Fort-de-France Population and Area (Martinique)
Largest city in France 2026: up-to-date figures for Fort-de-France (Martinique)
Fort-de-France: Population and Area
With 76,120 inhabitants (INSEE total population in force on January 1, 2026), Fort-de-France is the 70th most populous town in France in 2026 and the most populous in the Martinique department, out of 34 communes. It covers 44 km² (1,615th largest area in France, 8th largest in the department), with a population density of 1,722 inhabitants per km², or 16 times the national average (110 inhabitants/km²), which ranks it 534th in France for density.
Fort-de-France is located in the Martinique department (972), in the Martinique region, where it ranks 1st by population out of 34 communes. It is the most populous town in the Martinique department, which is home to 364,348 people over 1,128 km².
See the full ranking of communes in the Martinique department and the regional ranking: largest city in Martinique.
Towns of similar size in the Martinique department: Le Lamentin (pop. 39,780), Le Robert (pop. 21,651), Schœlcher (pop. 19,667).
Sources: INSEE, official population figures in force on January 1, 2026 (total population); areas: IGN / Observatoire des territoires; INSEE code 97209. Rankings are calculated across the 34,858 communes of metropolitan and overseas France in our database.
Fort-de-France, the largest city in Martinique
The prefecture of Martinique and the island's most populous town, Fort-de-France grew up at the head of the bay that bears its name, sheltered by Fort Saint-Louis. Seat of the colonial government from the late 17th century, it became the island's leading city after Saint-Pierre, its commercial rival, was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Pelée in 1902.
An administrative and cultural capital
Fort-de-France is home to most of Martinique's government offices, services and shops, which explains its size on an island of modest dimensions. The city still bears the imprint of Aimé Césaire, the poet who served as its mayor for more than fifty years, from 1945 to 2001. Its historic center, with the Schœlcher Library and Saint-Louis Cathedral, stands in contrast to the working-class neighborhoods that climb the steep surrounding hills, or mornes. Like other central cities in the French Antilles, Fort-de-France has been losing residents for several decades, both to neighboring towns in its urban area and as a result of Martinique's aging population.