France vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

France United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1728
$2516
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4068
$5730
🏠 One person rent
$903
$1598
🏘️ Family rent
$1546
$2655
🍽️ Food expenses
$579
$651
🚐 Transport expenses
$113
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2825
$4539
💸 GDP per capita
$46150
$85810
😃 Human freedom index
8.21
8.64
❤️ Life expectancy
82.9
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
67
65
🌐 English speaking %
57.3%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
86
100
😀 Quality of life
85
87
🏙️ Population
68.5M
340M

The average cost of living in France ($1728) is 31% less expensive than in the United States ($2516). France ranked 27th 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 1.6 months in France compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 23rd and 20th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in France vs United States infographic

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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
$17.2
$19.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$64.2
$76.5
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$12.7
$11.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$7.06
$6.31
 Cappuccino
$3.8
$5.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.12
$2.65
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$885
$1659
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$703
$1336
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1747
$3048
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1406
$2458
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$130
$125
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$200
$193
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$33.9
$67.5
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.63%
6.41%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6278
$4491
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4604
$3675
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.22
$2.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$64.8
$69.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$22.5
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.05
$0.92
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.41
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.96
$3.57
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.52
$4.43
🥚 Eggs, x12
$4.5
$4.7
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$19
$13.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.2
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$21.8
$16.8
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.22
$5.12
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.36
$1.85
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.16
$4.48
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.69
$4.77
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.29
$2.83
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.61
$2.9
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.57
$1.48
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.67
$2.74
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$8.94
$14.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.77
$2.41
🚬 Cigarette pack
$13.7
$10.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$8.07
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.34
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.5
$4.53
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.83
$2.2
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$37.9
$52.3
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$13.6
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$29.7
$124
💇 Haircut, simple
$20.4
$21.6
👖 Brand Jeans
$103
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$110
$92.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$723
$1428
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$11969
$20562

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in France vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In France

City Cost of living Population
Paris
$2517
2.15M
Marseille
$1733
877K
Lyon
$1693
521K
Toulouse
$1657
512K
Nice
$1884
354K
Montpellier
$1593
307K
Strasbourg
$1620
292K
Nantes
$1574
325K
Lille
$1651
239K
Bordeaux
$1680
265K
Rennes
$1469
228K
Amiens
$1300
135K
Villeurbanne
$1638
162K
Angers
$1715
158K
Grenoble
$1525
156K
Boulogne-Billancourt
$2281
120K
Le Mans
$1344
145K
Saint-Etienne
$1239
173K
Toulon
$1478
181K
Reims
$1486
178K
Clermont-Ferrand
$1472
148K
Orleans
$1335
116K
Saint-Denis
$1932
115K
Dijon
$1483
160K
Nimes
$1340
150K
Brest
$1202
141K
Le Havre
$1256
166K
Metz
$1526
122K
Argenteuil
$1942
107K
Tours
$1286
139K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4203
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3361
3.9M
Chicago
$2799
2.75M
Houston
$2240
2.3M
San Diego
$3469
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2584
1.6M
Phoenix
$2340
1.61M
Dallas
$2447
1.3M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
San Jose
$3952
1.01M
San Antonio
$2023
1.43M
Seattle
$3162
737K
Austin
$2416
962K
Washington
$3328
690K
Boston
$3652
676K
Indianapolis
$2382
888K
Hempstead
$2655
793K
Fort Worth
$2217
919K
Jacksonville
$2222
950K
Charlotte
$2423
875K
Columbus
$2181
906K
Denver
$2775
716K
Portland
$2684
653K
Nashville
$2524
689K
Las Vegas
$2414
642K
Oklahoma City
$1872
681K
Atlanta
$2641
499K
Oakland
$3254
441K
Baltimore
$2323
586K
Sacramento
$2825
525K