List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants

As of January 2023, there were 482 communes in France (metropolitan territory and overseas departments and regions) with population over 20,000, 287 communes with population over 30,000, 133 communes with population over 50,000 and 42 communes with population over 100,000.[1] All figures reflect the municipal population (French: population municipale), meaning people who have their usual residence in the commune,[2] excluding population counted apart.[3] The population of the matching urban unit is usually several times that of its central commune. Populations as of 2006 and 2013 are also shown.[4][5] Communes in the overseas and sui generis collectivities are listed in a separate table below.
List
Overseas and sui generis collectivities, and Mayotte
For the overseas and sui generis collectivities the legal populations sources are:


- Mayotte: 2017 census[6]
- Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon: 2023 census[1]
- Saint-Barthélemy: 2023 census[1]
- Saint-Martin: 2023 census[1]
- French Polynesia: 2022 census[7]
- Wallis and Futuna: 2023 census[8]
- New Caledonia: 2019 census[9]
| Commune | Overseas and sui generis collectivities | Pop. 2017–2023 | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nouméa | New Caledonia | 94,285 | 1 |
| Mamoudzou | Mayotte | 71,437 | 2 |
| Dumbéa | New Caledonia | 35,873 | 3 |
| Koungou | Mayotte | 32,156 | 4 |
| Saint-Martin | Collectivity of Saint Martin | 31,160 | 5 |
| Faʻaʻā | French Polynesia | 29,826 | 6 |
| Punaʻauia | French Polynesia | 28,781 | 7 |
| Le Mont-Dore | New Caledonia | 27,620 | 8 |
| Papeete | French Polynesia | 26,654 | 9 |
| Païta | New Caledonia | 24,563 | 10 |
Images
See also
- Urban area (France)
- Urban unit (including a list of "urban units" with more than 200,000 inhabitants)
- Lists of communes of France
- List of cities in Europe by country
References
- ^ a b c d Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations de référence en 2023, INSEE, 29 December 2025.
- ^ INSEE: Municipal populations, definition.
- ^ INSEE: Population counted apart, definition.
- ^ Populations légales 2006: Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble, INSEE
- ^ Populations légales 2013: Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble, INSEE
- ^ Populations légales de Mayotte en 2017
- ^ "Les résultats du recensement de la population 2022 de Polynésie française" [Results of the 2022 population census of French Polynesia] (PDF) (in French). Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française. January 2023.
- ^ INSEE: Populations de référence de Wallis et Futuna de 2008 à 2023.
- ^ ISEE: Les chiffres détaillés des populations légales par commune de Nouvelle-Calédonie.