The exodus is confirmed. According to a study published by INSEE on October 31, it appears that Paris has been losing inhabitants for many decades now. This trend was even started in the 1950s and 1960s. Over the recent period, from 2015 to 2021, the capital has lost on average 12,200 inhabitants each year, or 0.6% of its population. According to the last census carried out in 2024, there remain 2.1 million Parisians.
However, between 2015 and 2021, INSEE counted more births than deaths in Paris, causing the population to increase by 0.6% each year. But, conversely, the migration deficit caused it to decrease by 1.2%. With the exception of the 2000s, there are in fact more departures from the capital than arrivals from abroad or the provinces. Only 18-24 year olds finally arrive en masse in the capital.
Overall, Paris holds the population density record for a city in France, but its inhabitants are increasingly aging. “They are older on average than those in the Greater Paris metropolis and executives are over-represented in the active population,” indicates the INSEE study. The median standard of living is, moreover, the highest nationally.
Today, 23% of the Parisian population is aged 60 or over. A figure higher than that of the Greater Paris metropolis. The population is therefore aging and not very renewed in proportion. The average age of Parisians will be 40.3 years in 2024. And if current demographic trends continue, Paris would have, in 2040, 82,000 fewer inhabitants than in 2020. Conversely, all the other Ile-de-France departments would see their population continue to grow until 2040.
As for the nature of Parisian households, it is very different from that of the inhabitants of the Greater Paris metropolis. A large proportion is made up of single people (one in two households) and couples without children. “Nearly 14% of housing is overoccupied, that is to say that the number of rooms is lower than the need corresponding to the size of the household that occupies it,” assures INSEE. A higher rate than in other large French cities. Overall, small dwellings (one or two rooms) are over-represented, and two thirds of households rent their accommodation.
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