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Moving to France

France country facts, largest cities, hub labels and reports.

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Across 199 passports, 94 passports enter visa-free and 105 passports need a visa for France. Check your passport below.

Visa-free
94
Visa required
105

199 accepted passport rules · rules effective as of 2026-07-15

Visa and entry rules

Sources checked through 28 Aug 2026.

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in France?

The national unemployment rate was 7.7 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)13

This is the Eurostat labour-force survey series used as the canonical national answer. Other published definitions exist and are shown in the table below.

What is the median gross salary in France?

The median gross salary was 2,531 EUR/month in 2022.

Half of employees earn less than this. Mean gross and national-accounts averages use different definitions and are shown in the table below. national-accounts average — shown in the table below.

  • Median gross salary, monthly: 2,531 EUR/month · Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)14
  • Average gross salary, monthly: 3,028 EUR/month · 2026-07-25 · Eurostat — National accounts aggregates (nama_10_a10) and employment (nama_10_a10_e)12

What is the minimum wage in France?

The statutory minimum wage is 11.88 EUR/hour, gross (as of 2025). Source: OECD25

National statutory floor, gross, before tax and social contributions.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Median gross salary, monthly2,531 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)14Official · national figure
National unemployment rate7.7 %31 Dec 2025Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)13Official · national figure
Minimum gross hourly wage11.88 EUR/hour31 Dec 2025OECD25Official · national figure
Unemployment across cities in FranceOf 2,240 cities with data, 898 have unemployment of 5 to under 10%.

Typical city (median): about 11.0%

unemployment rate, % · measured cities in France per band18 cities: 0% to under 5%180–5898 cities: 5% to under 10%8985–10832 cities: 10% to under 15%83210–15377 cities: 15% to under 20%37715–2097 cities: 20% to under 25%9720–2515 cities: 25% to under 30%1525–303 cities: 30% to under 35%330–35

Unemployment rate (%)

Net rent across cities in FranceOf 1,491 cities with data, 547 have net rent of 10 to under 12 €/m²/month.

Typical city (median): about €10.70

net rent, € / m² / month · measured cities in France per band1 city: 4 €/m²/month to under 6 €/m²/month14–6122 cities: 6 €/m²/month to under 8 €/m²/month1226–8403 cities: 8 €/m²/month to under 10 €/m²/month4038–10547 cities: 10 €/m²/month to under 12 €/m²/month54710–12265 cities: 12 €/m²/month to under 14 €/m²/month26512–14103 cities: 14 €/m²/month to under 16 €/m²/month10314–1638 cities: 16 €/m²/month to under 18 €/m²/month3816–187 cities: 18 €/m²/month to under 20 €/m²/month718–202 cities: 20 €/m²/month to under 22 €/m²/month220–221 city: 24 €/m²/month to under 26 €/m²/month124–262 cities: 26 €/m²/month to under 28 €/m²/month226–28

Net rent (€/m²/month)

Annual PM2.5 across cities in FranceOf 1,975 cities with data, 626 have annual PM2.5 of 8 to under 9 µg/m³.

Typical city (median): about 8.5 µg/m³

annual PM2.5, µg/m³ · measured cities in France per band2 cities: 3 µg/m³ to under 4 µg/m³23–412 cities: 4 µg/m³ to under 5 µg/m³124–541 cities: 5 µg/m³ to under 6 µg/m³415–6159 cities: 6 µg/m³ to under 7 µg/m³1596–7482 cities: 7 µg/m³ to under 8 µg/m³4827–8626 cities: 8 µg/m³ to under 9 µg/m³6268–9447 cities: 9 µg/m³ to under 10 µg/m³4479–10166 cities: 10 µg/m³ to under 11 µg/m³16610–1127 cities: 11 µg/m³ to under 12 µg/m³2711–129 cities: 12 µg/m³ to under 13 µg/m³912–134 cities: 13 µg/m³ to under 14 µg/m³413–14

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

Public employment service in France

Official job-search, registration, counselling and training routes. Private recruitment agencies are not included.

A national service does not prove that an office exists in every city. City pages show an office only after an exact address is linked to that city. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Taxes in France

National rates and comparable published scenarios. Personal tax depends on income, household and residence circumstances.

What does an average earner take home in France?

A single person on an average wage keeps about 33,104 EUR/year of about 45,964 EUR/year gross per year — 72% of pay.

Standardized OECD Taxing Wages (standardized scenario): single person, no children, earning the average wage. The same scenario is published for every covered country, so take-home shares compare directly.

Gross-to-net decomposition, 2025
ComponentAmount / year
Net wage earnings, kept33,104
Income taxes−7,662
Employee social contributions−5,198
Gross wage earnings45,964
  • Gross-to-net pay for a sample household: single person no children — 45,964 gross → 33,104 net a year (2025, national currency) · Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition
Top income-tax rate55.37 %
Corporate tax rate36.13 %
Employee income tax, yearly12,962 EUR/year
Employee social contributions, yearly10,606 EUR/year
Verified from the linked official or intergovernmental records. Open the primary source. Sources checked through 3 Aug 2026.

Benefits newcomers may qualify for in France

Public schemes where an official source defines an eligible migration or residence status. Amounts and conditions are kept in their native terms.

ProgrammePublished amountSource and application

Aides personnelles au logement (APL/ALF/ALS) — Housing support

Amount set per household by formula / Monthly

Caisse d'allocations familiales (CAF)

Eligibility and amount details

The amount is calculated by CAF or MSA from household resources, rent or residence charge, household composition and housing conditions; Service Public does not publish one universal national amount. The official page is verified 1 July 2026, retained as the current-state locator.

The current Service-Public APL page states: ‘Vous pouvez bénéficier de l’APL même si vous êtes étranger à condition d’avoir un titre de séjour en cours de validité.’ This is the bounded profile of a foreign national with a valid French residence permit for housing support. The tenant or facility-resident, decent-housing, resource, household and current student-specific rules also apply; the source page records the extra-EU student restriction effective from 2026-07-01.

Allocation d'aide au retour à l'emploi (ARE) — Unemployment support

13.18 EUR / Daily

France Travail

Eligibility and amount details

Fixed component of ARE: EUR 13.18 per compensated day.

France Travail states: ‘Pour les travailleurs étrangers : être titulaire d’un titre de séjour permettant de travailler en France et de s’inscrire à France Travail.’ Its foreign-worker guidance explains that the valid French residence title must be one of the legally listed titles and that registration can lead to indemnification when the entitlement conditions are met. This is the bounded profile of a foreign worker with a French residence title permitting work and France Travail registration; the ARE work, involuntary-loss, residence and affiliation conditions still apply.

Allocation pour demandeur d'asile (Ada) — Arrival and reception support

6.8–44.8 EUR / Daily

Office français de l'immigration et de l'intégration (OFII) / competent prefecture (guichet unique)

Eligibility and amount details

Service-Public's current Ada table verified 1 April 2026 gives EUR 6.80 to EUR 37.40 per day by family size for the base daily lump sum, plus an additional EUR 7.40 per day where accommodation was requested but not provided free of charge, producing EUR 14.20 to EUR 44.80 per day including the supplement.

The official Service-Public page says that an adult asylum seeker in France with an asylum seeker's certificate who accepted the material reception conditions offered by OFII may be entitled to the Ada, provided the published asylum-filing and means conditions are also met. bounded profile; it does not turn generic foreign residence or refugee status after a final decision into an Ada status.

Prestations familiales (allocations familiales / PAJE) — Family and child support

478.16 EUR / Monthly

Caisse d'allocations familiales (CAF)

Eligibility and amount details

The monthly basis for calculating family allowances (BMAF) is EUR 478.16 from 1 April 2026; this is not a universal payment amount, and individual benefits depend on the relevant scheme and conditions.

The current Service-Public page separates foreign applicants into four source-defined categories. For an EEA or Swiss national: ‘EEA or Swiss national with a right to stay, resident in France, with a child in their care residing in France’; for an Algerian national: ‘Algerian national in regular stay, resident in France, with a child in their care residing in France’; for a refugee or stateless person: ‘refugee or stateless person in regular stay, resident in France, with a child in their care residing in France’; and for another foreign-national situation: ‘another foreign-national situation in regular stay, resident in France, with a child in their care residing in France’. The source also requires the published child-entry-document condition unless the work-authorising document exception applies, plus the benefit-specific and income conditions.

Revenu de solidarité active (RSA) — Minimum-income support

Amount set per household by formula / Monthly

Caisse d'allocations familiales (CAF)

Eligibility and amount details

RSA is calculated from household resources and the household composition; the official 2026 revaluation is 0.8%. No representative household amount inferred.

The current Service-Public RSA page for applicants aged 25 and over states that a foreign national from another country may apply when stably and effectively resident in France and one of the listed stay conditions is met: ‘Avoir depuis au moins 5 ans un titre de séjour permettant de travailler en France’; ‘Avoir la carte de résident ou un titre de séjour équivalent’; ‘Avoir le statut de réfugié’; ‘Être reconnu apatride’; or ‘Être bénéficiaire de la protection subsidiaire’. These are the five bounded public profiles; the age, resources, household and stable-residence conditions also apply.

ImmigrationDB shows published rules; it does not decide personal eligibility. Confirm your status, contribution record and household circumstances with the responsible authority before applying. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.

Can migrants receive medical care in France?

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in France when the official insurance or residence conditions are met.

Verified 2026-08-03. Open the official coverage rules.

Language courses and integration in France

Government programmes, public integration services and exact provider records. The section expands only from fields present in the source; missing prices, refunds or contacts are not replaced with estimates.

5verified programmes
2cities with exact local records
2verified location records
2listed providers

Contrat d’intégration républicaine (CIR) — Integration course

État français and OFII

For eligible non-EU foreign residents.

FrenchIn Person

DIAN language-training offer finder — Other

Réseau des Carif-Oref and DIAN

For people seeking French-language training.

FrenchIn Person, Online

Qualité FLE labelled-centre network — Other

France Éducation international

For French-language learners.

FrenchIn Person, Online

MilleMots Toulouse French FLE and literacy courses — Municipal language course

MilleMots Toulouse

For adult newly arrived residents.

FrenchIn Person

Paris municipal adult French courses — Municipal language course

Ville de Paris / Service des Cours d'Adultes de Paris

For adults over 18, non-French-speaking adults, adults with limited schooling.

FrenchIn Personvaries; FOF/FOA courses are free
Country programmes describe the national or named local framework. Availability in a city is shown only when a source names that place exactly. Sources checked through 2026-08-10.

France cities by population

The largest published cities appear first. Population is taken from the reusable official city layer; hub labels come from the existing city taxonomy.

Open city finder
CityPopulationNet rent, €/m²/monthMedian gross salary, €/month
ParisCapital hub2,103,778Population26.30Net rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Marseille892,391PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Lyon525,314PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Toulouse514,819PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Nice357,737PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Nantes327,734PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Montpellier310,240PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Strasbourg293,771PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Bordeaux267,991PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Lille238,246PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Rennes230,890PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Toulon179,116PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Reims177,674Population11.80Net rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Saint-Étienne173,136PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Le Havre166,687Population11.06Net rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Villeurbanne163,684PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Dijon161,830Population12.04Net rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Angers159,022Population13.26Net rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Grenoble156,140PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
Nîmes151,839PopulationNet rent, €/m²/moMedian gross salary, €/mo
All published cities in France

Reports with this country

Accepted report pages with a row for this country.

All reports
Foreign residents6,468,206 people31 Dec 2025Official source · Eurostat
Population68,551,653 people31 Dec 2024Official source · World Bank
Median gross salary, monthly2,531 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Official source · Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly)
National unemployment rate7.7 %31 Dec 2025Official source · Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)
Public healthcare access for foreign residentsConditional3 Aug 2026Official source · ameli.fr — Assurance Maladie (CNAM)
Area606,410 km²31 Dec 2023Official source · World Bank
75 country facts · 2,348 cities · Last checked 2026-09-06

France facts

Current source-backed observations, grouped the way the city pages are, with geographic scope and observation periods.

Population and profile

How many people live in France?

The published population was 68,551,653 people in 2024. Source: World Bank39

National, resident population scope. Foreign-resident and migration-background figures are separate metrics in the table below.

How many foreign residents live in France?

The foreign-resident population was 6,468,206 people in 2025. Source: Eurostat5

Residents without France citizenship. The migration-background population is a broader measure and appears in the table below.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Foreign residents6,468,206 people31 Dec 2025Eurostat5Official · national figure
Population68,551,653 people31 Dec 2024World Bank39Official · national figure

Legal, tax and other context

MetricValuePeriodSource
Public healthcare access for foreign residentsConditional3 Aug 2026ameli.fr — Assurance Maladie (CNAM)1Official · national figure
Area606,410 km²31 Dec 2023World Bank40Official · national figure
Cost level against the capital106.5 index (EU27=100)31 Dec 2024Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx)9Official · national
Gross-to-net pay for a sample householdsingle person no children — 45,964 gross → 33,104 net a year (2025, national currency)31 Dec 2025Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition36Official · country household scenario
Population by year67,026,224 people (2018)1 Jan 2018Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN)35Official · country annual series
Salary by professionService and sales workers — 2,188 EUR/month (2022)31 Dec 2022Mean monthly earnings by sex, occupation and size class of the enterprise (2022)23Official · country occupation
Doctors per 1,000 residents3.28 per 1,00031 Dec 2022World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS43Official · national figure
Household electricity price0.301 EUR/kWh31 Dec 2024Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas)11Official · national
People employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing690,500 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in mining and quarrying15,200 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in manufacturing2,799,100 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning134,000 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in water supply, sewerage and waste management158,400 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in construction2,005,100 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in wholesale and retail trade; motor vehicle and motorcycle repair3,713,500 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in transportation and storage1,549,000 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in accommodation and food services1,479,700 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in information and communication1,144,200 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in finance and insurance839,100 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in real estate403,400 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in professional, scientific and technical services2,344,600 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in administrative and support services2,533,000 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in public administration, defence and compulsory social security2,531,100 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure
People employed in education2,080,500 people2025ec.europa.eu2Official · national figure

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

What is the unemployment rate in France?

The national unemployment rate was 7.7 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a).

How many people live in France?

The published population was 68,551,653 people in 2024. Source: World Bank.

What is the median gross salary in France?

The median gross salary was 2,531 EUR/month in 2022. Source: Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly).

What is the minimum wage in France?

The statutory minimum wage is 11.88 EUR/hour, gross (as of 2025). Source: OECD.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, September 12). Moving to France: salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/countries/france/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_moving-to-france-salary-cost-of-living_84bef84b6d96,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Moving to France: salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-09-12},
  version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/countries/france/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}
Markdown citation
[Moving to France: salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/countries/france/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

Every number above comes from one of these records. Open the original source for its geographic scope and publication date.

  1. ameli.fr — Assurance Maladie (CNAM) ameli.fr · ameli.fr · checked 2026-08-03
  2. ec.europa.eu ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-12
  3. EF EPI ef.com · checked 2026-08-03
  4. European Medicines Agency ema.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
  5. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-20
  6. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-07
  7. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
  8. Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
  9. Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
  10. Eurostat — Distribution of income by household composition (ilc_di04) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
Show 38 more sources
  1. Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
  2. Eurostat — National accounts aggregates (nama_10_a10) and employment (nama_10_a10_e) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
  3. Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
  4. Eurostat (Structure of Earnings Survey, earn_ses_monthly) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
  5. Eurostat crim_off_cat (ICCS0101, NR) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
  6. Eurostat demo_pjan ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
  7. Eurostat earn_mw_cur ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  8. Eurostat hbs_exp_t121 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  9. Eurostat ilc_di03 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
  10. French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (Anses) anses.fr · checked 2026-08-03
  11. Globalization and World Cities (GaWC), Loughborough University gawc.lboro.ac.uk · checked 2026-08-03
  12. Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
  13. Mean monthly earnings by sex, occupation and size class of the enterprise (2022) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-30
  14. MIPEX mirovni-institut.si · checked 2026-08-03
  15. OECD sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  16. OECD oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
  17. OECD sdmx-pp.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
  18. OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
  19. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  20. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  21. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  22. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
  23. OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
  24. Physicians (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
  25. Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-29
  26. Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition Taxing Wages 2026 · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-29
  27. WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
  28. WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
  29. World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
  30. World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
  31. World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
  32. World Bank indicator NY.GDP.PCAP.CD api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
  33. World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
  34. World Bank indicator SP.DYN.LE00.IN api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
  35. World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
  36. World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
  37. World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05
  38. OECD — Taxing Wages (DF_TAXINGWAGES) tax wedge and net income OECD · oecd.org · checked 2026-07-14