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Student banking in France in 60 seconds
Best picks
- Boursobank: cheapest French online bank, free Ultim card.
- Fortuneo: free Fosfo card, no income.
- Hello bank!: BNP-backed, biggest welcome bonus on the list.
No French IBAN yet?
- Start with Revolut: opens in 10 minutes with just an ID, no French address needed.
- Revolut gives you a Lithuanian IBAN, legally accepted across France.
- Use the Revolut IBAN to open a French bank later for the welcome bonus.
Top student banks in France in 2026
For most students, the best account is the one with no monthly fee, no income condition and a free Visa or Mastercard. The three French winners below tick all three boxes. Revolut is added at the top of the comparison table for students who do not yet hold a French IBAN, since none of the French banks below will let them sign up directly.
These banks all require a French IBAN at signup
Every option in our top 5 asks for a French IBAN in your name to fund the first deposit. If you have just landed in France and only hold a foreign account, your only realistic first stop is Revolut: it opens in 10 minutes from your phone, gives you an instant SEPA IBAN, and unlocks the rest. Once active, you can open Boursobank, Fortuneo or Hello bank! using your Revolut IBAN as the first-deposit account.
Boursobank
Free Ultim or Welcome card. Cheapest French bank 16 years running.
- Monthly fee
- €0
- Welcome bonus
- up to €130
Fortuneo
Free Fosfo card, no inactivity fee, no FX surcharge in the eurozone.
- Monthly fee
- €0
- Welcome bonus
- up to €140
Hello bank!
BNP Paribas-backed, BNP branches available, free Hello One.
- Monthly fee
- €0
- Welcome bonus
- up to €260
Full comparison table
All five banks below issue a real French IBAN, accept students with no salary, and let you sign up online without setting foot in a branch. Welcome bonuses are conditional on activation criteria (typically a card payment within 30 days).
| Bank | Card | €/mo | FR IBAN | Bonus | Sign up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 RevolutNo FR IBAN needed |
Standard (Visa/MC) | €0 | Not needed (LT IBAN) | varies (€0-€10) | Open → |
| Boursobank |
Welcome / Ultim Visa | €0 | EU IBAN accepted | up to €130 | Open → |
| Fortuneo |
Fosfo Mastercard | €0 | Required | up to €140 | Open → |
| Hello bank! |
Hello One Visa | €0 | Required | up to €260 | Open → |
 Monabanq |
Pratiq+ Visa | €3 | Required | up to €160 | Open → |
 Société Générale |
Sobrio Étudiant | €1/yr (3 yrs) | Branch visit needed | €80 | Open → |
Prices and bonuses checked in May 2026. Some "Open" buttons are sponsored — see our methodology.
In-depth: our top 3 student banks
Each of the three winners below has been ranked by us against six criteria: card price, account fees, conditions of access, welcome bonus, foreign-exchange charges and English support quality. Below is the unpacked rationale for each, with what we like and what to watch out for.
🥇 Boursobank: the cheapest bet
Boursobank (rebranded from Boursorama in 2023) has been awarded "cheapest French bank" by Le Monde Argent 16 years in a row. For students, the Welcome plan is free with no income, and the Ultim card is free as long as you make at least one card payment per month, which is trivial.
What we like
- Genuinely free card with no hidden fees.
- Accepts EU IBANs at signup, useful for arriving expats.
- Owned by Société Générale, banking-licence solid.
Watch out
- App and website are French only; use your browser translator.
- €5 monthly fee on Ultim if you skip card payments for a month.
- Customer support in French only.
🥈 Fortuneo: the cleanest fee schedule
Fortuneo is owned by Crédit Mutuel Arkéa. The Fosfo Mastercard is free with no income condition, and uniquely among major French online banks, Fortuneo charges no FX fee on euro-zone transactions and no inactivity fee. The trade-off is the slightly slimmer welcome bonus.
What we like
- Truly fee-free, no nagging "use me" clauses.
- Free withdrawals across the eurozone.
- Excellent stockbroker side if you want to invest later.
Watch out
- Requires a French IBAN at signup for the initial deposit.
- App in French; less polished than Boursobank's.
- French residency required.
🥉 Hello bank!: the most generous welcome bonus
Hello bank! is BNP Paribas's online arm. The student offer is a free Hello One card with no income condition (until age 28), and the welcome bonus is the highest in our table at €260. Because Hello bank! sits inside BNP, you can deposit cheques and cash at any BNP branch, which no pure online bank offers.
What we like
- Branch access via BNP for cash and cheque deposits.
- Highest welcome bonus (up to €260 with multiple referrals).
- Strong app, slick mobile-first onboarding.
Watch out
- Above 28, income condition kicks in (€1,000+/month).
- Service in French only.
- Welcome bonus tiered, full €260 needs referrals.
Best banks for international students in France
If you have just landed in France and do not yet have a French address, payslips or French IBAN, the four French banks ranked above will not let you in: they all ask for a French IBAN at signup. The fix is to start with a European neobank that opens an account in 10 minutes with just an ID, and switch to a French bank later if you need a true FR IBAN. Read our non-resident guide for accounts you can open from abroad.
🥇 Revolut: the only realistic first stop
For students arriving in France with no existing French banking details, Revolut is the practical default. It is licensed in Lithuania, opens in 10 minutes from your phone with just a passport, and immediately gives you a Lithuanian IBAN (LT prefix) that works for any SEPA transfer or direct debit. The Standard plan is free. Once your Revolut IBAN is active, you can use it as the first-deposit account to open Boursobank, Fortuneo or Hello bank! later. The free plan covers €200 of fee-free FX per month, and the multi-currency wallet (GBP, USD, EUR side by side at the interbank rate) is ideal if your parents or scholarship pay you in another currency.
Open a Revolut account →N26 (Germany): a credible alternative
N26 is a German licensed bank with a fully English app, popular with Erasmus and exchange students. You get a German IBAN (DE prefix), legally accepted in France for SEPA transfers and direct debits. Sign-up takes about 10 minutes with a passport, the Standard plan is free. Slightly less polished than Revolut for FX but a solid second option, especially if you already use N26 in another EU country.
Open an N26 account →CCF (formerly HSBC France): the traditional option
If you specifically need a French IBAN from day one and a real branch with English-speaking staff, CCF is the closest thing left after HSBC sold its French retail operations in 2024. CCF still has a few city-centre branches with English service. Expect a paid card (around €45/year) and an income or deposit condition for adults, but a dedicated student offer for Erasmus and exchange students with looser conditions. Sign-up requires an in-branch appointment, plan ahead.
French utilities and CAF must accept your N26 or Revolut IBAN
Under EU regulation 260/2012, any company in France must accept any SEPA IBAN for direct debits and transfers. Refusing a DE or LT IBAN is illegal "IBAN discrimination". In practice, large utilities now comply, but a few small landlords and CAF branches still ask for an FR IBAN. Read our French IBAN guide for the full rules.
How to open a French student bank account
Opening a student bank account in France takes 10 minutes online for a neobank like Revolut or N26, and 1 to 2 weeks for a French online bank like Boursobank or Fortuneo (the wait is the postal time for your card and signed contract to arrive). The minimum age is 18 for a fully autonomous account, with parental signature required between 16 and 17.
Documents you will need
- Valid ID: passport or EU national ID card.
- Student ID or enrolment certificate (certificat de scolarité) for the under-25 offer at most banks.
- Proof of French address: utility bill, rent receipt or attestation from your landlord or campus housing office.
- Proof of legal stay for non-EU students: visa or residence permit (titre de séjour VLS-TS).
- French IBAN in your name, for the first deposit at French online banks (workaround: open Nickel at a tobacconist first).
Online vs in-branch
For a student, going online almost always wins: lower fees, no need to take time off classes, and onboarding is mobile-first. The main reason to choose a traditional branch is if you need English-speaking staff face to face (CCF), or if your parents are clients at the same bank and you want to inherit their relationship (Crédit Agricole, BNP). Société Générale's Sobrio Étudiant is a decent middle ground: French only, but available both online and in branches across the country.
Frequently asked questions
Can I open a French bank account as a student with no income? ShowHide
Does the Crous scholarship count as income for French banks? ShowHide
Can I open a French bank account at 16 or 17? ShowHide
Do I need a French bank account to receive APL housing aid? ShowHide
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How we ranked these banks
We ranked 12 French banks against six weighted criteria, simulating a 21-year-old student profile with no income, who pays rent of €600 and travels once a year inside the EU. Card price (weight 8/10) and conditions of access (weight 6/10) carry the most weight; welcome bonuses (weight 3/10) are treated as a tie-breaker.
Sources used: official bank pricing schedules (brochure tarifaire), Banque de France 2025 retail-banking survey, public welcome-offer pages updated to May 2026. Prices change frequently; we refresh this page every 6 months and on every major rebrand or rate change.