Bourges Population and Area (Cher)
Largest city in France 2026: up-to-date figures for Bourges (Cher)
Bourges: Population and Area
With 66,155 inhabitants (INSEE total population in force on January 1, 2026), Bourges is the 82nd most populous town in France in 2026 and the most populous in the Cher department, out of 286 communes. It covers 69 km² (563rd largest area in France, 7th largest in the department), with a population density of 962 inhabitants per km², or 8.8 times the national average (110 inhabitants/km²), which ranks it 974th in France for density.
Bourges is located in the Cher department (18), in the Centre-Val de Loire region (formerly Centre), where it ranks 3rd by population out of 1,754 communes. It is the most populous town in the Cher department, which is home to 305,233 people over 7,235 km².
See the full ranking of communes in the Cher department and the regional ranking: largest city in Centre-Val de Loire.
Towns of similar size in the Cher department: Vierzon (pop. 25,527), Saint-Amand-Montrond (pop. 10,201), Saint-Doulchard (pop. 9,873).
Sources: INSEE, official population figures in force on January 1, 2026 (total population); areas: IGN / Observatoire des territoires; INSEE code 18033. Rankings are calculated across the 34,858 communes of metropolitan and overseas France in our database.
Bourges, the major city of the Berry
Prefecture of the Cher and the most populous town in the department, Bourges is the historic capital of the Berry, at the geographic center of France. Formerly Avaricum, besieged by Julius Caesar during the Gallic Wars, it was in the 15th century the residence of Charles VII, nicknamed the "little king of Bourges."
Heritage, defense and a festival
Bourges boasts one of the finest Gothic cathedrals in France, the Saint-Étienne cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1992, and the Palais Jacques-Cœur, the residence of Charles VII's master of finances. In the 20th century, the city became a hub of the defense industry, which greatly increased its population, and every spring it hosts the Printemps de Bourges, a contemporary music festival. Its fairly large territory includes the Marais de Bourges, cultivated gardens in the heart of the city, which explains a moderate density. Its population has declined since the 1990s, as growth has shifted to neighboring towns.