France vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

France United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1737
$2522
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4119
$5757
🏠 One person rent
$904
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$1549
$2642
🍽️ Food expenses
$589
$656
🚐 Transport expenses
$110
$103
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2922
$4550
💸 GDP per capita
$46103
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
8.18
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
82.9
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
66
64
🌐 English speaking %
23.7%
95.9%
🎓 Higher education
86
100
😀 Quality of life
86
88
🏙️ Population
68.6M
340M

The average cost of living in France ($1737) is 31% less expensive than in the United States ($2522). France ranked 28th vs 9th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.7 months in France compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 24th and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in France vs the United States

We calculate prices for France and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 151 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

France United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$17.5
$19.8
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$67.6
$77
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$13.1
$11.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$7.26
$6.39
 Cappuccino
$4.08
$5.44
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.44
$2.76
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$895
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$700
$1337
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1771
$2997
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1432
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$131
$130
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$201
$200
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$34.2
$68.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.68%
6.16%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6560
$4871
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4599
$3394
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.24
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$63.8
$71.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$22.2
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.08
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.43
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.13
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.55
$4.47
🥚 Eggs, x12
$4.58
$4.73
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$18.8
$13.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.2
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$22.9
$17.3
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.19
$5.06
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.39
$1.82
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.08
$4.57
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.79
$4.83
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.2
$2.88
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.43
$2.97
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.57
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.69
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$8.81
$15
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.84
$2.45
🚬 Cigarette pack
$13.9
$11.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$8.25
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.35
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.49
$4.59
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.81
$2.24
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$38.6
$52.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$13.7
$14.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$29.6
$127
💇 Haircut, simple
$20.4
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$104
$55.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$110
$94.7
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$916
$1520
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$14620
$20019

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in France vs the United States

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Cost of Living in Popular cities

In France

City Cost of living Population
Paris
$2460
2.1M
Marseille
$1759
886K
Lyon
$1747
519K
Toulouse
$1709
515K
Nice
$1901
358K
Nantes
$1579
328K
Montpellier
$1644
310K
Strasbourg
$1658
294K
Bordeaux
$1789
268K
Lille
$1658
238K
Rennes
$1500
231K
Villeurbanne
$1652
164K
Aix-en-Provence
$1853
150K
Boulogne-Billancourt
$2297
119K
Amiens
$1350
136K
Grenoble
$1560
156K
Le Mans
$1339
146K
Angers
$1637
159K
Toulon
$1530
179K
Metz
$1591
123K
Le Havre
$1247
167K
Saint-Etienne
$1251
173K
Orleans
$1356
116K
Saint-Denis
$1918
115K
Brest
$1208
142K
Dijon
$1490
162K
Reims
$1553
178K
Nimes
$1440
152K
Argenteuil
$1935
106K
Clermont-Ferrand
$1427
146K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4202
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3420
3.9M
Chicago
$2851
2.75M
Houston
$2261
2.3M
San Diego
$3486
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
Phoenix
$2423
1.61M
Dallas
$2472
1.3M
San Jose
$3957
1.01M
San Antonio
$2071
1.43M
Washington
$3350
690K
Seattle
$3183
737K
Austin
$2475
962K
Boston
$3680
676K
Fort Worth
$2259
919K
Hempstead
$2710
793K
Indianapolis
$2405
888K
Charlotte
$2470
875K
Jacksonville
$2192
950K
Columbus
$2140
906K
Denver
$2848
716K
Portland
$2785
653K
Nashville
$2451
689K
Atlanta
$2628
499K
Oklahoma City
$1931
681K
Baltimore
$2224
586K
Las Vegas
$2294
642K
Sacramento
$2682
525K
Memphis
$1917
633K