Top Public Universities in France for International Students: 2026-27 Fees

  • Last Updated on: September 15, 2026 by
  • Swapna Kanchikacherla
Top Public Universities in France
Top Public Universities in France

Universite PSL, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, Universite Paris-Saclay, Sorbonne Universite and Universite Paris Cite are the five highest-ranked public universities in France for international students in 2026-27. What each charges an Indian student runs from EUR 255 to EUR 15,400 a year. That order follows the Times Higher Education 2026 French table. If your family has been working from the idea that French public university is nearly free, the numbers are going to come as a shock: the national rate for a non-EU master’s is EUR 3,950. This ranked list of the top public universities in France for international students prices all fourteen against what an Indian student really pays, not the European headline. The table below sorts them by rank and fee.

Written by
Swapna Kanchikacherla
Head of European Desk
Specialises in Germany and France student admissions and visa documentation, with a focus on Campus France, APS, blocked-account and proof-of-funds files.
9 Years, 1100 Visas
Reviewed by
Sridhar Kongara
Managing Director
Mr. Kongara Sridhar, Director of AOEC India, has over 12 years of experience in overseas education consulting, admissions, and student visa guidance.
Over 12 years Experience

Key Takeaways

  • The 2026-27 national rate for a non-EU master’s is EUR 3,950 (about INR 4.37 lakh), and EUR 2,902 (about INR 3.21 lakh) for a licence.
  • Universite PSL ranks first in France on the THE 2026 table.
  • Paris Cite and Paris-Saclay are the joint cheapest of the top five, both at the EUR 255 European rate.
  • Sciences Po charges EUR 20,640 (about INR 22.84 lakh); Institut Polytechnique de Paris runs EUR 15,400 to EUR 28,950 by track. Both are public.
  • A university may exempt up to 30% of its non-EU students in 2026-2027, then 25%, then 20%.
  • French government scholarship (bourse du gouvernement francais, or BGF) holders pay no tuition at a public university.
Table of Contents
14 public universities in France, ranked and priced for a non-EU student Scroll here ↓ The 2026-27 differentiated fee, and the universities that waive it Scroll here ↓ Studying in English, and applying through Etudes en France Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓ Choosing from this list Scroll here ↓

14 public universities in France, ranked and priced for a non-EU student

In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026, Universite PSL (Paris Sciences et Lettres) ranks 1 among French universities, at world rank 48 on its Best universities in France 2026 table. The fourteen below follow that order, each with its legal status and its 2026-27 non-EU master’s fee.

University (city) Status and type QS 2027 THE 2026 (France) 2026-27 non-EU master’s fee Best for
Universite PSL (Paris) Public, EPSCP, grand etablissement #34 1 (world 48) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh France’s top THE position at the national fee
Institut Polytechnique de Paris (Palaiseau) Public, EPSCP, ecole #=43 =2 (world =68) EUR 15,400 to EUR 28,950 by track (about INR 17.04 lakh to INR 32.04 lakh); the EUR 3,200 deposit comes out of this, not on top Engineering and tech MSc, if the budget stretches
Universite Paris-Saclay (Gif-sur-Yvette) Public, EPSCP, universite #76 =2 (world =68) Domestic rate (EUR 255 for a 2026-27 master’s, about INR 28,222), via partial exemption Ties Paris Cite on fee, at a higher rank
Sorbonne Universite (Paris) Public, EPSCP, universite #73 4 (world =76) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh A large central-Paris universite at the national fee
Universite Paris Cite (Paris) Public, EPSCP, universite #=303 5 (world =190) EUR 255 (about INR 28,222), the European rate Joint cheapest of the top five
ENS de Lyon (Lyon) Public, EPSCP, ecole #=235 6 (world 301-350) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh A small research ecole; check the entry level first
Universite Grenoble Alpes (Saint-Martin-d’Heres) Public, EPSCP, grand etablissement #387 7 (world 351-400) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh Grand etablissement status outside Paris
Universite de Montpellier (Montpellier) Public, EPSCP, universite #473 =8 (world 401-500) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh Southern France at the national fee
Universite de Bordeaux (Talence) Public, EPSCP, universite #=485 =8 (world 401-500) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh A THE top-10 French position at the national fee
Sciences Po (Paris) Public, EPSCP, grand etablissement #=354 =13 (world 601-800) EUR 20,640 (about INR 22.84 lakh) at graduate level Political science, at the highest fee on this list
Universite Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (Villeurbanne) Public, EPSCP, universite #=613 =13 (world 601-800) EUR 3,950 (about INR 4.37 lakh), applied by the university Lyon at the national fee, exemptions decided yearly
Universite de Lille (Lille) Public, EPSCP, universite #=686 =13 (world 601-800) EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh Northern France at the national fee
Aix-Marseille Universite (Marseille) Public, EPSCP, universite #=443 – EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh Marseille; no THE France row this edition
Universite de Strasbourg (Strasbourg) Public, EPSCP, universite #=456 – EUR 3,950 (national rate), about INR 4.37 lakh Eastern France at the national fee

So for most of these names the fee is settled before you apply; what’s left is city and course.

Every one of the top public universities in France for international students shares one line in the ministry’s register of principal higher education institutions. Each shows a statut juridique (legal status) of EPSCP and a secteur (sector) reading public. EPSCP is etablissement public a caractere scientifique, culturel et professionnel, the legal form a French state university takes. As of September 2026, 119 of the 245 bodies in that register hold EPSCP status; our study in France guide covers the rest.

Business schools sit outside this table: no HEC, ESCP or EDHEC type school appears in the Times Higher Education 2026 French list, which ranks universities, not schools. Our universities in France for international students list runs past these fourteen.

The 2026-27 differentiated fee, and the universities that waive it

French public university is nearly free only for European students. For the 2026-2027 academic year, a non-EU master's at a ministry university costs EUR 3,950 per year (about INR 4.37 lakh). An EU student pays EUR 255 per year, about INR 28,222 (Campus France, Tuition fees in France). Only an exemption closes that gap.

The national rate every non-EU student starts from

The national rate isn’t theoretical. Universite Claude Bernard Lyon 1 charges exactly those droits d’inscription differencies (differentiated registration fees) for 2026-2027, at both licence and master level – proof the numbers are applied, not just announced.

Since 21 May 2026 the rule has sat in a decret that binds every ministry university, not in each one’s price list. Parents, budget from the higher figure and treat anything lower as a discount that must be granted. Our cost of studying in France for Indian students guide sets tuition against housing and visa charges.

Two of the top five that charge you the European rate

Universite Paris Cite is the clearest case. By a Board of Governors resolution of 17 October 2025 it renewed its freeze (moratorium) on the higher fees for 2026-2027. An extra-communautaire (non-EU) master’s student there pays the European rate, the same as a French classmate.

Paris-Saclay reaches the same fee a different way. Under Board of Governors Resolution No. CA-2026-013 of 3 February 2026, non-EU students get a partial exemption bringing their fees into line with domestic rates. That’s a policy, not a price: treat it as a discount you confirm on your offer letter.

In our 2026 files a real exemption showed up as a named line on the offer letter, not on a fees page.

More students can get a fee waiver this year. Under Decret n. 2026-385 of 19 May 2026, 30% of non-EU students may be exempted in 2026-2027, falling to 25% in 2027-2028 and 20% thereafter. One waiver is given outright: French government scholarship (bourse du gouvernement francais, or BGF) holders pay no tuition fees at all, so check the France scholarship routes before you rank your choices.

Where “public” costs more than a private school

Two of the best-known public names in France are the two most expensive on this list, and nobody puts that in a brochure. For students entering in September 2026, Sciences Po charges non-European students EUR 20,640 at graduate level. Institut Polytechnique de Paris charges EUR 15,400 a year for most MSc and Tech tracks, rising to EUR 28,950 for X-HEC Data Science and AI for Business. Its EUR 3,200 deposit is non-refundable but comes out of that tuition, not on top of it. Both are public EPSCP schools.

Sciences Po does scale fees to family income, and one in three of its students pays zero tuition. That band runs on European tax residence, so an Indian family sits outside it. And a waiver in one year doesn’t carry over to the next.

  • Price the shortlist university by university, not the national headline.
  • Read each university’s exoneration page before you rank choices.
  • Budget year two at the full rate, then bank the waiver if it’s renewed.
  • Holding a BGF grant? Secure it first; the waiver follows.

Studying in English, and applying through Etudes en France

A B.Tech graduate in Hyderabad with no French at all can still apply this cycle. More than 1,600 programmes in France are taught partly or entirely in English, and 85% of them are entirely in English (Campus France, Rendez-vous en France to study in English).

Universite Paris-Saclay alone lists 78 master’s programmes taught in English, 27 at M1 and 51 at M2. So you can get into the top public universities in France for international students without spending a year on French, and our English-taught universities in France list picks up the rest.

Every Indian applicant goes through one platform. The Etudes en France procedure (the compulsory online route run by Campus France) covers 73 countries and manages enrolment up to the visa request, though PhD applicants sit outside it entirely. Rank your choices inside the platform by fee certainty first: a confirmed European-rate offer beats an uncertain waiver higher up the table. Our Campus France application process guide takes each stage in turn.

  1. Build your dossier (application file) on the platform.
  2. Pick your programmes inside it, within the campaign window.
  3. Sit the Campus France interview, then move to the visa stage.

From our counselling desk: across the 80 Campus France files we handled for the September 2025 intake from our Hyderabad and Tirupati offices, proof of funds was the biggest driver of a weak or refused file. Two gaps specifically: no explanation of where the money came from, and thin parental income proof. Not grades, and not language. If your file goes in this cycle, the bank paperwork deserves more of your time than the shortlist does.

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Frequently Asked Questions

No. Tuition at a French public university has never been zero, and from 2026-2027 an Indian student pays the higher non-EU rate rather than the European one. Two routes reach the lower figure: a waiver granted by the university itself, or a French government scholarship, which removes tuition. Neither is given by default.

On the Times Higher Education 2026 French table, Universite PSL leads, followed by Institut Polytechnique de Paris and Universite Paris-Saclay. For an Indian applicant the more useful split is by cost: Paris Cite and Paris-Saclay charge European or domestic rates, while Sciences Po and Institut Polytechnique de Paris charge five figures in euros.

Not necessarily. The term describes selection and prestige, not ownership. Some grandes ecoles are public EPSCP bodies, such as Institut Polytechnique de Paris. Others are private: HEC Paris, ESCP Business School and EDHEC all appear as private sector in the ministry register. Check the legal status rather than the label.

Not for admission to an English-taught master’s. French matters afterwards, for housing, part-time work and prefecture paperwork. Universities set an English-language requirement instead, so plan your IELTS or TOEFL dates around the Etudes en France campaign rather than around a French course you may never need.

Open the ministry’s register of principal higher education institutions and read two fields. A public university shows a statut juridique of EPSCP and a secteur of public. A private school shows a company or association form and prive. The wording on a brochure is not the test.

Choosing from this list

Pick on fit, then price the fit. Ranking tables tell you where a French public university sits globally; its exoneration decision tells you what your family pays, and the two move apart. If fee is the binding constraint, open Paris Cite and Paris-Saclay first.

Ardent Overseas counsels Indian students from offices in Hyderabad and Tirupati, and files a full Campus France caseload each September intake. Our counsellors work the funds paperwork line by line, because that is the part of a French file that most often fails.

Sources

Official sources first, then ranking bodies.

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