Internship Pay and Openings in France 2026

You are applying for internships in France and no listing tells you what it pays. That is normal here. It does not mean the money is a mystery, because you can learn the rules and ask.

As of 14 October 2026, JobRise's live feed shows 76 open internships in France. Of those, 74 were posted in the last 30 days, and 18 in the last 7 days. This is a snapshot of open listings on one site, not a market survey.

The feed is small and concentrated. Ubisoft alone has 54 of the 76 listings, which means one employer shapes almost the whole picture. ARCHIMED has 6, Red Bull has 4, Datadog has 4, and Withings, Fifty-Five, Celonis and Palantir have 2 each. Paris holds 69 listings, Lyon 3, Issy-les-Moulineaux 2, Bordeaux 1, Nice 1.

What the listings actually show#

Not one of the 76 listings in this slice shows a salary. Zero. That is the single most useful fact in the data, because it tells you exactly where you stand before you start.

All 76 titles are entry-level: intern, assistant, junior or trainee wording. Think "Functional Support Analyst Assistant - Stage (6 mois) Janvier 2027 (F/H/NB)" at Ubisoft, or "Junior Project Manager - Internship (Lyon, France)" at ARCHIMED. Sixty of the 76 are typed as Internship, and 16 as Full-time, even though the titles read as early-career roles. Apply anyway.

For wider context, the JobRise Hiring Report: France shows 465 open listings across all categories in the country, with 345 posted in the last 30 days. Internships are a real slice of that, but they are not the whole market.

How internship pay works in France#

French interns do not get a "salary" in the usual sense. They get a gratification, a monthly payment the host organisation must give once an internship goes past a set length. Know the rule.

The legal minimum gratification is set as a percentage of the hourly ceiling for social security contributions, and it is updated by decree. Reported figures for recent years sit around 4,35 to 4,50 euros gross per hour, which works out near 590 to 615 euros gross per month on a 35-hour basis. Those numbers move. Check the current official rate on service-public.fr before you compare offers.

Many employers pay above the minimum. Big groups and well-funded tech firms often offer 1,000 to 1,800 euros gross per month for a six-month internship in Paris, and some reach higher for very technical data or engineering roles. Treat these as rough reported ranges, not promises. They vary by company, sector, city and your year of study.

A few French norms to know:

• Gratification is gross. Net is lower after social contributions, so always ask which figure a number refers to.
• The legal minimum applies once the internship passes the duration threshold set by law. Shorter internships can be unpaid in some cases. Ask.
• Partial coverage of transport costs is a common legal obligation for the host organisation. Meal vouchers are common in practice but not automatic.
• A 13th month, bonus and equity are almost never part of an internship package in France. Do not expect them. If a start-up offers equity instead of cash, treat the cash as the real number.
• "CTC" and "superannuation" are not French terms. If a job post uses them, it was probably written for another market and the pay figure may not match French practice.

What the pay gap looks like in practice#

Same city, same field, very different money. A six-month data internship at a large listed group in Paris might pay 1,200 to 1,500 euros gross per month. A similar role at a small Lyon agency might pay the legal minimum plus transport, around 650 to 800 euros gross per month. Both are real offers. Neither is a scandal.

The job title does not set the pay. The host organisation does, which is why "Assistant" roles at Ubisoft and "Junior" roles at ARCHIMED can sit in totally different brackets even when the work looks close on paper. That's the catch.

How to ask about pay without killing your chances#

Ask early, in writing, and ask for the monthly gross gratification. Do it after they show real interest, not in the first email. Here is a script you can send to a recruiter or hiring manager:

Before we confirm the dates, could you tell me the monthly gross gratification for this six-month internship? I want to make sure the amount fits my budget for the move to Paris. If it is at the legal minimum, that is fine to know now.

Short, polite, and it forces a number. If they dodge twice, assume the legal minimum and decide whether that works for you. Your move.

For the negotiation itself, use our free salary negotiation guide. It walks through the wording for countering an offer, which matters even at intern level.

A worked example: turning an "assistant" bullet into evidence#

Say you want the Data Business Analyst Assistant role. Your CV bullet today:

Helped the data team with dashboards and reporting.

That tells them nothing. Rewrite it with scope and a result:

Built 3 recurring dashboards in Power BI for the sales team, cutting weekly reporting time from 4 hours to 40 minutes.

Now you have something to point at when you ask for a rate above the minimum. You are not begging. You are showing the work you already do.

A short plan before you apply#

• Read the listing twice for duration, start month and location. The Ubisoft roles say "6 mois, Janvier 2027", which affects your housing timeline.
• Check the legal minimum gratification on service-public.fr the week you apply. It changes.
• Write down your monthly floor: rent, transport, food. Know your number before they name theirs.
• Ask for the monthly gross gratification in writing before you accept.
• Compare the offer to that floor, not to what your friends claim they earn.
• Confirm transport coverage and meal vouchers in the offer letter. Verbal promises do not pay rent.

FAQ#

How much does an internship in France pay in 2026?

The legal minimum gratification is around 4,35 to 4,50 euros gross per hour in recent years, near 590 to 615 euros gross per month full time. Many employers pay more, and reported offers in Paris often fall between 1,000 and 1,800 euros gross per month for six-month roles. These are typical ranges that vary a lot, so check the current official rate and ask each employer directly.

Do French internships have to pay at all?

Once an internship goes past the duration set by French law, the host organisation must pay the minimum gratification. Very short internships can be unpaid in some cases. Ask for the length and the monthly amount in writing before you sign anything.

Why do none of the internship listings show a salary?

On the JobRise feed dated 14 October 2026, none of the 76 internship listings in France showed a salary. Employers in France often keep the gratification out of the ad and settle it later. That is exactly why you should ask for the number yourself instead of guessing.

Is the gross or the net figure what I get paid?

You are paid the net figure, which is lower than the gross one after social contributions. Ads and offers usually quote gross. Always confirm which one a number refers to, and ask what the expected net is.

Can I negotiate an internship gratification in France?

Yes, especially when the offer sits at the legal minimum and you bring real skills. Ask for the monthly gross figure, name your floor, and use concrete work as your case. Our free salary negotiation guide has the exact wording for countering an offer.