5 Best Cities to Live in France for Expats in 2026
French Lifestyle by Johnny Benoit
20,605 views
Thinking of moving to France but Paris isn't for you?
In this video, I rank 5 of the best cities to live in France for expats in 2026, based on the things that matter when you're choosing somewhere to actually live — not somewhere to spend a nice weekend.
I compare Bordeaux, Strasbourg, Lyon, Nice and Toulouse, looking at their English-speaking and international communities, healthcare, housing costs, public transport, car dependence, airports, climate and what those climates could look like as France gets warmer.
And because many of you are considering buying a long-term or retirement home in France, I also ask a question that gets ignored surprisingly often:
Would this still be a good place to live if you no longer wanted to drive at 75?
There isn't one perfect French city for everybody.
Nice makes an exceptionally strong case for retirees and people with regular North American connections.
Lyon is difficult to beat if you still need a serious local career. Strasbourg has superb public transport and a deeply international European culture.
Bordeaux can serve as the major-city hub for people dreaming of southwest France.
And Toulouse offers perhaps the strongest overall compromise.
So if you're planning to move to France, retire in France, buy property in France or simply work out where in France you could realistically build a life, this should give you a considerably better starting point than choosing somewhere because you had a lovely lunch there in 2019.
Cities covered:
01:55 Bordeaux — The gateway to southwest France
08:34 Strasbourg — International and car-light
14:36 Lyon — Best if you still need a career
19:11 Nice — The retirement heavyweight
26:45 Toulouse — The best overall compromise?
32:45 Montpellier (BONUS) — The city that just missed
Subscribe for fact-checked videos about moving to France, buying property in France and understanding how life here really works.
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20 Comments
I was in my early 50s when I arrived in France. I am now 70. Please listen to Johnny when he talks about aging and your different priorities...
A tip for buying any property in France. Make sure there is a through airflow with some sort of security on the openings e.g. windows at the front and back with grills. Without it, your dwelling will be an oven in the summer nights. Yes, your shutters will be open all night and you will need to apologise to the whole village while standing in the Bakery the next morning.
Transport. Public transport is essential as the EU is trying their very best to remove most private transport. Parking is difficult, roads are closing to private vehicles, the price of fuel is astronomical. Within 20 years, private vehicle ownership will be considered only for the very rich and those in the back of beyond (who can also afford it).
Ah, but there is a "Frog and Rosbif" in Bordeaux where they brew their own beer... Don't tell the French, but Bordeaux used to be English a long time ago!
Strasbourg and petrol? Erm, due to the drought, the river is too low to allow the fuel barges through, so there can be a shortage!
Nice, a friend of mine lives there, loves it and tells me that a Nice winter (a slight dip in temperature and some cloud - not the same as a French winter) lasts, at most, 3 weeks.
Argh - Terminal 2E. The bane of all existence. Avoid if at all possible. In fact, avoid Roissy at all costs!
Tea without milk! Wash your mouth out - what are you thinking! You'll be "black balled from the golf club".
Oh and London is the 6th largest French city by population!
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MY FRENCH BOOKS (I'm a writer):
On Amazon US: https://shorturl.at/4AZXm
On Amazon UK: https://shorturl.at/iM31J
On Amazon France: https://shorturl.at/bpHem
On Amazon Spain: https://shorturl.at/n8uii
On Amazon Germany: https://shorturl.at/yyaQl
on Amazon Canada: https://tinyurl.com/52bke5zx
For your CURRENCY EXCHANGE needs: https://shorturl.at/KbLxs
Enquiries: johnny.benoit@hotmail.com
Merci beaucoup
♥:finger-red-number-one:Congratulations on a FIRST-RATE video! :trophy-yellow-smiling::trophy-yellow-smiling::trophy-yellow-smiling::trophy-yellow-smiling:
5 Best Cities to Live in France for Expats in 2026
French Lifestyle by Johnny Benoit
20,605 views
Thinking of moving to France but Paris isn't for you?
In this video, I rank 5 of the best cities to live in France for expats in 2026, based on the things that matter when you're choosing somewhere to actually live — not somewhere to spend a nice weekend.
I compare Bordeaux, Strasbourg, Lyon, Nice and Toulouse, looking at their English-speaking and international communities, healthcare, housing costs, public transport, car dependence, airports, climate and what those climates could look like as France gets warmer.
And because many of you are considering buying a long-term or retirement home in France, I also ask a question that gets ignored surprisingly often:
Would this still be a good place to live if you no longer wanted to drive at 75?
There isn't one perfect French city for everybody.
Nice makes an exceptionally strong case for retirees and people with regular North American connections.
Lyon is difficult to beat if you still need a serious local career. Strasbourg has superb public transport and a deeply international European culture.
Bordeaux can serve as the major-city hub for people dreaming of southwest France.
And Toulouse offers perhaps the strongest overall compromise.
So if you're planning to move to France, retire in France, buy property in France or simply work out where in France you could realistically build a life, this should give you a considerably better starting point than choosing somewhere because you had a lovely lunch there in 2019.
Cities covered:
01:55 Bordeaux — The gateway to southwest France
08:34 Strasbourg — International and car-light
14:36 Lyon — Best if you still need a career
19:11 Nice — The retirement heavyweight
26:45 Toulouse — The best overall compromise?
32:45 Montpellier (BONUS) — The city that just missed
Subscribe for fact-checked videos about moving to France, buying property in France and understanding how life here really works.
PATREON: Patreon: JohnnyBenoit
BUY ME A COFFEE: https://buymeacoffee.com/johnny_benoit
SUBSTACK: https://shorturl.at/FvC6c
BECOME A CHANNEL MEMBER : https://shorturl.at/7Ic5A
MERCH: https://johnny-benoit-shop.fourthwall...
MY FRENCH BOOKS (I'm a writer):
On Amazon US: https://shorturl.at/4AZXm
On Amazon UK: https://shorturl.at/iM31J
On Amazon France: https://shorturl.at/bpHem
On Amazon Spain: https://shorturl.at/n8uii
On Amazon Germany: https://shorturl.at/yyaQl
on Amazon Canada: https://tinyurl.com/52bke5zx
For your CURRENCY EXCHANGE needs: https://shorturl.at/KbLxs
Enquiries: johnny.benoit@hotmail.com
#movingtofrance #livinginfrance #FranceExpats
01:55 Bordeaux — The gateway to southwest France
08:34 Strasbourg — International and car-light
14:36 Lyon — Best if you still need a career
19:11 Nice — The retirement heavyweight
26:45 Toulouse — The best overall compromise?
32:45 Montpellier (BONUS) — The city that just missed