A student guide to accommodation and living in Paris

Actualité

Updated on 29/04/2025

Lire en français
Group of students in the Luxembourg Gardens.
Crédit photo : Joséphine Brueder/Ville de Paris

Content

Cette page est aussi disponible en français
Rent control, housing schemes, recycling centers, low-cost meals and access to healthcare… Find out how Paris helps it's students.
In twenty years, the number of students in Paris has increased by 30%. Today, 1 in 10 Parisians is a student! While these figures, taken from a study by the Atelier parisien d'urbanisme (Apur) published in 2024, testify to the capital's attractiveness, they also illustrate the challenges the city must meet to accommodate the ever-increasing number of students.
The City of Paris has published a guide entitled "Etudiant.es, mieux se loger et vivre à Paris" (Students, better housing and living in Paris), listing all the assistance and tips you'll need for the start of the 2024-2025 academic year. It will be distributed in hard copy in universities from September 2, and can also be consulted online!

Solutions for access to housing

To help this population find accommodation in Paris, 800 new public housing units dedicated to young people will be built each year. The guide presents a wide range of accommodation solutions, including CROUS, Foyers Jeunes Travailleurs and social residences, as well as the whole range of housing and shared-accommodation schemes (via intergenerational cohabitation, for example).
For students who find accommodation in the private sector, the city has initiated an ambitious rent control policy since 2023 (which applies to all tenant profiles). This policy not only keeps rents in check, but also enables landlords who fail to comply with the rent ceiling to recover any excess payments (on average, this amounts to 3,482 euros per case processed). It only takes a few seconds to check that your rent is not too high, thanks to this online platform.

Financial aid, care, resources

The guide also lists all the ways in which you can limit your housing costs, by paying part of the rent, or meeting installation or energy costs.
Finally, solutions for all other aspects of student life are proposed: a list of health centers for free access to medical care, a list of resources for cheaper and more responsible consumption, places to access food aid, free work spaces and great tips for accessing the cultural events for free or at a reduced rate.