For France, Esri provides a standard demographics dataset sourced from data supplied by Michael Bauer Research GmbH and an advanced demographics dataset sourced from data supplied by Esri France. Visit Where to find Esri Location Data to learn more about using standard and advanced demographics.
Release dates
- The standard demographics dataset was updated in February 2025; the vintage is 2024 (Unemployed Population 2023).
- The advanced demographics dataset was updated in October 2023; the vintage is 2023.
Settlement points
Esri's French standard and advanced demographics settlement points use the July 2023 INSEE (Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques or The French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies) 75 m population grid data provided by Esri France.
Geography levels
| Esri geography name | Local geography name | Standard demographics feature count | Advanced demographics feature count |
|---|---|---|---|
Country | France | 1 | 1 |
Regions | Régions | 13 | 17 |
Postcodes2 | Postcodes2 | 95 | — |
Departments | Départements | 96 | 100 |
Districts | Arrondissements | 320 | — |
Cantons | Cantons | 1,990 | — |
Postcodes5 | Codes Postaux | 6,051 | — |
Municipalities | Communes | 34,848 | 34,990 |
Statistical Areas | IRIS | 48,580 | 49,292 |
Visualize demographic data categories
The data browser is a visualization tool to help you explore the data categories available in this country or region's standard and advanced demographics. See Use the data browser to learn more about this visualization tool.
Standard demographics use cases
The Esri standard demographics dataset for France is updated with Michael Bauer Research GmbH data updates to this region, approximately every year. See the Standard demographics related links section below for a complete list of variables, release notes, and a sample report.
Example use cases that may help you understand France's standard demographics include the following:
Total Population
 | What is measured: The total number of individuals living in a specific area. How you use it: Population counts are often used by local and national governments for policy planning, resource allocation, and to make informed decisions based on the needs of different population groups within a country or region. You can use this data to explore the allocation of public services, economic development, political representation, social research, and resources available for disaster preparedness. |
Population Density
 | What is measured: The number of people per unit of area (sq. mile or sq. kilometer). How you use it: Population Density is typically used for national and local projects such as infrastructure design, urban planning to allocate and distribute public services, and to assess the environmental impact of human activity based on where people are concentrated. |
Population per Mill
 | What is measured: The number of individuals in a region per thousand. How you use it: Population per Mill is used to understand the comparative distribution of population around a country or region based on a per-thousand ratio. This data is used to support market trend analysis, infrastructure planning, and regional and national policy development. Population distribution is often used in health care to track disease prevalence or vaccination rates. |
Male/Female Population Totals
 | What is measured: The total number of males and females in a region's population. How you use it: Male and Female Population counts provide insight into gender balance, which is used for informed decision-making in areas like education, workforce planning, health care, and skills training. This data is also used to help interpret complex results, such as health-care outcomes, crime statistics, targeted marketing campaigns, and housing shortages. |
Population Totals by Age and Gender
 | What is measured: The distribution of regional population across age groups and gender. How you use it: Male and Female Population by Age counts can be used to help predict future social and economic trends and to plan for future resource allocation based on age groups in fields such as education, health care, and the labor force. This data is important for identifying potential challenges related to shifts in age or gender ratios within different age brackets. |
Total Households
 | What is measured: The total number of households in a region. How you use it: Total Household counts can help you understand the composition of a country's population based on how many people live in a single dwelling or housing unit. This data assists with informed decision-making in areas like government policy, business strategy, community planning, and social research. You can use household counts to identify community needs, allocate public policy funds, perform business market analysis, and design targeted social programs. Local authorities use household counts to plan for community development projects, considering factors like housing availability and density. |
Average Household Size
 | What is measured: The median or average size of households (people who share the same living quarters) in a region. How you use it: Average Household Size data helps you to understand the overall population structure and informs policy decisions related to housing, resource allocation, and service provisioning. This data is used to analyze economic trends, specifically consumption patterns, based on the number of people sharing living spaces in a region. |
Households by Income
 | What is measured: Regional households based on reported income levels. How you use it: Households by Income data is used to analyze income inequality within a country's population. Income quintiles can help you understand the distribution of wealth across different socioeconomic groups. This data can help you effectively target policies or marketing strategies based on income levels, identifying areas where specific demographics might need additional support or where certain products or services could have higher market potential based on income brackets. |
Households by Type
 | What is measured: Regional households based on their relationship structure. How you use it: Households by Type categories are used to tailor housing and marketing policies in a region based on different household compositions—such as single-person households, extended families, and so on—and their specific needs. This data is important for policymakers and data analysts who work with infrastructure, housing, education, health-care, and marketing information. |
Marital Status
 | What is measured: Regional population based on marital status categories. How you use it: Marital Status categories are used to understand the social structure of the population, inform policy decisions related to family dynamics, plan the needs of programs with spousal benefits, analyze trends in regional marriage rates, and improve marketing campaigns based on life stages and household composition. This data is used in government policy planning, economic analysis, social and market research, and health-care planning. |
Educational Attainment
 | What is measured: Levels of education achieved by individuals in the regional population. How you use it: Educational Attainment categories help improve understanding of the overall regional education experience. This data is typically used to assess a country's economic potential, social development, workforce capabilities, and to inform policy decisions related to workforce training and social programs. Education data can also be used to assess the effectiveness of existing public education policies and employment training programs. |
Unemployed Population
 | What is measured: The number of individuals actively seeking employment who are currently unemployed in a region. How you use it: Unemployed Population counts help policymakers, researchers, and businesses identify patterns, target specific job-seeking groups with support programs, and make informed decisions about specific economic policies aimed at reducing unemployment. This data is particularly useful in areas like job training, education, and regional development, particularly when combined with other variables, such as age, gender, race, education level, and location. Regional unemployment data is used to identify trends and disparities, such as whether specific populations are disproportionately affected by unemployment. This data can inform the design of unemployment benefits, job training programs, and economic stimulus packages tailored to regional demographic needs. Unemployed Population data can also be used to perform labor market analysis, helping predict future market needs, trends, and challenges. |
Purchasing Power
 | What is measured: The ability of individuals or households to buy goods and services in a region. Purchasing Power data consists of four metrics:
How you use it: Purchasing Power data can help improve understanding of the potential consumer market in a country or region, specifically to determine pricing strategies and market potential options. This data can be used to develop targeted product, business, and sales strategies when entering a new market or expanding within an existing one. |
Consumer Spending
 | What is measured: The amount of money spent by consumers on goods and services in a region. Consumer Spending data consists of four metrics:
How you use it: Consumer Spending data can be used to understand economic health, consumer behaviors, regional buying trends, and the preferences of different population segments across a country. This data can be used to inform marketing, product development, investment, and public policy strategies based on factors like age, income level, and geographic location data. Consumer Spending data can support market analysis initiatives, economic forecasting, investment planning, and policy development. |
Standard demographics related links
Refer to the following content:
- Release notes (PDF)
- Variable list (CSV)
- Sample report (PDF)
- Demographic map layers
Advanced demographics sample questions and use cases
France's advanced demographics provide additional insight about this region for most data categories. You will find a range of detailed information about French regional population, migration, and population living alone; annual birth rates; household and personal income; consumption units used; age categories; households and families; housing and structural details; school enrollment and educational attainment; industries and businesses; employment and professions; commuters; social (public) benefits; marital status; and nationality. See the Advanced demographics related links section below for the complete list of variables, release notes, and sample reports.
Some sample questions that could be answered using France's advanced demographics include the following:
- What are the trends in migration to and from major cities in France?
- What percentage of the population has completed higher education in different regions of France?
- What are the age distributions across various departments in France?
- What are the employment rates in different sectors across the country?
- What types of housing are most common in urban versus rural areas of France?
A selection of example use cases that may help you understand French advanced demographics include the following:
Consumption Units
 | What is measured: The regional average amount of energy used by the adult population in this region and the regional average income per consumption unit. Adheres to standard international consumption unit metrics and guidelines. How you use it: French consumption unit data is used to support energy policy development, environmental planning, smart grid implementation, and consumer behavior analysis. Local and regional government agencies and urban planners can use this data to assess the environmental impact of energy use in different regions. This can aid in developing strategies to reduce carbon emissions, promote renewable energy sources, and mitigate the effects of climate change. Energy providers can use consumption unit data to plan and implement smart grid technologies and optimize energy distribution, targeting a reduction of peak demand and boosting energy conservation efforts. |
Families by Presence of Children
 | What is measured: Regional family households (members are related) based on relationship structures. For example, the family households in this region with two children under the age of 25. How you use it: French families categorized by the presence of children data is used to support education and resource planning, healthcare services, family support programs, and community and infrastructure development. This data can be used by local and regional governments to determine where new schools are needed, to correctly plan school capacities, and to plan school transportation routes. Families by presence of children data can also be used to plan pediatric and maternal healthcare service allocation, including clinics, hospitals, and specialized care facilities. Programs that support working parents use this data to adequately allocate and assess required resources. This data can be used in marketing strategies and product development to tailor regional campaigns. Parks and recreational facilities use this data to identify areas with high concentrations of families with children to plan adequate public parks, playgrounds, and recreational spaces. |
Population Movement
| What is measured: The regional population age 5+ based on place of residency for the past five years. For example, the population age 5+ in this region who have lived in the same commune for the past five years. How you use it: French population by movement data can be used to support urban planning, infrastructure and housing development, public benefit programs, and political representation. Analyzing population by movement can help urban planners and infrastructure policymakers to correctly allocate resources such as schools, hospitals, and public transportation, particularly when this data is combined with population density and age distributions. Population by movement data can also be used to improve public benefits and social service programs by identifying those regions with more recent population growth or long-term residents. This data can also be used to redefine political districts to ensure fair representation. Local and regional housing authorities use this data to understanding the housing development needs of changing regional populations. |
Advanced demographics related links
Refer to the following content:
- Release notes (PDF)
- Variable list (CSV)
- Esri France 2023 Variable ID changes (XLSX) - summarizes changes made to variable ID names in October 2023.
- Business Summary sample report (Esri France) (PDF)
- Housing and Household Summary sample report (Esri France) (PDF)
- Population Summary sample report (Esri France) (PDF)
- Demographic map layers