Gold price today in France

Five legal gold standards

French law allows gold articles at only five standards: 999, 916, 750, 585 and 375 thousandths (24, 22, 18, 14 and 9 karat), with no tolerance below the stated number. Making or selling gold articles at any other standard is not allowed, and only articles of at least 375 may be sold to consumers as "or" (gold). Today the bare international price works out to about 116.00 EUR per gram of 24k gold, 87.00 EUR for 18k (750) and 43.50 EUR for 9k (375).

Two marks on every piece

Each article carries a maker's mark and a guarantee mark (poinçon de garantie) that certifies its legal standard. The guarantee is given by the bureaux de la garantie, run by French customs, and by inspection bodies approved by the State. The metal punches used for the guarantee are made by the Monnaie de Paris, the State mint; a laser mark authorised by the administration is the alternative. Very old pieces, made before 1838, are exempt.

Selling bars or coins: the flat 11% tax

When you sell gold bars or coins in France, the default tax is the taxe forfaitaire sur les métaux précieux: 11% of the sale price (raised from 10% for sales from 1 January 2018) plus 0.5% CRDS. It is charged on the price, not on your profit, so it applies even if you sell at a loss. The seller can instead opt for the capital-gains regime. French customs apply the same rates when gold leaves the country: 11% for precious metals and 6% for jewellery, art, collectors' items and antiques, plus 0.5% CRDS.

VAT: 20% on jewellery, none on investment gold

Jewellery pays the standard 20% VAT. Investment gold is exempt under article 298 sexdecies A of the tax code: bars or wafers heavier than one gram and at least 995 fine, and gold coins of at least 900 fine, minted after 1800, legal tender now or in the past, and normally sold for no more than 80% above their gold value. France uses the EU option to leave bars of 1 g or less out of the exemption. The general euro rules are on our gold price in euros page.

The Banque de France's 2,437 tonnes

The Banque de France holds 2,437 tonnes of gold and says that figure will stay unchanged. In 2025 it sold the last 129 t (5% of the total), which was held in New York and did not meet today's bar standards, and replaced it with higher-standard gold bought in Europe. The swap gave an exceptional capital gain of €11 billion in 2025. It keeps its gold mainly in the "Souterraine", a vault 27 metres below ground. Our gold rate in Paris page covers the capital.

What moves the euro gold price

The euro gold price is the dollar price converted at the EUR/USD rate, so a stronger euro holds the local price back and a weaker euro pushes it up. This page shows both numbers. See what moves gold prices.

Rules for gold traders in France

The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) supervises investment firms. France went further than the EU-wide CFD limits early: in 2016 it banned electronic advertising of these products to retail clients. Check a firm's authorisation before you trade.

Our country guides explain how to check a firm before you open an account.

Trading hours in Central European Time

The international gold market trades almost around the clock, from Monday morning in Asia to Friday evening in New York. The busiest window, the London–New York overlap, falls today at about 14:00–18:00 CET/CEST. That is when US data such as payrolls and inflation is released and the price usually moves most. France is on CET (UTC+1) in winter and CEST (UTC+2) in summer, so the overlap falls in the afternoon; it moves by an hour for a few weeks a year because Europe and the US change their clocks on different dates. The gold market hours tool shows every session in your own time zone.

How this EUR gold price is calculated

Three numbers decide everything on this page. First, the international gold price in US dollars per troy ounce: $4,042.7 at the last update. Second, the exchange rate: 1 USD = 0.8924 EUR. Third, the weight: one troy ounce is 31.1035 grams, and one tola is 11.6638 grams.

1. Price per gram in USD = $4,042.7 ÷ 31.1035 = $129.98.
2. Price per gram in EUR = $129.98 × 0.8924 = 116.00 EUR (24k, pure gold).
3. Price per 10 grams = 116.00 × 10 = 1,159.97 EUR.
4. For a lower purity, multiply by the fineness: 22k = 0.9167, 18k = 0.75, 14k = 0.585, 9k = 0.375.

The gold price is the spot price of gold (XAUUSD) from a public real-time feed, refreshed every few seconds while the page is open; the 7-day table and the 30-session chart use COMEX gold futures closes, which usually sit a few dollars above spot. The exchange rate is a mid-market rate; the rate your bank or money changer gives you will be slightly different. If you want to do the maths yourself, our guide to converting the gold price per gram, tola and kilo walks through every step with worked examples.

What this price does not include

The figures above are the international spot price converted into local currency. They are the starting point for every retail price in France, but they are not the price you will pay or receive at a shop. The shop price adds some or all of these on top:

• Import duty or customs charges, where gold or jewellery is imported.
• Sales tax or VAT, where the country charges one. Many countries tax jewellery but not investment bars; the sections above say what applies here.
• Dealer premium: the margin a bullion dealer or bank adds to the spot price for bars and coins, usually larger on small pieces.
• Making charges (labour) on jewellery, often a percentage of the gold value or a fixed amount per gram.
• Local supply and demand, which can push the physical price to a premium or a discount against the international price for weeks at a time.

When you sell, the buyer usually quotes below the spot-based number and deducts for purity testing, wear and sometimes stones. The gap between the buying and the selling price is the real cost of owning physical gold, and it varies a lot between shops, so it is worth asking several.

Frequently asked questions