the Landes continue to attract, on the coast, but not only

Like good resolutions or foie gras on family tables, population figures are another end-of-year tradition. On December 19 – a few days in advance – INSEE (National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies) revealed the figures for the legal population in France as of December 1^is January 2022 (compared to 2016). Figures which are now a reference.

As in the previous study (extending over the period 2015-2021), the Landes are the big winners of this survey. At 1^is January 2022, the population stands at 428,427 inhabitants in the 327 municipalities in the department. Which represents a gain of 23,417 inhabitants (5.4%) since 2016 (and 5,451 additional people compared to the last reference survey, on 1^is January 2021).

With this figure, the Landes ranks fifth in Nouvelle-Aquitaine (in a ranking dominated by Gironde, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Charente-Maritime then Vienne) and 58^e place in France (as during the 2015-2021 census).

1 Positive migration balance

This increase represents an average annual variation – between 2016 and 2022 – of 0.9%. With this rate, Les Landes ranks second behind Gironde, which saw its population increase by 1.1%. An increase greater than that of the regional (0.5%) and national (0.3%) average. During these six years, the Landes gained, on average, 3,903 inhabitants.

This significant increase is due to positive migration balance which stands at 1.2%. It is one of the most important in France, particularly since the health crisis linked to Covid-19. It obviously highlights the attractiveness of the territory. It had already been highlighted last year when the population data was disclosed for the 2015-2021 period (with an average annual increase of 1.1%).

The migratory balance is calculated by the difference between the total population variation between two censuses and the natural balance (death/birth ratio) during the same period. In the Landes, it compensates for a natural balance which is still negative (-0.3%).

2 Mont-de-Marsan progresses

In the ranking of the most populous towns in New Aquitaine, Mont-de-Marsan grabs a place at the expense of Bègles and is now at 18^e rank with 31,455 inhabitants (i.e. an additional 1,570 between 2016 and 2022). She is hot on the heels of Châtellerault (17^e ; 31,487) and is even found at 738 inhabitants of Agen (16^e ; 32,193 inhabitants), which continues to unscrew. The “capital” of Landes confirms its visible recovery in the 2015-2021 census data.

Dax remains the second city in the department and sees its population increase by 3.9% to reach 21,716 inhabitants (34^e at the regional level). Biscarrosse retains its status as the third town in the Landes with 15,412 inhabitants (with a jump of 8.4%).

3 The coast, again and again

These census figures highlight the attraction of the Landes coast, from north to south. The Community of Communes of the Great Lakes is the one which records the highest average annual growth, with 2%. But it is the community of Maremne Adour Côte Sud which remains the most populous in Landes, with 71,315 inhabitants. It also sees its population grow (1.7%), and Seignanx (with the same rate) as well.

It is in these territories that we see the largest population increases, such as in Parentis-en-Born (22.5%), Tosse (26.4%), or even Bénesse-Maremne (24%).