Largest city in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté: the 2026 ranking
The largest cities in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté and its 8 departments compared by population, area and density, based on the official INSEE population figures in force in 2026.
The largest city in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté is Dijon (Côte-d'Or), with 164,963 inhabitants, ranked 16th in France by population, ahead of Besançon (121,627) and Belfort (46,662).
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté has 3,685 communes and 2,872,652 inhabitants over 47,774 km², or 4.1% of the French population, with a density of 60 inhabitants per km² (national average: 110). The region was created in 2016 by merging the former regions of Burgundy and Franche-Comté. Its most populous department is Saône-et-Loire (564,938 inhabitants), and its least populous is Territoire de Belfort (143,144).
Departments of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
| Department | Towns | Population | km² | per km² | Largest city |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saône-et-Loire (71) | 563 | 564,938 | 8,575 | 66 | Chalon-sur-Saône (46,481) |
| Doubs (25) | 563 | 560,477 | 5,223 | 107 | Besançon (121,627) |
| Côte-d'Or (21) | 698 | 551,336 | 8,763 | 63 | Dijon (164,963) |
| Yonne (89) | 423 | 340,359 | 7,427 | 46 | Auxerre (36,245) |
| Jura (39) | 492 | 266,940 | 4,999 | 53 | Dole (24,654) |
| Haute-Saône (70) | 536 | 239,102 | 5,360 | 45 | Vesoul (15,833) |
| Nièvre (58) | 309 | 206,356 | 6,817 | 30 | Nevers (34,018) |
| Territoire de Belfort (90) | 101 | 143,144 | 609 | 235 | Belfort (46,662) |
The 20 largest cities in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté by population
| # | Town | Department | Population | km² | per km² | France rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dijon | Côte-d'Or (21) | 164,963 | 40 | 4,082 | 16th |
| 2 | Besançon | Doubs (25) | 121,627 | 65 | 1,870 | 33rd |
| 3 | Belfort | Territoire de Belfort (90) | 46,662 | 17 | 2,729 | 153rd |
| 4 | Chalon-sur-Saône | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 46,481 | 15 | 3,054 | 156th |
| 5 | Auxerre | Yonne (89) | 36,245 | 50 | 726 | 234th |
| 6 | Mâcon | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 35,885 | 27 | 1,327 | 237th |
| 7 | Nevers | Nièvre (58) | 34,018 | 17 | 1,963 | 247th |
| 8 | Sens | Yonne (89) | 27,600 | 22 | 1,260 | 324th |
| 9 | Montbéliard | Doubs (25) | 25,159 | 15 | 1,676 | 368th |
| 10 | Dole | Jura (39) | 24,654 | 38 | 642 | 375th |
| 11 | Beaune | Côte-d'Or (21) | 20,999 | 31 | 671 | 461st |
| 12 | Le Creusot | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 20,799 | 18 | 1,148 | 472nd |
| 13 | Pontarlier | Doubs (25) | 18,956 | 41 | 458 | 519th |
| 14 | Lons-le-Saunier | Jura (39) | 17,480 | 7.7 | 2,276 | 572nd |
| 15 | Montceau-les-Mines | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 17,325 | 17 | 1,042 | 577th |
| 16 | Vesoul | Haute-Saône (70) | 15,833 | 9.1 | 1,746 | 634th |
| 17 | Chenôve | Côte-d'Or (21) | 14,415 | 7.4 | 1,943 | 700th |
| 18 | Audincourt | Doubs (25) | 14,303 | 8.8 | 1,633 | 704th |
| 19 | Autun | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 14,175 | 62 | 230 | 712th |
| 20 | Talant | Côte-d'Or (21) | 12,075 | 4.9 | 2,464 | 839th |
Largest towns by area in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
| # | Town | Department | Population | km² | per km² | France rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charny Orée de Puisaye | Yonne (89) | 4,967 | 230 | 22 | 30th |
| 2 | Champlitte | Haute-Saône (70) | 1,614 | 129 | 13 | 133rd |
| 3 | Villiers-le-Duc | Côte-d'Or (21) | 109 | 84 | 1 | 359th |
| 4 | Issy-l'Évêque | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 702 | 71 | 10 | 518th |
| 5 | Saint-Claude | Jura (39) | 8,594 | 70 | 122 | 539th |
| 6 | Treigny-Perreuse-Sainte-Colombe | Yonne (89) | 1,105 | 67 | 16 | 588th |
| 7 | Saint-Fargeau | Yonne (89) | 1,464 | 67 | 22 | 599th |
| 8 | Besançon | Doubs (25) | 121,627 | 65 | 1,870 | 647th |
| 9 | Donzy | Nièvre (58) | 1,542 | 63 | 24 | 692nd |
| 10 | Autun | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 14,175 | 62 | 230 | 739th |
Most densely populated towns in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
| # | Town | Department | Population | km² | per km² | France rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dijon | Côte-d'Or (21) | 164,963 | 40 | 4,082 | 195th |
| 2 | Chalon-sur-Saône | Saône-et-Loire (71) | 46,481 | 15 | 3,054 | 281st |
| 3 | Belfort | Territoire de Belfort (90) | 46,662 | 17 | 2,729 | 327th |
| 4 | Talant | Côte-d'Or (21) | 12,075 | 4.9 | 2,464 | 367th |
| 5 | Lons-le-Saunier | Jura (39) | 17,480 | 7.7 | 2,276 | 400th |
| 6 | Fontaine-lès-Dijon | Côte-d'Or (21) | 9,462 | 4.5 | 2,107 | 426th |
| 7 | Nevers | Nièvre (58) | 34,018 | 17 | 1,963 | 465th |
| 8 | Chenôve | Côte-d'Or (21) | 14,415 | 7.4 | 1,943 | 470th |
| 9 | Besançon | Doubs (25) | 121,627 | 65 | 1,870 | 485th |
| 10 | Vesoul | Haute-Saône (70) | 15,833 | 9.1 | 1,746 | 518th |
Other regions of France
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Brittany Centre-Val de Loire Corsica Grand Est Guadeloupe French Guiana Hauts-de-France Île-de-France Réunion Martinique Normandy Nouvelle-Aquitaine Occitanie Pays de la Loire Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
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.