Factbook dossier
Background
France today is one of the most modern countries in the world and is a leader among European nations. It plays an influential global role as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, NATO, the G-7, the G-20, the EU, and other multilateral organizations. France rejoined NATO's integrated military command structure in 2009, reversing then President Charles DE GAULLE's 1966 decision to withdraw French forces from NATO. Since 1958, it has constructed a hybrid presidential-parliamentary governing system resistant to the instabilities experienced in earlier, more purely parliamentary administrations. In recent decades, its reconciliation and cooperation with Germany have proved central to the economic integration of Europe, including the introduction of a common currency, the euro, in January 1999. In the early 21st century, five French overseas entities -- French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion -- became French regions and were made part of France proper.
Location
metropolitan France: Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain French Guiana: Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname Guadeloupe: Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Puerto Rico Martinique: Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago Mayotte: Southern Indian Ocean, island in the Mozambique Channel, about halfway between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique Reunion: Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Area
total : 643,801 sq km ; 551,500 sq km (metropolitan France) land: 640,427 sq km ; 549,970 sq km (metropolitan France) water: 3,374 sq km ; 1,530 sq km (metropolitan France) note: the first numbers include the overseas regions of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Reunion
Natural resources
metropolitan France: coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorspar, gypsum, timber, arable land, fish; French Guiana : gold deposits, petroleum, kaolin, niobium, tantalum, clay
Natural hazards
metropolitan France: flooding; avalanches; midwinter windstorms; drought; forest fires in south overseas departments: hurricanes (cyclones); flooding volcanism: Montagne Pel e (1,394 m) on the island of Martinique in the Caribbean is the most active volcano of the Lesser Antilles arc, although it last erupted in 1932; a catastrophic eruption in 1902 destroyed the city of St. Pierre, killing an estimated 30,000 people; La Soufri re (1,467 m) on the island of Guadeloupe has also had explosive eruptions in recent years
Population
total: 68,512,806 (2025 est.) male: 33,627,639 female: 34,885,167
Ethnic groups
Celtic and Latin with Teutonic, Slavic, North African (Algerian, Moroccan, Tunisian), Indochinese, Basque minorities note: overseas departments: Black, White, Mulatto, East Indian, Chinese, Indigenous
Languages
French (official) 100%, declining regional dialects and languages (Proven al, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish, Occitan, Picard) major-language sample(s): The World Factbook, une source indispensable d'informations de base. (French) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. note: overseas departments - French, Creole patois, Mahorian (a Swahili dialect)
Religions
Roman Catholic 47%, Muslim 4%, Protestant 2%, Buddhist 2%, Orthodox 1%, Jewish 1%, other 1%, none 33%, unspecified 9% (2021 est.) note: France maintains a tradition of secularism and has not officially collected data on religious affiliation since the 1872 national census, which complicates assessments of France's religious composition; an 1872 law prohibiting state authorities from collecting data on individuals' ethnicity or religious beliefs was reaffirmed by a 1978 law emphasizing the prohibition of the collection or exploitation of personal data revealing an individual's race, ethnicity, or political, philosophical, or religious opinions; a 1905 law codified France's separation of church and state
Environmental issues
air pollution and acid rain from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from urban wastes, agricultural runoff
Government type
semi-presidential republic
Capital
name: Paris geographic coordinates: 48 52 N, 2 20 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October time zone note: applies to metropolitan France only; for its overseas regions the time difference is UTC-4 for Guadeloupe and Martinique, UTC-3 for French Guiana, UTC+3 for Mayotte, and UTC+4 for Reunion etymology: name derives from the Parisii, a Celtic tribe that inhabited the area from the 3rd century B.C.; the Celtic settlement became the Roman town of Lutetia Parisiorum (Lutetia of the Parisii); over subsequent centuries it became Parisium and then Paris
Executive branch
chief of state: President Emmanuel MACRON (since 14 May 2017) head of government: S bastien LECORNU (since 10 September 2025) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president at the suggestion of the prime minister election/appointment process: president directly elected by absolute-majority popular vote in 2 rounds, if needed, for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); prime minister appointed by the president most recent election date: 10 April 2022, with a runoff held on 24 April 2022 election results: 2022: Emmanuel MACRON reelected in second round; percent of vote in first round - Emmanuel MACRON (LREM) 27.8%, Marine LE PEN (RN) 23.2%, Jean-Luc MELENCHON (LFI) 22%, Eric ZEMMOUR (Reconqu te) 7.1%, Valerie PECRESSE (LR) 4.8%, Yannick JADOT (EELV) 4.6%, other 10.6%; percent of vote in second round - MACRON 58.5%, LE PEN 41.5% 2017: Emmanuel MACRON elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Emmanuel MACRON (EM) 24%, Marine LE PEN (FN) 21.3%, Francois FILLON (LR) 20%, Jean-Luc MELENCHON (FI) 19.6%, Benoit HAMON (PS) 6.4%, other 8.7%; percent of vote in second round - MACRON 66.1%, LE PEN 33.9% expected date of next election: April 2027
Legislative branch
legislature name: Parliament (Parlement) legislative structure: bicameral
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$3.732 trillion (2024 est.) $3.689 trillion (2023 est.) $3.655 trillion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars
Real GDP per capita
$54,500 (2024 est.) $54,000 (2023 est.) $53,700 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
2% (2024 est.) 4.9% (2023 est.) 5.2% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices
Exports - partners
Germany 11%, Italy 9%, USA 8%, Belgium 8%, Spain 7% (2023) note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports
Imports - partners
Germany 15%, Belgium 11%, Netherlands 9%, Spain 8%, Italy 8% (2023) note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
Military and security forces
French Armed Forces (Forces Arm es Fran aises): Army (l'Armee de Terre; includes Foreign Legion), Navy (Marine Nationale), Air and Space Force (l'Armee de l Air et de l Espace); includes Air Defense), National Guard (Garde Nationale), National Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale) (2025) note 1: under the direction of the Ministry of the Interior, the civilian National Police and the National Gendarmerie maintain internal security; the National Gendarmerie is a paramilitary police force that is a branch of the Armed Forces and therefore part of the Ministry of Defense but under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior; it also has additional duties to the Ministry of Justice note 2: the National Guard is composed of operational reservists belonging to the Ministry of the Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior note 3: the French Foreign Legion, established in 1831, is a military force that is open to foreign recruits willing to serve in the French military for service in France and abroad; the Foreign Legion is an integrated part of the French Army; its combat units are a mix of armored cavalry and airborne, light, mechanized, and motorized infantry regiments
Military expenditures
2.1% of GDP (2025 est.) 2% of GDP (2024 est.) 1.9% of GDP (2023 est.) 1.9% of GDP (2022 est.) 1.9% of GDP (2021 est.)