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Largest city in the Doubs department: the 2026 ranking

The 563 towns of the Doubs department (25) ranked by population, area and density, based on the official INSEE population figures in force in 2026.

The largest city in the Doubs department is Besançon, with 121,627 inhabitants (ranked 33rd in France by population). It is also the largest town by area in the department (65 km²). Besançon is also the most densely populated town, with 1,870 inhabitants per km². At the other end of the ranking, Châteauvieux-les-Fossés has only 9 inhabitants.

The Doubs department has 560,477 inhabitants over 5,223 km², a density of 107 inhabitants per km², close to the national average (110 per km²). It accounts for 19.5% of the population of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, the region it has belonged to since the 2016 reform (formerly Franche-Comté): see the ranking of the largest cities in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté.

The 20 largest cities in the Doubs department by population

# Town Population km² per km² France rank
1 Besançon 121,627 65 1,870 33rd
2 Montbéliard 25,159 15 1,676 368th
3 Pontarlier 18,956 41 458 519th
4 Audincourt 14,303 8.8 1,633 704th
5 Valentigney 10,683 9.7 1,097 974th
6 Morteau 7,327 14 519 1,507th
7 Seloncourt 5,993 7.9 757 1,885th
8 Grand-Charmont 5,943 4.6 1,303 1,902nd
9 Valdahon 5,813 26 228 1,968th
10 Villers-le-Lac 5,385 30 178 2,118th
11 Bethoncourt 5,382 6.5 823 2,119th
12 Baume-les-Dames 5,282 25 213 2,160th
13 Saint-Vit 5,188 16 316 2,196th
14 Mandeure 4,746 15 314 2,416th
15 Ornans 4,496 36 126 2,548th
16 Maîche 4,361 17 250 2,636th
17 Pont-de-Roide-Vermondans 3,964 14 292 2,907th
18 Étupes 3,770 9.9 382 3,055th
19 Sochaux 3,756 2.2 1,731 3,068th
20 Bavans 3,648 8.8 413 3,158th

Largest towns by area in the Doubs department

# Town Population km² per km² France rank
1 Besançon 121,627 65 1,870 647th
2 Les Premiers Sapins 1,649 52 32 1,058th
3 Val-d'Usiers 2,183 51 43 1,118th
4 Pays-de-Montbenoît 1,964 47 42 1,431st
5 Levier 2,643 44 60 1,603rd
6 Pontarlier 18,956 41 458 1,904th
7 Étalans 1,691 41 41 1,967th
8 Chapelle-des-Bois 274 40 7 2,121st
9 Mouthe 1,071 39 28 2,232nd
10 Ornans 4,496 36 126 2,694th

Most densely populated towns in the Doubs department

# Town Population km² per km² France rank
1 Besançon 121,627 65 1,870 485th
2 Sochaux 3,756 2.2 1,731 529th
3 Montbéliard 25,159 15 1,676 556th
4 Audincourt 14,303 8.8 1,633 568th
5 Grand-Charmont 5,943 4.6 1,303 733rd
6 Vieux-Charmont 2,823 2.5 1,125 851st
7 Valentigney 10,683 9.7 1,097 869th
8 Exincourt 3,330 3.5 965 971st
9 Sainte-Suzanne 1,524 1.6 958 982nd
10 Bethoncourt 5,382 6.5 823 1,161st

All towns in the Doubs department (563)

INSEE total population in parentheses. Each town page gives its area, density, national and departmental rankings, and neighboring towns.

Other departments in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Côte-d'Or (21) Jura (39) Nièvre (58) Haute-Saône (70) Saône-et-Loire (71) Yonne (89) Territoire de Belfort (90) All departments

Sources: INSEE, official population figures in force on January 1, 2026 (total population); land area: IGN / Observatoire des territoires. Rankings computed across the 34,858 communes in the database.

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