salanque 9,941 (-0.60)
9. Elne 9,479 (+1.28)
10. Rivesaltes 9,151 (+ 0.95)
11. Thuir 8,215 (+1.41)
12. Le Soler 7,896 (+ 0.49)
13. Bompas 7 712 (+ 1,16)
14. Céret 7,544 (-0.44)
15. Toulouges 7 375 (+ 1,53)
16. Canohès 6 575 (+ 2,06)
17. Le Barcarès 6,203 (+ 0.80)
18. Prades 6 166 (+ 0.04)
19. Saleilles 5724 (+ 1,65)
20. Ille-sur-Têt 5,546 (+ 0.27)
Confirmation therefore of the attraction of the coast and the Perpignan crown, the greater crown itself with the five strong increases recorded in Pia (+ 3.89), Latour-Bas-Elne (+ 3.6%), Corneilla-del-Vercol (+ 3.1%), Claira (+ 2.6%) or Pollestres (+ 2.2%). If Fenouillèdes confirms its disaffection, Vallespir is also experiencing a decline in its inhabitants like Boulou (-0.7%) or Céret (-0.4%).
The five smallest villages in the Pyrénées-Orientales are Oreilla (27 inhabitants), Thuès (26), Rallieu (23), Caudies-de-Conflent (21) and Glorianes (16).
All its population reports were completed on January 1, 2022 and therefore have evolved since then. But these official figures from INSEE remain the basis for calculating overall state operating grants. An essential tool for municipal finances.
