French Measurements

French measurements are based off the metric system, which is the international standard for measurements. If you’re moving to France from the United States, forget about feet, inches, pounds, or degrees Fahrenheit because they are not used in France.

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Learning French units of measures will help you in many ways, such as driving in France, home cooking or even ordering beer.

Distances

French measurements for distances

The main advantage of the metric system is that each measurement unit is either a multiple or a fraction of another measurement unit. One can easily switch between kilometers and meters using the following unit conversion table.

Another easy way to switch between French measurement units is to memorize the meaning of the prefixes.

Distances conversion to miles and yards

French use kilometers and meters to evaluate distances while decameters and hectometers are rarely used.

Kilometers to miles converter

One kilometer is a little over half a mile.

Traffic signs in France show distances in kilometers.

In France, the speed limit is defined in kilometers per hour and it’s written as km/h.

La vitesse est limitée à 130 km/h sur l’autoroute.
Speed limit is 80 mph on freeways.

Meters to yards converter

Meters are easy for Americans to get used to because one meter is very close to one yard.

French traffic signs show smaller distances in meters.

When asking for directions in France, people will answer with distances in meters or kilometers.

Allez tout droit pendant 200 mètres et tournez à droite.
Go straight for 200 meters and make a right.

Good to know
In France, people never talk about distances in number of blocks because French cities are not grid-planned.

Temperatures

French measurements for temperatures

French use degrees Celsius for temperatures rather than degree Fahrenheit. Celsius are written as °C.

Temperatures conversion to Fahrenheit

Celsius to Fahrenheit converter

To convert degrees Celsius into degrees Fahrenheit, multiply the number of Celsius by 1.8 and then add 32…or use a converter!

Check out the two following weather forecast maps for early December. The one on the left show the weather forecast for France in celsius degrees while the map on the right show the same temperatures converted into fahrenheit degrees.

Temperatures you should know

There are a few basic temperatures that you should know when living in France and the most useful one is probably the human body temperature.

• normal body temperature – 37°C (98.6°F)
• low-grade fever – 37.5°C to 38°C (99.5°F to 100.4°F)
• moderate-grade fever – 38.1°C to 39°C (100.6°F to 102.2°F)
• high-grade fever – 39.1°C to 41°C (102.4°F to 105.8°F)

Degree Celsius is based on water temperature and this is why two easy temperatures to remember are the freezing point of water at 0°C (32°F) and the boiling point of water at 100°C (212°F).

A comfortable room temperature runs around 20°C (68°F).

If you’re cooking or baking, learn the regular oven settings in degrees Celsius.

• very slow -120°C (250°F)
• moderate – 180°C (350°F)
• hot – 200°C – (400°F)
• very hot – 230°C – (450°F)
• extremely hot – 260°C (500°F)

Lengths

French measurements for lengths

French use meters, decimeters, centimeters and millimeters to calculate lengths. The following table makes it easy to convert between the length units.

Lengths conversion to inches and feet

It helps to compare centimeters to inches visually to get a good mental representation.

Centimeters to inches converter

One centimeter is approximately a little over a third of an inch.

Meters to feet converter

A meter being approximately the same as a yard, it’s roughly equivalent to three feet and a quarter.

Common lengths you should know

Whereas bed sizes in the U.S. are defined with names such as king, queen or twin, bed sizes in France are described by their width and length in centimeters.

Unless you’re shopping for a bed or a mattress, bed sizes are described with only the width in French. Here’s a typical description you can find on a French rental ad.

La première chambre a un lit en 160, la deuxième a un lit en 140 et la troisième a deux lits en 90.
The first bedroom has one queen bed, the second one has one full bed and the third one has two twin beds.

Another length that is worth knowing is people’s height. As a reference, a 6-foot tall person measures 1.80 m in France.

Do you know how to tell your size in French?

Je mesure un mètre cinquante-cinq.
I’m five feet one inches tall.

Je mesure 1,55 m.
I’m 5’1″.

Notice how the decimal point is replaced with a comma in French. Read How to write numbers in French to learn more about French numbers.

Weights

French measurements for weights

French use kilograms and grams to measure weights. The following table makes it easy to convert between kilograms and grams.

Smaller weighs are measured in decigrams, centigrams and milligrams.

Grams to ounces converter

One ounce is equivalent to 28 grams.

Kilograms to pounds converter

One kilograms weighs a little bit over two pounds.

In France, prices for fresh produce are by the kilogram (prix au kg).

Weights in French recipes

Whereas American recipes call for volumes measured in cups and spoons, French recipes indicate the quantity of dry ingredients by weight. It’s a good idea to buy an electronic kitchen scale if you plan on trying French recipes.

Let’s compare the list of ingredients to make brownies.

• 222 g de chocolat noir – 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 268 g de beurre demi-sel – 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter
• 5 œufs – 5 eggs
• 250 g de sucre en poudre – 1 ⅓ cups superfine sugar
• 25 g de farine – 3 tablespoons pastry flour

It will probably be tough at first to switch from using cups to using a scale. I personally find weighing ingredients more convenient than cups as it leaves less room for error.

Weights you should know

In the same way that you should probably know your own height in centimeters, you should probably calculate your own weight in kilograms.

Je pèse 52 kg.
I weigh 115 pounds.

Another common fact to know is that one liter of water weighs one kilogram.

Did you know?
The weight of a baguette is not the same everywhere in France. In Paris, It’s usually around 250 g (9 oz).

Liquids

French measurements for liquids

French use liters, centiliters and milliliters to measure liquids. The following table makes it easy to convert between liters and milliliters.

Liquids conversion to fluid ounces and gallons

In France, gas prices at the pump are displayed per liter (prix au litre). One liter is approximately a quarter gallon.

Liters to gallons converter

Milliliters to fluid ounces converter

One fluid ounce is about 30 milliliters. Use this formula to convert milliliters to fluid ounces.

Liquids in French recipes

French cooking measurements for liquids are: liter, centiliter and milliliter. Occasionally, some recipes will call for “un verre” (one drinking glass) of liquid, “une cuillère à soupe” (tablespoon) or “une cuillère à café” (tea spoon).

Beer sizes

When ordering beer in France, you need to specify which size of glass you want. The most common size is called “un demi” and it’s equivalent to 25 cl. “Demi” means half in French and 25 cl is half the size of a French pint, called “une pinte”. A French pint (50 cl) is slightly bigger than an American pint (16 fl oz or 47.3 cl). When you want a smaller glass, order a “galopin” instead, which is 12.5 cl or half a “demi”.

Areas

French measurements for areas

French use square meters, square kilometers and hectares to measure areas.

Square meters to square feet converter

When looking for a rental place in France, you’ll have to make sense of surfaces written in square meters, not in square footage. The notation for square meters is m².

In France, the square meterage of a home only includes the space that is considered inhabitable. Practically speaking, this means that areas that are less than 1.80 m (6 ft) in height are not included in the square meterage of a place.

Square kilometers to square miles converter

Larger spaces are measured in square kilometers (km²) rather than square miles.

Hectares to acres converter

Very large areas are measured in French measurement units called hectares. One hectare is the same as 10,000 m².

I hope you enjoyed learning about the metric system. French also have a different way of writing numbers than Americans and you can read How to write numbers in French for details.