In January 2026, the ninth edition of the Night of Solidarity took place across the Greater Paris area. Organized by the City of Paris, the event aimed to identify the homeless population during the night. Early estimates indicate there were 4,940 homeless individuals this year, with 3,857 found on the streets of Paris itself and 1,083 in the wider Greater Paris region. This number is significantly higher than last year’s count of 4,292 and continues to grow steadily.
To get the most accurate count possible, the City Hall of Paris is recruiting thousands of volunteers divided into teams to cover the entire city—visiting not only parking lots, subways, RER stations, train stations, hospitals, parks, and gardens
in under three hours. Their goal is to count the homeless population and have them complete an anonymous questionnaire to better understand their situation. In the Greater Paris Metropolitan Area, more than 2,200 people have volunteered across 33 cities.While the health crisis had significantly increased the number of people living in extreme hardship and facing social exclusion, the ongoing rise of inflation and the fragile state of the economy continue to affect residents of Île-de-France this year. Finding rental housing sometimes feels like a feat of luck, and the available spots in support facilities are no longer enough.
Outside the city streets, these individuals without shelter have been counted in makeshift camps along the périphérique, in parks and gardens, at RATP stations and SNCF train stations (a +40% increase), as well as in parking lots.
It's worth noting that over 100 people have been registered in two municipalities: Saint-Denis (395 compared to 203 in January 2025) and Saint-Ouen (133 compared to 22). No individuals were reported in four other towns: Chaville, Livry-Gargan, Villeneuve-la-Garenne, and Villetaneuse.
