Map of Besançon, France

Besançon is a city in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France, with a population of about 128,426. It lies at 47.2488°N, 6.0182°E. Besançon is about 326 km (202 mi) southeast of Paris, the capital. The nearest city on our map is La Chaux-de-Fonds, 63 km to the east.

Besançon at a glance

Where is Besançon?

• The 31st largest city in France by recorded population.
• The 2nd largest city in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté on this site.
• Located in the Northern and Eastern hemispheres.
• Daylight ranges from about 8 h 28 min on the shortest day to 15 h 56 min on the longest day (around 21 December and 21 June).

Cities near Besançon

• La Chaux-de-Fonds — 63 km east, Switzerland
• Neuchâtel — 75 km east, Switzerland
• Dijon — 76 km west
• Belfort — 77 km northeast
• Biel/Bienne — 94 km east, Switzerland
• Lausanne — 94 km southeast, Switzerland
• Fribourg — 99 km southeast, Switzerland
• Épinal — 109 km north
• Köniz — 112 km east, Switzerland
• Bern — 113 km east, Switzerland

Largest cities in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

• Dijon — 159,941
• Belfort — 54,562
• Chalon-sur-Saône — 47,251
• Nevers — 43,988
• Auxerre — 41,516
• Mâcon — 35,484

Largest cities in France

• Paris — 2,138,551
• Marseille — 877,215
• Lyon — 520,774
• Toulouse — 511,684
• Nice — 342,669
• Nantes — 325,070
• Marne La Vallée — 318,325
• Strasbourg — 274,845
• Bordeaux — 265,328
• Montpellier — 248,252

Map of France and all its cities →

Sources: place names, coordinates, populations and time zones from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0, data retrieved October 2026). Population figures are the latest values recorded in GeoNames; depending on the country they refer to the city proper, a municipality or a wider urban area, so they can differ from census or metro-area figures. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.