The bilingual landscape in Paris
Paris has the deepest bilingual school market in continental Europe, built up over four decades and shaped by the city's heavy footprint of corporate and diplomatic posting families. Within the boulevard peripherique alone there are around 30 schools delivering some version of bilingual French and English, and a further 10 in the western suburbs. The market splits into three formats: the dual programme schools that teach the national curriculum in French in the morning and the English literature, history and science stream in the afternoon; the immersion schools that run roughly half the week in each language across all subjects; and the section-based model where the lycee offers an Anglophone section within the French Bac.
The decision rule for families is usually language readiness on arrival. Children arriving with strong English and no French gravitate to Ecole Jeannine Manuel or the EIB network, where the afternoon English stream protects subject momentum while French is built up. Children arriving with two strong languages target the Lycee International or the Anglophone sections at established state lycees. Children expecting to leave within four years often choose a full international school instead and read our Paris IB hub or our British and American curriculum guides for that comparison.
One important market quirk: the bilingual maternelle market is enormous, with dozens of small independent schools running ages 2 to 6 on a bilingual model. The market thins sharply at primary and again at college, because the academic load makes a full dual-stream model demanding to sustain. Many families plan a bilingual maternelle followed by a transition into a state or contracted private primary, particularly if the family expects to stay through to the Bac.
Fees and what they cover
Bilingual school fees in Paris span a wide band. The maternelle independents sit at EUR 6,000 to EUR 12,000 a year. EIB Monceau, EIB Etoile, EIB Lamartine and EaB at primary and college sit at EUR 14,000 to EUR 22,000. Ecole Jeannine Manuel, the largest and most selective bilingual operator, sits at EUR 18,000 to EUR 26,000 across primary, college and lycee, with the IB Diploma year at the top of the range. Notre Dame International, the boarding option in Yvelines, is EUR 26,000 to EUR 35,000 depending on day or boarding status. For a full breakdown of fees see our Paris fees guide.
Bilingual or full international? Let us help you decide.
Take our 5 minute school finder quiz. We shortlist three Paris options across the bilingual, IB and British curriculum routes based on age, language profile and target universities.
Illustrative example schools
The five schools below illustrate the bilingual sector in Paris. They are not ranked.
Ecole Active Bilingue Jeannine Manuel in the 15th arrondissement is the largest and most academically selective bilingual school in the city, running from maternelle through to the IB Diploma alongside the French Bac. The cohort places strongly at Sciences Po, Oxbridge and the Ivy League.
EIB Monceau, Etoile and Lamartine together form the Ecole Internationale Bilingue network across the 8th, 16th and 17th arrondissements, with the upper school offering the French Bac and the IB Diploma.
Ecole Active Bilingue (EaB) in the 17th has a long heritage in the bilingual sector and runs from maternelle through to lycee on a dual programme.
Notre Dame International High School in Verneuil-sur-Seine is the dominant bilingual boarding option for Paris families, running American and French dual track.
La Petite Ecole Bilingue operates several maternelle and primary sites across Paris and is a popular soft-landing for families arriving without French.
Where bilingual families live
Bilingual families cluster in three Paris zones plus two suburbs. The 15th and 16th arrondissements for proximity to Jeannine Manuel, EIB Etoile and the established expat ecosystem of Auteuil and Passy. The 7th and 8th arrondissements for EIB Monceau, the British school of Paris feeder route and a short walk to Parc Monceau. The 17th for EaB and Honore de Balzac. Neuilly-sur-Seine, Levallois and Boulogne-Billancourt for families combining La Defense corporate commute with bilingual school access. Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Le Vesinet and Maisons-Laffitte in Yvelines for the Lycee International catchment and Notre Dame International commuter belt.
Admissions calendar
Bilingual admissions in Paris run on a longer cycle than the rolling intake families know from Asia. EIB and EaB open files between September and January for the following September, with assessment and offer between February and April. Jeannine Manuel runs an October to January deadline with a wait list across multiple year groups. La Petite Ecole Bilingue and the maternelle independents typically take rolling registration from September. The Lycee International runs sectional assessment from October to January. For mid-year entry, the bilingual maternelles tend to have flex; the bilingual primaries and lycees rarely do.
University outcomes
Bilingual school graduates in Paris route into university roughly thirds. About a third head to UK universities, with Russell Group representation strong and Oxbridge interview rates among the higher concentrations in continental Europe. About a third stay in France for Sciences Po, the IEPs, Dauphine, HEC and the engineering Grandes Ecoles. The remainder split between US (with Ivies and Stanford taking from the top tier annually), Canada (McGill, Toronto, UBC) and the Netherlands (Maastricht, Erasmus, Amsterdam University College). Compare schools side by side with our comparison tool.
Frequently asked questions
How many bilingual schools are there in Paris?
Greater Paris has roughly 40 schools positioning themselves as bilingual French and English, including the EIB network, EaB, Ecole Jeannine Manuel, La Petite Ecole Bilingue and a long tail of independent maternelles and primaries. Around 15 deliver the bilingual programme through to lycee end.
How much do bilingual schools cost in Paris?
Bilingual school fees in Paris run from about EUR 6,000 at the bilingual private maternelles to EUR 30,000 at Ecole Jeannine Manuel and the senior years of the EIB network. Most family budgets land between EUR 14,000 and EUR 22,000 for primary and college.
Is a bilingual school the same as an international school?
No. Bilingual schools deliver the French national curriculum with structured English language stream alongside. International schools deliver a foreign curriculum (IB, British, American) with French as a modern foreign language. The distinction matters for university pathways and for transferability if the family moves again.
Will my child need French to start?
Most bilingual maternelles and primaries accept non-French speakers up to about age 7 and run an immersion period to bring them up to grade. From college (age 11) onwards the entry assumption shifts to a working level of French. The Lycee International and Ecole Jeannine Manuel are exceptions.
Which bilingual schools deliver the IB Diploma?
Ecole Jeannine Manuel and the senior years of the EIB network deliver the IB Diploma alongside the French Baccalaureate. Most other bilingual schools terminate at the French Bac, with English literature and history maintained as a parallel stream throughout.
