Payment methods in France

Europe

10methods

31banks

By 2022, French consumers made 16% of all purchases online - a 23% increase in the space of just the last three years.

Market takeaways

By 2022, French consumers made 16% of all purchases online - a 23% increase in the space of just the last three years.
French e-commerce is worth a massive US$173 billion. And by 2027, that figure will have grown to US$235 billion.
French consumers use digital payment methods in almost half of all online purchases. Popular payment methods include PayPal, Sepa Direct Debit, and Cashway.
The French buy 17% of all online purchases worth US$27 billion, from e-commerce sites based in other countries.
The average French online shopper spends US$2,572 a year on e-commerce. By 2027, that figure will be as high as USD$3,441.

Population

68M

Online population

60.9M

B2C e-commerce

$80B

Banked population

99%

Credit card population

70%

E-commerce of total retail

12%

Payment method breakdown

Card52%
Cash2%
Bank Transfer11%
E-Wallet27%
Other8%

Card scheme breakdown

Visa3%
Mastercard5%
American Express3%
Local schemes85%
Other4%

Cross-border e-commerce

Cross-border shoppers

64%

Share of e-commerce

17%

Cross-border value (est.)

$27.2B

Featured payment methods in France

Popular options based on coverage and prominence in this market.

Paysafecard

Paysafecard is a prepaid voucher payment method allowing consumers to pay online without a bank account or card. Vouchers are purchased at retail points of sale and redeemed with a 16-digit PIN at checkout. Switzerland is a supported Paysafecard consumer country and usage is concentrated in gaming, digital goods, and entertainment sectors.

Carte Bancaire (CB)

France's national interbank card network, present on virtually all French bank cards alongside Visa or Mastercard co-branding. Processes ~85% of French card transactions. The "carte bleue" — synonymous with bank cards in France — runs on the CB network.

Satispay

Italian smartphone payment network independent of cards, used for in-store, online and P2P payments. Operator: Satispay S.p.A.. Est. users: 5.5M users (2024).

Scalapay

Italian buy-now-pay-later provider offering interest-free instalments at online and in-store checkouts. Operator: Scalapay S.r.l. / Incremento SPV. Est. users: 4M active customers (2024).

Cofidis (3x/4x)

French consumer-credit provider offering 3x/4x card instalment payments at e-commerce and in-store checkouts. Operator: Cofidis S.A. (Crédit Mutuel). Est. users: Millions of users in France/Europe (est.).

Wero

Pan-European bank-backed digital wallet built on SEPA instant payments, replacing schemes like Paylib and iDEAL. Operator: European Payments Initiative (EPI Company). Est. users: 14M+ users (early 2025).

All payment methods in France

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Featured banks in France

Major institutions operating in this market.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC)

Beijing, China

ICBC is the world's largest bank by total assets and the largest of China's 'Big Four' state-owned banks. It offers retail, corporate, and investment banking globally.

HSBC Holdings

London, United Kingdom

HSBC is one of the world's largest banks by assets, headquartered in London with a dominant presence in Asia. It offers retail, commercial, and investment banking in over 60 countries.

JPMorgan Chase

New York, United States

JPMorgan Chase is the largest US bank and one of the world's largest financial institutions, offering consumer banking, investment banking, commercial banking, and asset management globally.

BNP Paribas

Paris, France

BNP Paribas is France's largest bank and a global top-10 financial institution, providing retail, corporate, and investment banking, insurance, and asset management across 65 countries.

Bank of America

Charlotte, United States

Bank of America is the second-largest US bank by assets, providing consumer banking, wealth management (Merrill Lynch), and global banking and markets services worldwide.