The France tech job market in 2026 is cooler than a few years ago but still large, and it is very concentrated. France Travail’s official hiring survey counts about 44,900 hiring projects in IT and telecoms jobs for 2026, with half of them expected to be hard to fill, but plans for engineering and development roles are down on 2025. For English speakers, the market is mainly Paris and remote: on France Dev Jobs, 56% of the 1,739 live jobs were in Paris and a third were fully remote in October 2026, with a median posted salary of €80,000 a year.
This guide brings together the official numbers and our own job data. Official figures come from France Travail’s Besoins en main-d’œuvre (BMO) survey, published in April 2026. Our own figures are from France Dev Jobs on 16 October 2026 and our October 2026 report. We only count jobs at companies where English is the working language, so our data describes that part of the market, not all of it.
The short answer
- Official hiring plans are down. French employers expect fewer hires overall in 2026 (2.27 million projects, down 6.5%), and IT engineering and development roles are among the jobs with the biggest drop.
- Tech is still hard to hire for. 50% of IT and telecom hiring projects, and 58% for IT engineers and R&D staff, are expected to be difficult, against 44% across all jobs.
- English-speaking jobs exist at scale. France Dev Jobs had 1,739 live jobs at 339 companies on 16 October 2026, and found 1,441 new jobs in the first half of October.
- Paris dominates: 969 jobs (56%). Toulouse had 74, Bordeaux 31, Lyon 15.
- AI is the biggest named role group: 210 machine learning and AI jobs, then DevOps and SRE (175) and product (137).
- Pay is high where it is posted: median €80,000 a year from 201 ads, though only 12% of ads stated a salary.
Official numbers: the BMO 2026 survey
Every year, France Travail (the public employment service) asks employers how many people they plan to hire. The 2026 survey collected about 416,000 responses from 2.2 million establishments (France Travail, BMO).
The whole market
France Travail’s 2026 summary is titled “projects and recruitment difficulties down”. Its main points (BMO 2026):
- The share of establishments planning to hire fell from 24.1% in 2025 to 23.3% in 2026.
- Hiring projects fell 6.5% to about 2.3 million.
- 43.8% of projects were expected to be difficult, 6.3 points less than in 2025.
IT and telecom jobs
The BMO 2026 national report breaks down the “IT and telecoms” family like this:
| Job (BMO category) | Hiring projects 2026 | Expected to be difficult |
|---|---|---|
| IT engineers and R&D staff (ingénieurs et cadres d’étude, R&D en informatique et télécom) | 18,323 | 58% |
| IT development technicians (techniciens d’étude et de développement en informatique) | 9,500 | 44% |
| IT production, operations and support technicians | 7,909 | 48% |
| IS experts and consultants | 4,878 | 45% |
| IT project managers and heads of IT | 2,326 | 46% |
| IT production and operations managers | 1,975 | 41% |
| All IT and telecoms | 44,910 | 50% |
| All jobs in France | 2,274,951 | 44% |
Source: France Travail, BMO 2026 national report.
The trend for developers
The same publication lists the jobs with the largest falls in hiring plans between 2025 and 2026. Two of them are developer jobs:
- IT engineers and R&D staff: down about 4,300 projects on 2025 and 10,400 over 5 years, to 18,300.
- IT development technicians: down about 4,700 on 2025 and 7,400 over 5 years, to 9,500.
In plain terms, French employers plan to hire fewer developers than in recent years, but those they do hire are still harder to find than the average worker. That points to more selective hiring.
English-speaking tech jobs: our numbers
The BMO counts all hiring, mostly in French-speaking teams. Our data covers the part of the market open to people who don’t speak French. All figures below are from France Dev Jobs on 16 October 2026 (October 2026 report).
Size
- 1,739 live jobs at 339 companies.
- 1,441 new jobs found between 1 and 15 October 2026. This number grows when we add companies to the board, so it doesn’t show whether hiring went up or down.
- 1,734 of the 1,739 jobs (almost all) don’t need French.
Where the jobs are
| City | Jobs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Paris | 969 | 56% |
| Toulouse | 74 | 4% |
| Bordeaux | 31 | 2% |
| Strasbourg | 18 | 1% |
| Grenoble | 17 | 1% |
| Sophia Antipolis | 16 | 1% |
| Lyon | 15 | 1% |
| Nantes | 14 | 1% |
On the workplace filter, 805 jobs were on-site, 580 remote and 352 hybrid (all jobs). For a city comparison, read Paris vs Lyon vs Toulouse for developers.
Which roles
| Role | Jobs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Machine learning and AI | 210 | 12% |
| DevOps and SRE | 175 | 10% |
| Product | 137 | 8% |
| Backend | 96 | 6% |
| Data science | 80 | 5% |
| Security | 64 | 4% |
| Engineering management | 61 | 4% |
| Embedded | 60 | 3% |
| Other tech roles | 592 | 34% |
AI has its own guide: AI and ML jobs in France for English speakers.
Which skills
Python appeared in 652 jobs (37%), Kubernetes in 353, AWS in 345, LLMs in 287, Google Cloud in 230, Go in 228, SQL in 214 and TypeScript in 209. Java appeared in 142. Browse by skill, such as Python jobs or Go jobs.
Seniority
Only 18 jobs were marked junior and 80 were internships, against 473 senior, 117 lead, 76 staff and 51 principal roles. Almost half (832) didn’t state a level. The English-speaking market favours experienced engineers. If you are a graduate in France, read from student to employee: APS and change of status.
Who is hiring most
Mistral AI (74 jobs), Nebius (67), Harmattan AI (56), Airbus (51), Voodoo (39), Datadog (31), Doctolib (28), Supabase (28), NVIDIA (27) and Air Apps (26) had the most open jobs. See all companies.
Salaries
Of the 1,739 jobs, 202 (12%) stated a salary. The median was €80,000 a year, and the usual range €44,000 to €150,000. By role, backend had a median of €93,500, ML and AI €90,000, DevOps and SRE €69,512 and data science €60,000. Paris had a median of €75,000 from 150 ads. For the official survey figures, see software engineer salaries in France.
IT jobs in France for foreigners
Visa sponsorship
Only 40 jobs (2%) said the employer sponsors a visa, but 223 (13%) offered relocation support and 290 (17%) accepted applicants from abroad. Some employers sponsor without saying so in the ad, so ask. See visa sponsorship jobs.
The permit most tech hires use
Non-EU tech workers mostly use the Talent residence card. In 2026 it needs at least €39,582 gross a year on the qualified employee and innovative company routes, and €59,373 for the EU Blue Card (Service-Public, Business France). With a Talent card, the employer doesn’t need a work authorisation. For other permits, the employer must get one and, unless the job is on the official shortage list or an exemption applies, advertise it for 3 weeks first (Service-Public, work authorisation). Read Talent Passport salary thresholds.
How a foreigner can get a tech job in France
- Aim where the jobs are: Paris, remote roles, and specialist hubs such as Toulouse for aerospace.
- Lead with the skills in demand: Python, cloud and Kubernetes, AI and LLMs, Go and TypeScript.
- Target companies that already hire internationally: those with relocation support or “apply from abroad” in the ad. See jobs you can apply for from abroad.
- Check the salary against your visa route before you accept.
- Learn the offer vocabulary: read French job offers explained.
What this means for you
- Experienced engineers in AI, cloud, platform and security have a real English-speaking market in Paris and remotely.
- Juniors face a smaller English-speaking market, so French, a French degree or an internship helps a lot.
- Outside Paris, English-speaking jobs are few, except in aerospace in Toulouse and at a handful of employers elsewhere.
- Official forecasts are cautious, so expect selective hiring and apply widely.
Frequently asked questions
Is the France tech job market good in 2026?
It is mixed. France Travail’s 2026 survey shows fewer planned hires for IT engineers and developers than in 2025, but half of IT hiring projects are still expected to be hard to fill. For English speakers, France Dev Jobs had 1,739 live jobs at 339 companies in mid-October 2026, mostly in Paris.
Are there tech jobs in France for English speakers?
Yes. On 16 October 2026, France Dev Jobs listed 1,739 tech jobs at companies where English is the working language, and almost all of them didn’t require French. 56% were in Paris and a third were fully remote.
Which tech jobs are in demand in France?
In the official BMO 2026 survey, IT engineers and R&D staff had the most hiring projects in IT (18,323), and 58% were expected to be hard to fill. On France Dev Jobs, the largest named role groups were machine learning and AI, DevOps and SRE, and product, and Python was the most requested skill.
What is the software engineer salary in France?
Apec’s 2025 median for software development roles is €50,000 gross a year, and €55,000 in Île-de-France. Ads on France Dev Jobs that stated a salary had a median of €80,000 in October 2026, but they are mostly senior roles at international companies.
How can a foreigner get an IT job in France?
Target Paris or remote roles at companies that already hire internationally, and check that the salary meets your permit threshold: €39,582 a year for most Talent routes and €59,373 for the EU Blue Card in 2026. With a Talent card, your employer doesn’t need a work authorisation.
Is it hard to find a junior developer job in France without French?
Harder than for senior roles. Only 18 of 1,739 jobs on France Dev Jobs were marked junior in October 2026, and 80 were internships. A French degree, an internship or some French makes a big difference.
Related guides and jobs
- How to get a tech job in France without speaking French
- Companies in France that hire English speakers
- Browse all jobs, remote jobs and the monthly reports
Figures change every month. Visa rules change too. This guide is general information, not legal advice; check the official pages linked above.