On Thursday, December 28, 2023, INSEE revealed the population data that came into effect on Monday, January 1, 2024.
With stable demographic growth in recent years, the capital of the French Riviera could soon lose its position as the 5th largest city in France. Although the city has 351,011 inhabitants (source INSEE, data effective as of January 1, 2024), the city of Nice has been ranked 5th since 2009, behind Paris, Lyon, Marseille, and Toulouse.
Despite a diverse population consisting mainly of elderly people and working professionals, with the age group observed to have increased in recent years, the tourism jobs that thrived in past decades and the growing university offerings were unfortunately not enough to sustain the growth.
The likely cause is the cost of living and real estate prices, which, on the contrary, are continuously rising. This decline could soon benefit the cities of Montpellier or Nantes, whose populations, with significantly higher growth rates, are now closely trailing that of Nice. Statistically, this threat is still distant, giving the city of Nice a reprieve that could allow for corrective actions in the future.
