The national statistics institute INSEE reported 651,000 deaths last year and 645,000 births, which have collapsed in number since the global COVID pandemic.
France has traditionally had stronger demographics than most of Europe, but an aging population and falling birth rates show it is not immune to the demographic crunch straining public finances across the continent.
INSEE said the fertility rate dropped to 1.56 children per woman last year, its lowest level since the World War One and well below the 1.8 assumed in pension funding forecasts by the pension advisory council.
In 2023, the most recent year with EU comparisons, France ranked second highest with a fertility rate of 1.65, behind Bulgaria’s 1.81.
The demographic shift will push public spending back to pandemic-era highs in the coming years while eroding the tax base, the national public audit office warned last month.
“Given the retirement of the large generations born in the 1960s, labor market tensions and workforce problems are likely to increase rapidly in the coming years,” said economist Philippe Crevel with the Cercle d’Epargne think tank.
Despite deaths outnumbering births, France’s population grew slightly last year to 69.1 million, due to net migration, which INSEE estimated at 176,000.
Life expectancy reached record highs last year - 85.9 years for women and 80.3 for men - while the share of people aged 65 or older climbed to 22%, nearly matching those under 20.
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