Canton of Neuchâtel: observed built density
Canton · 24 municipalities with parcel data · Parcel data as of July 2025
- Parcels
- 61’927
2 % of Switzerland
- Municipal zones
- 378
- Median utilization
- 12 %
Switzerland: 10 %
- Median GFZ
- 0.09
Switzerland: 0.09
- Median height
- -
Switzerland: 9.5 m
- Median floors
- 2.6
Switzerland: 2.3
About Canton of Neuchâtel
The parcel data covers 24 municipalities of the canton of Neuchâtel: 61’927 parcels in 378 municipal zone records. The municipalities with the most parcels are Val-de-Ruz, Neuchâtel and La Chaux-de-Fonds.
The median parcel is built to a volume utilization of 12 %; half of the parcels lie between 5 % and 116 %. The Swiss median is 10 %, so Neuchâtel sits above it.
Parcels built in the last 20 years reach a mean volume utilization of 159 % (6’064 parcels), higher than the 118 % across all building years.
Parcels by municipal zone
| Zone | Parcels | Median utilization |
|---|---|---|
| Zone agricole / Aire forestière / Espace de transport | 23’488 | - |
| Zone d'habitation à faible densité | 11’709 | - |
| Zone d'ancienne localité | 6’726 | - |
| Zone d'habitation à moyenne densité | 4’374 | - |
| Zone d'habitation à haute densité | 2’695 | - |
| Zone viticole | 2’345 | - |
| Zone mixte | 2’203 | - |
| Zone de transport | 1’973 | - |
| Zone résidentielle densifiée | 1’576 | - |
| Zone d'utilité publique | 928 | - |
| Zone industrielle | 880 | - |
| Zone de ville en damier | 615 | 132 % |
| Other zones (26) | 2’415 | - |
Zone labels are municipal spellings, so one zone type can appear under several names.
Volume utilization (ratioV)
Of the 61’362 parcels with a value, half lie between 5 % and 116 %. The median is 12 % and the mean 101 %.
Share of parcels by range
- below 50 %57 %
- 50 % to below 100 %14 %
- 100 % to below 150 %11 %
- 150 % and above18 %
Floor-area ratio (GFZ)
Of the 61’360 parcels with a value, half lie between 0.05 and 0.44. The median is 0.09 and the mean 0.38.
Share of parcels by range
- below 0.5078 %
- 0.50 to below 1.0011 %
- 1.00 to below 1.505 %
- 1.50 and above6 %
Building height
The parcel data has too few values for this measure here.
Number of floors
Of the 20’713 parcels with a value, half lie between 2.0 and 3.4. The median is 2.6 and the mean 2.9.
Share of parcels by range
- below 28 %
- 2 to below 337 %
- 3 to below 545 %
- 5 and above10 %
Building age cohorts
Mean volume utilization of the parcels built inside each window, from all years on record down to the last five. The windows overlap: the last 20 years include the last 5.
| Built in | Parcels | Mean utilization |
|---|---|---|
| All years | 61’927 | 118 % |
| Last 60 years | 16’598 | 176 % |
| Last 40 years | 11’788 | 172 % |
| Last 20 years | 6’064 | 159 % |
| Last 15 years | 4’890 | 162 % |
| Last 10 years | 1’849 | 159 % |
| Last 5 years | 624 | 166 % |
Municipalities of the canton of Neuchâtel
| Name | Parcels | Zones | Median utilization | Median height | Median floors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Val-de-Ruz | 10’294 | 28 | 8 % | - | 2.4 |
| Neuchâtel | 8’113 | 21 | 78 % | - | 3.2 |
| La Chaux-de-Fonds | 7’544 | 22 | 64 % | - | 3.3 |
| Val-de-Travers | 6’790 | 25 | 9 % | - | 2.4 |
| La Grande Béroche | 5’813 | 25 | 9 % | - | 2.4 |
| Le Locle | 4’011 | 19 | 52 % | - | 3.0 |
| Milvignes | 3’020 | 22 | 61 % | - | 2.5 |
| Le Landeron | 2’077 | 20 | 10 % | - | 2.5 |
| Boudry | 1’849 | 20 | 16 % | - | 2.6 |
| Rochefort | 1’621 | 13 | 8 % | - | 1.5 |
| Cortaillod | 1’558 | 16 | 49 % | - | 2.6 |
| La Sagne | 1’125 | 13 | 8 % | - | 2.2 |
| Les Ponts-de-Martel | 1’113 | 13 | 8 % | - | 2.4 |
| Les Verrières | 1’069 | 9 | 7 % | - | 2.1 |
| Cressier (NE) | 1’031 | 11 | 10 % | - | 2.7 |
| La Brévine | 963 | 9 | 8 % | - | 2.0 |
| Cornaux | 737 | 14 | 10 % | - | 2.7 |
| Lignières | 732 | 15 | 9 % | - | 2.2 |
| La Côte-aux-Fées | 727 | 10 | 7 % | - | 2.3 |
| Le Cerneux-Péquignot | 509 | 9 | 7 % | - | 2.2 |
| Brot-Plamboz | 504 | 6 | 8 % | - | 2.0 |
| La Chaux-du-Milieu | 428 | 8 | 9 % | - | 2.0 |
| Les Planchettes | 299 | 7 | 7 % | - | 1.9 |
| Laténa | 0 | 23 | - | - | - |
How to read this page
room shows observed built density: what has been built on the parcels, not what the zoning permits. Volume utilization (ratioV) compares the built volume of a parcel with the reference volume of its municipal zone type. The floor-area ratio (GFZ) is floor area divided by parcel area; building height and number of floors are taken from the buildings on a parcel. Figures pool all municipal zones of the area. Medians and quartiles are read from bins 10 points (ratioV), 0.1 (GFZ), 2 m (height) and 1 floor wide, so they are exact to within one bin; means are exact. A parcel counts in a distribution only when the parcel data has a value for it. The floors distribution leaves out parcels without a building (0 floors).