Why it is here
Why Bordeaux is on the list.
A city is listed when there is evidence that people move there. This is the evidence.
The Fernshore Index
How it grades, factor by factor.
Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.
Cost of living
31 of 100WeakCountry figure
Price level 0.766 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), France. Checked 15 October 2026.
Climate
50 of 100MixedOwn figure
Bordeaux-Mérignac's normals (the airport station west of the city): 7 comfortable months a year (April to October).
Source: Climate normals 1991–2020, Bordeaux-Mérignac (WMO 07510). Checked 15 October 2026.
Safety
34 of 100MixedCountry figure
Global Peace Index 2026: 99th of 163.
Source: Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank. Checked 15 October 2026.
Healthcare
73 of 100StrongCountry figure
WHO UHC service coverage index 82 (2023).
Source: UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1). Checked 15 October 2026.
Schools
UnknownCountry figure
Our research doesn't cover schools yet.
Community
60 of 100MixedCountry figure
Expat Insider 2026 Ease of Settling In: 16th of 31.
Source: Expat Insider 2026: Ease of Settling In. Checked 15 October 2026.
Lifestyle
72 of 100StrongCountry figure
Expat Insider 2026 Quality of Life: 9th of 31.
Source: Expat Insider 2026: Quality of Life. Checked 15 October 2026.
Work and career
50 of 100MixedCountry figure
Mixed: fixed broadband is 48.9 per 100 people (2024), over the 30 line, but the official pages reviewed describe no residence route made for remote work for foreign employers, and the visitor card does not allow work.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Carte de séjour "entrepreneur/profession libérale"; Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, France. Checked 15 October 2026.
Retirement
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: the "visiteur" card is for people who stay without working, and Service-Public lists it among the permits that count towards the five years needed for the EU long-term resident card.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Carte de résident de longue durée-UE (étranger en France depuis 5 ans). Checked 15 October 2026.
Internet
100 of 100StrongCountry figure
48.93 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people (2024), above the 30 line.
Source: Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, France. Checked 15 October 2026.
English
60 of 100MixedCountry figure
EF EPI 2025 score 539 (38th of 123), between the 499 and 550 anchors.
Source: EF English Proficiency Index 2025: France. Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, United States passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
A visitor card is open without a French job offer: valid 1 year at most and renewable, no minimum age, no deposit, and resources of about EUR 17,700 a year (about US$19,900 at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026), well under US$60,000. To be safe, have more than EUR 18,000 a year. It does not allow work. A one-year renewable card is read here as a year or more.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Visa de long séjour (séjour de plus de 3 mois à 1 an). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, Canada passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
A visitor card is open without a French job offer: valid 1 year at most and renewable, no minimum age, no deposit, and resources of about EUR 17,700 a year (about US$19,900 at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026), well under US$60,000. To be safe, have more than EUR 18,000 a year. It does not allow work. A one-year renewable card is read here as a year or more.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Visa de long séjour (séjour de plus de 3 mois à 1 an). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, Australia passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
A visitor card is open without a French job offer: valid 1 year at most and renewable, no minimum age, no deposit, and resources of about EUR 17,700 a year (about US$19,900 at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026), well under US$60,000. To be safe, have more than EUR 18,000 a year. It does not allow work. A one-year renewable card is read here as a year or more.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Visa de long séjour (séjour de plus de 3 mois à 1 an). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, New Zealand passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
A visitor card is open without a French job offer: valid 1 year at most and renewable, no minimum age, no deposit, and resources of about EUR 17,700 a year (about US$19,900 at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026), well under US$60,000. To be safe, have more than EUR 18,000 a year. It does not allow work. A one-year renewable card is read here as a year or more.
Source: Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card); Visa de long séjour (séjour de plus de 3 mois à 1 an). Checked 15 October 2026.
The country
More on France.
Cities
Other cities in France.
Questions about Bordeaux.
How big is Bordeaux?
Bordeaux has 267,991 residents (Insee, 2023); Bordeaux Métropole, the wider authority, has 843,738 (government geographic API, 15 October 2026). Insee's 2021 census counts about 31,000 immigrants among 262,000 residents, 11.8%.
Is there an expat community in Bordeaux?
The InterNations Bordeaux community lists 9,322 members, 5 monthly events and 8 interest groups (page read 15 October 2026). It is a private network with self-reported membership, not a headcount of expats. Insee does not say where Bordeaux's immigrants come from.
What is the weather like in Bordeaux?
Bordeaux-Mérignac normals (1991–2020, the airport about 10 km west of the city) give average daily highs from 10.5 °C to 27.6 °C. Fernshore counts a month as comfortable when its average daily high is 18 to 30 °C and rain is under 150 mm. This station has 7, April to October.
How much is rent in Bordeaux?
The 2025 asking-rent indicator for small flats (1–2 rooms) is €18.54 per m² a month, charges included, against €16.33 in Toulouse and €17.93 in Montpellier. It is a modelled average built from adverts, not a quote for any one home.
Is rent capped in Bordeaux?
Bordeaux is on Service-Public's list of communes where the level of rent is capped by reference rents. This applies to main residences and mobility leases. The list was verified on 1 August 2026; check the current reference rents for your lease.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [N1] Populations de référence 2023 des communes (fichier d'ensemble), Insee. Checked 15 October 2026. Bordeaux 267,991. Population municipale, reference date 1 January 2023, in force 1 January 2026 (census 2023); file updated December 2025. Ranks quoted in the evidence are positions among all communes in the file.
- [M1] Immigration en 2021: tableaux détaillés (TD_IMG1A), Insee. Checked 15 October 2026. Bordeaux: about 31,000 of 262,000 residents (11.8%) were immigrants. 2021 census, weighted sample estimates. Insee counts as immigrants people born abroad as foreigners, whatever their nationality now; it does not say where they come from or whether they are expats.
- [E1] Expats in Bordeaux: InterNations community, InterNations (private expat network, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Community page read on 15 October 2026: 9,322 members in Bordeaux. Self-reported membership, not a headcount of expats.
- [S3] Bordeaux Métropole (EPCI), geo.api.gouv.fr (French government geographic API). Checked 15 October 2026. Population 843,738, the figure the API serves for the metropolitan authority on 15 October 2026.
- [W1] Climate normals 1991–2020, Bordeaux-Mérignac (WMO 07510), Météo-France (WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 via NOAA NCEI). Checked 15 October 2026. Monthly mean daily highs 10.5 to 27.6 °C; 7 comfortable months (April to October); the station is the airport about 10 km west of the city.
- [C1] Price level index (GDP), France, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 76.57 (United States = 100), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [S1] Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank, Institute for Economics and Peace. Checked 15 October 2026. France ranks 99th of 163 countries (score 2.083).
- [H1] UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1), World Health Organization. Checked 15 October 2026. France: 82 out of 100 (2023), read from the WHO Global Health Observatory API on 15 October 2026.
- [Q1] Expat Insider 2026: Ease of Settling In, InterNations (Expat Insider survey, private). Checked 15 October 2026. France ranks 16th of 31 countries.
- [Q2] Expat Insider 2026: Quality of Life, InterNations (Expat Insider survey, private). Checked 15 October 2026. France ranks 9th of 31 countries.
- [K1] Carte de séjour "visiteur" (visitor residence card), Service-Public.fr (French government information service). Checked 15 October 2026. Page verified 1 June 2026: valid 1 year at most and renewable; resources of EUR 1,477.93 net a month for a single person; health insurance; no work in France.
- [K2] Carte de séjour "entrepreneur/profession libérale", Service-Public.fr (French government information service). Checked 15 October 2026. Page verified 1 June 2026; the route for freelancers and self-employed people, not a remote-worker route.
- [K3] Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, France, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 48.93 per 100 people, read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [R1] Carte de résident de longue durée-UE (étranger en France depuis 5 ans), Service-Public.fr (French government information service). Checked 15 October 2026. Page verified 1 June 2026: five years in France on listed permits, including the temporary "visiteur" card, count towards the card.
- [F1] EF English Proficiency Index 2025: France, EF Education First (private test-taker index). Checked 15 October 2026. Score 539, global rank 38 of 123 countries and regions; the 2025 edition was the current one on 15 October 2026.
- [V1] Visa de long séjour (séjour de plus de 3 mois à 1 an), Service-Public.fr (French government information service). Checked 15 October 2026. Page verified 9 October 2026: more than 3 months in France needs a long-stay visa (type D) from the French consulate, valid from 3 months to 1 year; one of its cases is a visitor who can live on their own resources; it does not allow work.