Last Updated on 24th February 2023 by Sophie Nadeau
Visiting a supermarket is one of those daily activities that you don’t think about much when you’re at home. You simply pop to the shops and buy the groceries you need. However, when you’re abroad, heading into a grocery shop offers a unique insight into the culture as supermarkets are so different from country to country. Here’s everything you need to know before visiting a French supermarket!
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What French grocery stores are there?
Like in most countries, there are a number of large chains which take up the lion’s share when it comes to grocery stores in France.
Once in the country, you’ll soon discover that grocery stores come in a variety of different sizes: from the small convenience stores in Paris and Lyon to the large hypermarkets of the suburbs and everything in between.
Carrefour: One of the biggest supermarket chains in the world, Carrefour has a large array of store sizes. In total, there are over 50,000 branches of this conglomerate scattered across l’Hexagone.
Leclerc: The main competitor of Carrefour is Leclerc, which has over 700 hypermarkets nationwide. While most of Leclerc’s biggest retail spaces lie outside of the biggest cities, the chain itself is the biggest food retailer.
Intermarché: Another incredibly popular chain is Intermarché, which boasts over 2000 branches across France. This is another supermarket which comes in a number of formats, from smaller shops to huge hypermarkets.
Super U: Super U is one of those French markets which has a big mix of stores, including U Express and Hyper U. the chain was founded
Auchan: Founded in 1961, this French supermarket is headquartered in Croix and is one of the largest supermarket chains in France. This brand specialises in larger stores and hypermarkets and is actually the 35th largest employer in the world.
Monoprix: One of the more popular supermarket chains in France, Monoprix is a chain that is largely found in the bigger cities. This supermarket tends to be more pricey and also has its own range of clothing and homewares which are equally as popular as the food it sells.
Specialist supermarkets in France
There are also a number of other stores including Casino, and the German discount supermarket Aldi and Lidl (Lidl is the cheapest supermarket in France). As well as this, you’ll find plenty of independent general grocery shops across France. The most famous is probably Au March de la Butte, which was even featured in Amelie.
For more specialist stores, you can head to Biocoop (which has 600 branches worldwide) and has a number of vegan options or Naturalia, which also has plenty of organic (bio in French) products.
If you’re in Paris and wish to shop vegan, then you head to the vegan supermarkets of Mon Epicerie Paris or Vegami. There are also a few branches of Naturalia Vegan and you can find out more about this in our vegan in Paris post.
Foreign supermarkets in Paris
British supermarkets: Until Brexit, there were the British chain Marks & Spencer stores in Paris and Lille, but these have since been combined with Monoprix stores, meaning that they sell very few British products.
American supermarkets: There are actually a number of American supermarkets in Paris where you can find all of your favourite cereals, snacks, and Kraft dinner packs. However, as you can imagine, the prices are elevated to match high demand!
Some of the top American supermarkets in Paris include the Real McCoy (which is small but packed with products), In Good We Trust (the prices are some of the most reasonable for American food in Paris), and America Exotica in the 11th arrondissement.
Korean and Japanese supermarket: When I first moved to Paris and started frequenting French supermarkets, one of the strangest things to me was the lack of international food on offer.
One of the best places to find goodies such as sushi rice, Nori paper, dried udon noodles, and flash frozen dumplings is K-Mart, which is a supermarket specialising in Korean and Japanese food.
Mexican supermarket: Situated in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, Mexicoeur is a must for those looking for Mexican food grocery supplies- they even have fresh nopales. Other staples of Mexican cuisine that is sold in Mexicoeur includes salsas, corn flour tacos, and fresh Mexican cheeses.
Italian supermarket: For everything from speciality Italian cheeses to fresh gnocchi and even a whole cave (wine cellar) stocking all kinds of wine, you must head to Eataly in Le Marais. There are branches across the world and none disappoint!
Things to know before visiting a French supermarket
French people don’t typically buy everything they need at one store
French people won’t rely on the supermarket for many products they rely on during their daily lives for one reason: the supermarket doesn’t always have the best quality products, nor is it always the most affordable.
Instead, most French people still head to a variety of different shops to pick up their groceries. The most important stop of all is the French bakery, and since baguette doesn’t keep for very long (often not more than a day), heading to the boulangerie to pick up a fresh baguette is a daily ritual in most French households.
Check opening times before visiting
Unlike many other countries in Europe like Spain and the UK, France doesn’t have 24 hour supermarkets and the opening times of stores are strictly regulated, particularly during Sundays.
Most grocery shops are closed all day on Sunday, though some are open on Sunday mornings. In larger cities, such as Paris, grocery stores are opening later and later on a Sunday and so our local Monoprix is open until 8 PM, though you can’t purchase alcohol and some other age restricted products. A few pharmacies are open 24 hours, as well as some fuel stations.
Vegetable and fruits are displayed at the front of the store
One of the biggest remarks that people coming into a French supermarket is that they’re surprised to see the fruit and vegetables displayed beautifully at the forefront of the store. Produce is haphazardly stacked in the most beautiful ways, each fruit seemingly more tempting than the last.
You might not be able to buy everything you need in the supermarket
Back in the UK, the supermarket was always a one stop shop for everything I could possibly need, including non-prescription medication such as paracetamol, ibuprofen, and antihistamines.
In France, you can’t buy medicine at the supermarket and instead have to head to the pharmacy. Similarly, you can’t buy tobacco nor lottery tickets at the supermarket and will instead have to head to a Tabac (which is also one of the only places that sells lottery tickets and cigarettes).
Bring your own bags
One of the more important things to know before heading to a supermarket in France is that you’ll need to bring along your own reusable totes/ shopping bags. Nearly every shop now charges for a bag, and it’s obviously better for the environment to bring your own bag.
It’s also worth noting that at most stores, the bags you can buy are made out of paper, which don’t hold much weight, nor do they hold up very well against the elements (read: heavy rain).
The foreign foods section
Almost every section of the supermarket has an international foods/ foreign foods section, though this is probably not quite what you’d expect either! After all, the American foods and British foods are commonly grouped together in one section, with the most common products sold being things like baked beans, macaroni cheese, and peanut butter.
