
Best rental yields in France
Investing in property in France? Discover the best rental yields in French cities and towns in 2025.
With slowing construction activity and price reductions, France remains a buyer’s market in 2025, offering an excellent opportunity to prospective buy-to-let investors.
In fact, property prices in France are down 5% year-on-year, signifying that 2025 is a great time to access good-value buy-to-let properties before the likely upturn in prices in the coming years.
Moreover, France welcomes between 90 and 100 million tourists every year, ensuring demand for short-term rentals in tourist hotspots like Paris and the south of France. France’s rule of law guarantees ownership, too, so it’s beneficial to buy-to-let investors.
So, join us as we examine the best gross annual rental yields in France and where you should consider purchasing a buy-to-let property in 2025.
Estimate your property’s potential
Use our estimate widget to quickly gauge the rental potential of your property. Simply enter the address and the number of bedrooms, and get an instant estimate to help you make informed decisions about your investment.
What are the best cities to invest in real estate in France?
Finding the most profitable cities to invest in property requires knowing what type of rental you want to do. If you’re looking to maximise your profits, there’s no doubt that short-term rentals are what you should be looking at.
In this case, the major tourist cities in France should be your number one choice. Why? Because the main risk in short-term rentals is a vacancy. However, in the major French cities, there is hardly any vacancy.
So let’s take a look at eight of the largest cities in France that are the best areas to invest in property in France.
Buy-to-let Saint-Etienne
- Average rental yield: 6.04%
- Average price per square metre: €1,525
Saint-Etienne is a medium-sized city, with only 170,000 inhabitants, compared to over 220,000 fifty years ago. So why invest in Saint-Etienne?
This is primarily because the average rental yield is just over 6%, making it a great place for a long-term buy-to-let investment.
Also, property isn’t too expensive in Saint Etienne, with an average cost of €1,525 per square metre. Average rents in the city range from €450 to €700 for one-to-three-bedroom apartments, indicating the potential returns you can expect.
All the indicators are therefore in the green, both in terms of rental yield and capital gain on the sale. Adding the 1.1 million overnight stays in the Loire department, Saint-Etienne is an ideal city to invest in short-term rentals.
Buy-to-let Toulouse
- Average rental yield: 3.94% to 4.12%
- Average price per square metre: €1,491
The pink city offers an average annual rental yield of between 5% and 6% gross. Investing in Toulouse is, therefore, in terms of rental profitability, comparable to the cities of Lyon and Marseille. However, where Toulouse comes out on top is in terms of the price per m².
The Pink City offers average rental yields of just under 4% in the city centre, but if you buy on the outskirts, you can expect a yield of 4.12%.
While this certainly isn’t the best rental yield in France, the relatively low property price of €1,491 per square metre and the fact that millions of tourists visit Toulouse each year make this a city worth considering.
In the short-term rental market, a city-centre apartment costs at least €70 per night, which signifies the potential returns if you invest in an Airbnb in Toulouse.
Buy-to-let Nancy
- Average rental yield: 4.51%
- Average price per square metre: €2,300
Situated in the magnificent Grand Est region in eastern France, Nancy is a countryside gem growing in popularity with tourists. It’s the birthplace of art nouveau and home to the UNESCO World Heritage site, Place Stanislas.
In 2025, it’s also one of the best places in eastern France for rental yields, with properties fetching around 4.5% on average. Properties within the city cost an average of €2,300 per square metre, often in stunning architectural buildings built with flair and imagination.
Nancy also has a thriving short-term rental market, with properties in the city centre often commanding over €100 per night. If you’re planning to market your property in this way, you’ll reap good returns.
Buy-to-let Avignon
- Average rental yield: 6.81%
- Average price per square metre: €2,000
Situated in the heart of Provence, Avignon is a picturesque town with stunning architecture and a wealth of natural beauty in the surrounding landscapes. The Popes’ Palace sits at the heart of the city, while tree-lined streets with local eateries bustle during the summer months.
Avignon is a worthwhile buy-to-let destination to consider in 2025. Its average yield of 6.81% is one of the highest in the country. What’s more, the average purchase price per square metre is just €2,000, making it relatively affordable for investors.
Buy-to-let Marseille
- Average rental yield: 3.18% to 4.48%.
- Average price per square metre: €5,168
Marseille is one of the most populous cities in France, attracting over 5 million tourists annually. Within the city centre, average yields can fetch up to 4.48%, though the average purchase price is €5,168, making Marseille one of the most expensive French cities for property outside of Paris.
The average price of property drops to an average of €3,078 outside the city centre, but the average yield drops to just over 3%. You also need to be careful where you buy in Marseille, as some of the outlying areas have a reputation for crime and violence.
Buy-to-let Nantes
- Average rental yield: 3.61% to 4.06%
- Average price per square metre: €4,624
Situated between Brittany, of which it was historically the capital, and the Vendée, Nantes is the capital of the Pays de la Loire region. With a population of over 300,000, the city has a very dynamic economy.
Nantes is the sixth most popular tourist destination in France and is one of the main destinations for mass tourism in the country. Between the castle of the Dukes of Brittany, its magnificent city centre, and the areas surrounding the city, buying a house in Nantes is a wise investment.
The gross rental yield ranges from 3.61% to 4.06%, with yields slightly higher in areas just outside the city centre. The average cost of property in Nantes has dropped from over €5,000 per square metre in 2023 to €4,624 per square metre in 2025, illustrating that now is a good time to invest in the city.
Buy-to-let Bordeaux
- Average rental yield: 3.01% to 3.16%
- Average price per square metre: €5,403
Sitting on the banks of the Garonne River, Bordeaux attracts wine lovers from all over the world. Known for its spirits, this city of only 250.000 inhabitants attracts more than 4 million stays each year, with an average duration of four nights.
It is therefore the perfect place to make a rental investment. Especially since companies like GuestReady, an Airbnb management company, can take care of guests and the property. With their multilingual team, they give you access to the 20% of Spanish, British and German tourists who flock to the city every year.
Properties in Bordeaux mature like the fine wines the region is known for, making an investment here savvy in the long run. Though the yields here are fairly low at 3.01% to 3.16% on average, the short-term rental market in Bordeaux is booming, with landlords charging between €100 and €1,000 per night.
Buy-to-let Paris
- Average rental yield: 2.67%
- Average price per square metre: €12,022
Property investment in Paris struggles when compared to other cities in France. The average rental yield in Paris is between 2% and 3% gross. This means that rather than making money, investing in the capital could actually cost money.
It’s also the most expensive city in France to buy property, with an average purchase price of €12,022 in 2025.
However, there are three main reasons to temper this judgment:
- This gross yield mainly concerns long-term rentals;
- The capital is subject to very high property inflation;
- The Paris region is a major economic hub;
- Let’s look at each of these points in detail, to understand why buying a flat in Paris is an excellent investment;

A very good return for short-term rentals
Buying real estate in Paris is a guarantee that you will have a property that can be rented out on a short-term basis all year round. Airbnb rentals are exploding in the capital. The supply of holiday accommodation is far below the demand.
No less than 33 million tourists visit the French capital every year, which is as many potential occupants of a well-located flat in Paris. This is without taking into account the price of holiday rentals in the centre of Paris.
With studio, flats renting for as little as 80€ per night, and luxury flats costing over 1.400€ per night, owning a place to stay in Paris is a real bargain.
Paris is the economic heart of France
The Île-de-France region has more than 12 million inhabitants and a GDP of 726 billion euros, which is more than twice as much per capita as the other regions of France. In other words, the big money is in Paris, as are the headquarters and the high salaries.
Many workers in the financial sector, for example, rent Airbnb for a few months, and the price is not a barrier. Short-term accommodation on Airbnb is easier to rent than queuing for long-term accommodation.

Is buying property in France a good investment?
When considering the quality of an investment in real estate, two essential questions arise:
- What is the property rights regime?
- Is there a risk related to natural disasters?
As far as property rights are concerned, France, unlike England or certain Asian countries, does not use the technique known as “leasehold”. Thus, once your property has been purchased and registered in your name with a notary, not only will you own your property for an unlimited period, but your children will inherit it.
In France, the right to property is considered “inviolable and sacred”, according to the very terms of Article 17 of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (DDHC) of 1789, which forms part of the constitutional bloc. In other words, this right has constitutional value. It is also reinforced by Article 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), to which France is a party.
As far as natural risks are concerned, before buying a property in France, you are given a document called ERP, for “état des risques et pollutions”. It lists all the known risks that are likely to affect the property in the area in which it is located. These include:
- Seismic risk;
- Exposure to radon;
- Soil pollution;
- Technological or mining risks;
- Natural risks (floods, storms, avalanches, etc.);
Real estate investment in France is therefore particularly well regulated and protected by constitutional provisions that ensure the peaceful enjoyment of the property purchased. Once you are sure of this, it is worth looking at the long-term returns.
What is the average rental yield in France?
In 2025, average rental yields in France are low, ranging from 2.90% (city centre) to 3.37% (outside the city)Most of the areas introduced above show yields of 4% or more, so they should be your starting point if you’re looking for a buy-to-let property in France this year.
Why invest in property in France?
France is experiencing a positive evolution of the property market. It was spared from the speculative movements that hit Spain in 1999 or the securitisation of mortgage loans that hit the United States in 2008.
However, while it has been spared these serious crises because the country has never resorted to the same causes, a real estate bubble is regularly forming in the country. How does this happen? Quite simply when property prices rise faster than household incomes. This artificial increase in prices is a natural trend in any market. These increases and contractions are normal.
However, property prices can also be affected by external interventions, such as new legislation. This is exactly what happened with the law of 22 August 2021, known as the climate and resilience law, which prohibits any rental of a property with an energy performance diagnosis of F or G.
The result is a current price drop of 15% on old housing. Housing that can no longer be rented out from 1 January 2023. Consequently, before buying a property, it is advisable to find out about the legislative trends. In the case of new buildings, nothing negative is to be expected, quite the contrary.
Can foreigners buy real estate in France?
Yes. As a foreigner, you should know that the application of the law is strictly identical for all litigants. Whatever the nationality of the parties to a dispute, the law is applied in the same way by the judge.
As the French State is a unitary, i.e. centralised, State, the application of the law is uniform throughout the country. Each court interprets the law according to the case law of the Cour de Cassation, the highest French court.
Therefore, foreigners can not only buy real estate in France but also be protected in their rights in exactly the same way as French citizens.
What is the tax on rental income in France?
French tax regimes are complex, with many exceptions. It is important to analyse the different regimes carefully before opting for one or the other. The following are only very general. They provide you with the keywords that will enable you to consult these regimes in detail on the République Française website.
Two main tax regimes apply to rental income in France. They are distinguished by the type of property rented, between :
- Rental income from furnished properties;
- Rental income from unfurnished properties;
For rental income from furnished properties, which should be prioritised when you want to make short-term rentals, these are considered industrial and commercial profits (BIC). Under 23,000 euros of annual rental income (per member of the tax household), you can remain a non-professional furnished rental operator (LMNP). Above this figure, you become a professional and are entitled to an allowance of between 50% and 71%.
In LMNP, you can opt for two types of taxation:
- Micro-BIC;
- The real regime;
The first allows you to benefit from a 50% allowance, but the social security contributions, i.e. 17.2%, must be paid to the tax authorities. The real regime can be interesting but requires a chartered accountant to complete your declaration. This cost should therefore also be taken into consideration.
Conversely, if your rental income comes from unfurnished properties, it is considered to be land income. You can then opt for two different tax systems:
- The micro-financier system;
- The actual system;
In both cases, social security contributions on your profits amount to 17.2%, plus the levy on your income, which is at least 11%, and can reach a maximum levy of 45%.
Is this the right time to buy real estate in France?
This question depends on the duration of your investment. Typically, property investment is made to last 20 or 30 years. It is therefore a long-term investment.
When you are thinking of investing over two or three decades, there is no right or wrong time to invest. Whether you invest at the bottom of the wave, or when the market is at its peak and is going to go down, you will not lose money after 20 or 30 years.
This rule is exactly the same as the one for the stock market. If you look at the share price today, compared to the lowest rate linked to the subprime crisis in 2008, you see that an index like the S&P500 is much higher than in 2012, for example.
It is exactly the same for the real estate market. Therefore, buying a house in Bordeaux or Saint-Etienne today will be a winning bet over two decades, both in terms of rental income and capital gains on sale.
Short, mid or long-term?
All they are debatable. In the medium term, while the risk of loss remains low, the risk of not gaining anything is higher. In the short term, the risk of loss can be very high for several reasons:
- The type of property;
- The market trend;
By type of property, we mean the age of the property and its quality. Indeed, the older the property, the more work it requires, and therefore the more it costs. These expenses will not be recouped in the short term, either by rent or by a capital gain on the sale.
The market trend may also be downward or may become so following a factory closure or other particular event. Short-term investments, therefore, require a very precise study of the location in which you wish to buy. You should analyse the local economic fabric so that you know who the major local employers are, their financial health, and the trend in their market.
You cannot invest in the short term in a city like Clermont-Ferrand and not be interested in the financial health of the Michelin factory, the largest employer in the Auvergne region with 14.200 employees.
To maximise your income, you should opt for a short-term rental in a tourist region, less subject to the vagaries of the local industrial economy. To be able to buy wherever you want, it is possible to entrust the management of your property to a company like GuestReady, which specialises in Airbnb rentals.
Conclusion
Investing in property in France is particularly profitable for short-term rentals. There is no better place to invest in property in France than in tourist areas, because is one of the countries with the most visitors in the world.
Companies such as GuestReady now make it possible to invest in any city in France with the assurance that the property will be rented out in the short term.
With services that include posting ads, hosting guests and cleaning the flat, there is no reason to hesitate to maximise rental returns via Airbnb so let us help you on this profitable journey, get in touch!