Cost of living in France

Around the European average - but skewed by high-cost Paris

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Cost of living in French cities

CityMonthly rental (1 bed central apartment)3 course meal for 2 at mid-range restaurantMonthly cost for 4 person family, before rent
Paris€1,102€50€3,120.78
Marseille€572€40€2,269.49
Toulouse€585€50€2,693.63
Nice€767€60€2806.74
Lille€605€35€2417.89

Source: Numbeo

France is a reasonably wealthy country; OECD statistics show average household disposable income running at USD 31,137 a year, slightly above the OECD average. The cost of living in France is therefore fairly high - Numbeo puts it 15% higher than the cost of living in the US - though that figure is somewhat distorted by the high cost of living in Paris. The French capital comes 62nd on human resources consultant Mercer's city cost of living ranking, behind London, but ahead of Brussels, Amsterdam, Rome, Munich or Madrid. Looking at Numbeo's stats shows that renting a flat in Paris, for instance, runs about double the cost in most other French cities, while a restaurant meal in Paris will set you back 15 euros more than if you eat out in Limoges or Lille. Even groceries in Paris are 10-20% more expensive than in other cities.

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EURSpainFranceUK
Meal for 2 people, mid-range restaurant355052
Cappuccino1,532,642,93
Bottle of mid-range wine5,006,008,04
Monthly utilities for 85m2 apartment112,73134,01161,58
3 bed city centre apartment, monthly rent590,251 249,511 364,68

Source: Numbeo

In fact when you look at the European perspective, Eurostat's numbers show France comes well below the highest priced countries (Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries) in regard to the general cost of living, though above Spain, Portugal and the former COMECON countries. It's also slightly cheaper than the UK and Ireland. Given the country's high quality of life, and good public services, that seems a fairy reasonable bargain.

A more detailed comparison with the UK and Spain shows how France sits fairly squarely in the middle of the two. For instance, you'll pay a euro more for your cappuccino in France than you do in Spain, and another thirty cents in the UK; a monthly local transport ticket costs thirteen euros more in France than in Spain, and another thirteen euros (bar a few cents) in the UK. (Bear in mind, though, that if you move to a smaller, cheaper city in France, you'll end up with lower living costs than you would in Barcelona).

Property prices in France

Housing prices in France follow the same pattern as the overall cost of living, with Paris by far the most expensive place to buy at over EUR 9,160 per square metre. As soon as you leave the city proper and move into the Ile de France, prices halve. Major cities with thriving economies, such as Lyon, Nice, Toulouse and Montpellier, come a little way further down the list, while in mainly rural departments such as Cotes d'Armor, Dordogne and Correze, properties sell at as little as EUR 1,030 per square metre.

RegionPrice / m2, EURRegionPrice / m2, EUR
Average for France2,010Marseille2,430
Paris9,160Vaucluse, Provence2,080
Ile de France4,010Cotes d'Armor, Brittany1,260
Lyon and Nice3,650Dordogne1,190
Toulouse2,660Correze1,030
Montpellier2550

Source: Notaires de France, Q4 2017 - resale properties only

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