New populations: these towns whose number of inhabitants is growing or plummeting in Brittany

From one year to the next, the podium of large Breton cities does not change: Rennes and Brest have the most inhabitants in Brittany. The regional capital now has 227,830 and that of Finistère, almost 141,000. These two large cities, however, sum up, between them, how the raw number of inhabitants can hide a different trend. Every year, between 2016 and 2022

Rennes gained +0.9% inhabitants on average, while Brest welcomed “only” +0.2%.

The most populated cities in Brittany

In terms of number of inhabitants, the city of Quimper completes the Breton podium, followed by Lorient, Vannes, Saint-Malo and Saint-Brieuc. Below 45,000 inhabitants but above 20,000, we then find Lanester, Concarneau, Fougères and Lannion.

The municipalities whose population is increasing the most

In terms of development, small municipalities easily occupy the leading positions: a small number of additional inhabitants can represent a significant increase in proportion. This is the case for certain islands: with 317 inhabitants in total, the island of Arz is approaching a +6% increase in population each year, on average. Molène follows it, at a slower rate of + 3.9% inhabitants each year over the period.

Among the more populated towns, the municipalities of Orgères and Bourgbarré (35), Beaussais-sur-Mer (22) or Surzur (56) are experiencing the greatest demographic dynamism, with + 2.8% to 3.7%. annual population increase.

The municipalities whose population is falling the most

On the other side of the ranking, the municipalities which recorded the greatest population declines are more often very small municipalities. The three largest decreases concern Troguéry (22), Pléboulle (22) and Bolazec (29). All have fewer than 800 inhabitants and see their population decrease by around 3% each year. In Troguéry, this represents around fifty fewer inhabitants over ten years; 143 in Pléboulle.

Among slightly more populated municipalities, we can cite Dinéault (29), which loses 2.5% of its population each year, on average, and Saint-Perreux (56), at -2% per year. Henvic (29), Lanvéoc (29) and Bourbriac (22) are also among the municipalities with more than 1,000 inhabitants recording an annual population decline of at least 1.6%.

The Finistère municipalities of Pont-de-Buis-lès-Quimerch and Camaret-sur-Mer, which have more than 2,000 inhabitants, also recorded significant population declines. They embody trends which, beyond an isolated municipality, can concern certain areas of life. This is the case on the Crozon Peninsula and around Châteaulin.