France vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

France United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1616
$2454
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4015
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$831
$1565
🏘️ Family rent
$1616
$2755
🍽️ Food expenses
$553
$624
🚐 Transport expenses
$106
$102
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2667
$4635
💸 GDP per capita
$44461
$81695
😃 Human freedom index
7.86
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
82.2
77.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
71
69
🌐 English speaking %
57.3%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
86
100
😀 Quality of life
84
87
🏙️ Population
68.4M
332M

The average cost of living in France ($1616) is 34% less expensive than in the United States ($2454). France ranked 26th vs 10th 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 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 24th 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
$16.8
$18.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$62.9
$75
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.6
$10.8
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$6.8
$6.19
 Cappuccino
$3.56
$5.13
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.05
$2.57
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$824
$1641
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$641
$1330
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1663
$2946
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1332
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$120
$123
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$185
$189
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$33.2
$66.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.66%
6.53%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6369
$4710
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4720
$3231
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2
$2.37
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$61.6
$70
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$20.5
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.99
$0.98
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.3
$1.08
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.89
$3.5
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.3
$4.35
🥚 Eggs, x12
$4.4
$3.81
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$18.4
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.1
$11.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$20.8
$15.9
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.02
$5.03
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.23
$1.76
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.2
$4.51
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.63
$4.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.23
$2.81
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.28
$2.88
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.48
$1.42
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.52
$2.6
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$8.16
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.42
$2.17
🚬 Cigarette pack
$12.6
$10.3
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$7.51
$9.41
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.16
$6.07
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.36
$4.4
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.53
$2.13
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$36.6
$51.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12.8
$14.1
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$28.8
$122
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.9
$20.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$98.7
$52.8
👟 Brand Sneakers
$102
$89.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$679
$1400
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$11512
$20224

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
$2357
2.15M
Marseille
$1607
873K
Lyon
$1608
522K
Toulouse
$1551
504K
Nice
$1721
348K
Nantes
$1547
323K
Strasbourg
$1497
291K
Montpellier
$1531
302K
Bordeaux
$1575
262K
Rennes
$1394
225K
Boulogne-Billancourt
$2158
120K
Lille
$1547
237K
Angers
$1383
157K
Villeurbanne
$1622
157K
Clermont-Ferrand
$1363
147K
Nanterre
$1725
97.4K
Aix-en-Provence
$1654
147K
Le Mans
$1261
145K
Rueil-Malmaison
$1701
78.2K
Saint-Etienne
$1139
173K
Argenteuil
$1826
107K
Grenoble
$1473
157K
Reims
$1448
179K
Saint-Denis
$1799
114K
Le Havre
$1249
166K
Brest
$1152
140K
Tours
$1192
138K
Saint-Denis
$1397
155K
Versailles
$1894
83.6K
Montreuil
$1743
111K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4051
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3187
3.9M
Chicago
$2667
2.75M
Houston
$2248
2.3M
San Diego
$3346
1.39M
Phoenix
$2369
1.61M
San Jose
$3674
1.01M
Dallas
$2550
1.3M
San Francisco
$3781
874K
Philadelphia
$2541
1.6M
San Antonio
$2194
1.43M
Austin
$2473
962K
Seattle
$2908
737K
Indianapolis
$2187
888K
Hempstead
$2702
793K
Charlotte
$2615
875K
Washington
$3139
690K
Boston
$3467
676K
Fort Worth
$2195
919K
Jacksonville
$2386
950K
Columbus
$2252
906K
Denver
$2699
716K
Nashville
$2649
689K
Portland
$2572
653K
Atlanta
$2540
499K
Las Vegas
$2246
642K
Detroit
$2006
639K
Oakland
$3146
441K
El Paso
$1775
679K
Baltimore
$2223
586K