2026 ranking · debt per inhabitant

The most indebted cities in Hauts-de-France

Q: Which city in Hauts-de-France has the most debt per inhabitant?

Maubeuge (Nord) is the most indebted city in Hauts-de-France, with debt of €3,481 per inhabitant.

Maubeuge (Nord) is the most indebted city in Hauts-de-France, with debt of €3,481 per inhabitant. Next come Liévin (Pas-de-Calais, €1,897) and Lille (Nord, €1,618).

40 towns ranked out of 3,782

Maubeuge, 1^stThe next 19

The podium

This ranking covers 40 of the 3,782 towns in Hauts-de-France. Not ranked: towns with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants. At the other end of the ranking, Marcq-en-Barœul (Nord) comes last with €0.

In France, a commune is the smallest unit of local government, from large cities to tiny villages. Paris, Lyon and Marseille are ranked as whole communes: their arrondissements (districts) have no rank of their own.

The ranking: most indebted cities in Hauts-de-France

Rank	Town	Department	Debt per inhabitant (€)	Population
1	Maubeuge	Nord (59)	3,481	29,031
2	Liévin	Pas-de-Calais (62)	1,897	30,398
3	Lille	Nord (59)	1,618	240,109
4	Denain	Nord (59)	1,497	20,777
5	Calais	Pas-de-Calais (62)	1,486	68,246
6	Bruay-la-Buissière	Pas-de-Calais (62)	1,437	21,772
7	Béthune	Pas-de-Calais (62)	1,424	25,585
8	Tourcoing	Nord (59)	1,382	99,346
9	Valenciennes	Nord (59)	1,325	43,966
10	Creil	Oise (60)	1,278	36,533
11	Wattrelos	Nord (59)	1,256	41,013
12	Cambrai	Nord (59)	1,200	31,738
13	Loos	Nord (59)	1,076	22,850
14	Hénin-Beaumont	Pas-de-Calais (62)	1,040	26,029
15	Beauvais	Oise (60)	990	56,934
16	Boulogne-sur-Mer	Pas-de-Calais (62)	974	40,924
17	Roubaix	Nord (59)	908	98,701
18	Dunkerque	Nord (59)	897	87,442
19	Arras	Pas-de-Calais (62)	877	43,765
20	Abbeville	Somme (80)	875	22,793
21	Soissons	Aisne (02)	796	28,664
22	Saint-Quentin	Aisne (02)	791	53,963
23	Compiègne	Oise (60)	776	41,774
24	Nogent-sur-Oise	Oise (60)	768	22,177
25	Villeneuve-d'Ascq	Nord (59)	767	63,462
26	Halluin	Nord (59)	758	20,864
27	Armentières	Nord (59)	745	27,382
28	Lens	Pas-de-Calais (62)	684	33,122
29	Grande-Synthe	Nord (59)	664	20,411
30	Douai	Nord (59)	658	41,108
31	Hazebrouck	Nord (59)	651	22,331
32	Wasquehal	Nord (59)	638	21,005
33	Laon	Aisne (02)	541	24,809
34	Amiens	Somme (80)	520	139,183
35	Lambersart	Nord (59)	379	27,572
36	Croix	Nord (59)	254	20,790
37	La Madeleine	Nord (59)	127	22,006
38	Coudekerque-Branche	Nord (59)	123	21,033
39	Mons-en-Barœul	Nord (59)	1	21,244
40	Marcq-en-Barœul	Nord (59)	0	40,930

Source: DGFiP (French public finance directorate), individual accounts of communes (main budget); outstanding debt on December 31 of the latest fiscal year published, divided by the DGF population, cities with 20,000 or more inhabitants. Not ranked: towns with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants. Tied values share the same rank. Data sources.

FAQ

Most indebted cities in Hauts-de-France: FAQ

Which city in Hauts-de-France has the most debt per inhabitant?

Maubeuge (Nord) is the most indebted city in Hauts-de-France, with debt of €3,481 per inhabitant.

What are the 10 most indebted cities in Hauts-de-France?

In order: Maubeuge (€3,481), Liévin (€1,897), Lille (€1,618), Denain (€1,497), Calais (€1,486), Bruay-la-Buissière (€1,437), Béthune (€1,424), Tourcoing (€1,382), Valenciennes (€1,325), and Creil (€1,278).

Which city in Hauts-de-France has the least debt per inhabitant?

Marcq-en-Barœul (Nord) is the least indebted city in Hauts-de-France, with debt of €0 per inhabitant.

How many towns in Hauts-de-France are ranked?

40 out of 3,782. Not ranked: towns with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants.

What does debt per inhabitant measure?

It is the outstanding debt of the commune’s main budget on December 31 of the latest fiscal year published by the DGFiP, divided by the population used to calculate the state’s general operating grant (the DGF population). High debt may have paid for recent facilities, so it is best read alongside the town’s capacity to repay it. Debt held by intercommunal bodies and joint syndicates is not counted; for Paris, which is both a commune and a department, it also covers department-level responsibilities. Only cities with 20,000 or more inhabitants are ranked here (towns with 5,000 or more appear in the most and least indebted towns rankings): in smaller communes, a few loans can swing the amount per inhabitant sharply.