Why Move to Paris?

After years of visiting Paris and then fantasizing about living my life there, I finally made the move. While it felt like years of mental and emotional preparation, the actual move went rather quickly. In May of 2026, I declared that I was moving to Paris, and by August 3, 2026, I was touching down with my three pets and beginning my lifelong dream. I’m writing this piece a little over a month after moving, and I can say it was one of the best decisions in my adult life.

For years I came to Paris as a visitor, longing to be more local, and trying to make each trip feel a little more local than the last. I never wanted my trips to end, and when they did, I was pretty miserable when I went back home. There came a perfect storm in my life that helped me take the plunge, and this move has manifested into something even more brilliant than I could’ve imagined. Living here is far different than visiting, and I am embracing each and every moment. It’s not always a walk in the park on a sunny day, but the good completely outweighs the bad.

As I’ve learned about living in Paris as a local more and more each day, I notice the irritations and frustrations that come with being an expat, and someone who is not fluent in French. Paris absolutely can be maddening. However, when I walk down the street looking at buildings that scream “take my picture!” or visit my neighborhood shops and get to know the owners, the annoyances somehow don’t take the stage.

France can be funny with its bureaucratic ways, there is a definite language barrier for me, simply registering my pets here has been an ongoing comedy of trial and error. But all in all, I wouldn’t change a single thing. I often think I’m living on a different planet because life is so incredibly different than what I was used to in the United States. It’s abundantly clear to me why I chose and will continue to choose this way of life, and I’m going to share that with you.

A True Parisian Dog

As mentioned, there are many reasons to move to Paris, and each person has his or her own. Whatever it is for you that makes you uproot your life and begin a totally different one in France, I applaud you. It’s no easy feat, yet it’s worth every ounce of discomfort and frustration you encounter. Below I’m going to share all the reasons one might move, and definitely why I personally made the move.

The Culture, Art, and History

It’s pretty obvious that culture, art, and history would be a driving force to get you to move to Paris. Discovering this city would take a lifetime, as there is so much history and wonder for you to see each and every day. There’s nothing like the gorgeous covered passages in Paris, the endless churches with stained glass, the neighborhood streets filled with restaurants and shops. And then you have the markets that pop up all over Paris where you can buy fresh food. You don’t have to schedule culture in this city. It’s on every single block and every single corner.

The Food and Café Culture

This alone is like going back to some earlier time, where cell phones weren’t the main event at the dinner table and people still talk to each other instead of checking their Apple Watch mid-sentence. You can buy meat from a dedicated butcher, and pastries from a dedicated pastry shop. There is the option to sit for hours, only sipping wine or coffee, reading a book, and people-watching. Eating some of the most incredible food in the world is at your fingertips as well, as top-notch pizza places or bouillons are all over the city. You don’t have to go to a Michelin-starred restaurant to get one of the best meals of your life. And part of that is who you’re with: whether enjoying your own beautiful company or someone from your expat community. This is something that makes Paris so…Paris.

The Work-Life Balance

Being American, a work-life balance seems like kind of a joke. In fact, I didn’t believe it actually existed until I moved to Paris. Obviously, not every French person has a perfect work-life balance, and plenty of people work incredibly hard. But the cultural attitude toward time off feels noticeably different to me. In the USA, I found that many people were on every device, watching the time, rushing from one thing to the next. It’s not like that here. People wear normal watches that don’t buzz, and they put their phones away when it’s time to be with the people they care about. Their vacations are not three days; they are weeks-long, and shops close en masse during August so there’s no pressure to get back to work so quickly. I’ve personally learned that I can put one or two things per day on the calendar, and that is quite enough for me.

Healthcare and Quality of Life

While I don’t have direct experience with the French healthcare system yet, that is about to change. When I moved to Paris, I purchased private expat health insurance, which covers me during my first few months in France. After living here legally and continuously for three months, I can apply for coverage through PUMa (Protection Universelle Maladie), which provides access to France’s public health insurance system. Once enrolled, I can also choose to purchase a mutuelle, or supplemental insurance, to help cover healthcare costs that aren’t fully reimbursed by the public system. Coming from the United States, I’m very interested to see how the process works firsthand, and I’ll update this post once I’ve actually gone through it. For now, I can tell you that a close friend who is already in the French healthcare system has been shocked by how affordable her medical care has been compared with the United States.

Healthcare is also only one piece of the quality of life I’ve experienced since moving to Paris. I walk or bike almost everywhere, public transport makes owning a car unnecessary for me, and I have access to fresh food, neighborhood shops, pharmacies, cafés, and almost everything else I need within a few blocks of my Paris apartment. Even veterinary care has been considerably less expensive in my experience. My dog needs cataract surgery, and the estimate I received in Paris is less than half of what I was quoted in the United States. Things don’t always happen as quickly or conveniently as I was accustomed to in the U.S., but I’ve discovered that I’m perfectly happy slowing down a little. For me, that has become a huge part of the quality of life I was looking for when I decided to move to Paris.

Travel and Location

One of my many reasons for wanting to move to and live in Paris is the fact that I have access to so many European locations, either by train, plane, or car. My Christmas market trips are now in my backyard, and it feels like I can go anywhere by the TGV with my dog at any time. Maybe a solo trip to London for the weekend? Hop on the Eurostar. Another expat friend recently asked if I wanted to meet in Reims for a champagne tasting. A quick 45-minute train ride will get me to Veuve Clicquot, where I can sip premium champagne for an afternoon. If I want to go to Sicily for a weekend, I can simply hop on a flight and be there in no time for very little money. This is the life, in my opinion.

The Expat Community

I had no idea when I said yes to my Paris apartment in Montmartre that I would be saying yes to living around so many amazing expats in the same neighborhood. As I came to Paris more and more, I grew my expat community, giving myself a cushion when I landed here in Paris. Making friends in a new country does take effort, but the overall feeling of the expat community is very warm, if you stick to the people who are genuine and kind and inclusive. At times I can see how some of the influencers seem to make it unobtainable, but that is not reality, and the people I happen to know and spend time with are amazing, smart, entrepreneurial expats who love making new friends.

Classic Paris Restaurant

Of course there are some downsides of moving to Paris, so let’s not fluff it for you. You want to know what you’re getting into if Paris is on your radar to move. I thought long and hard about it, talked to many people who have lived here for a long time and for a short time, and there weren’t too many surprises. I’d want the same for you when you’re ready to make your own decision. Let’s get into it.

Cost of living: Housing is expensive for what you get. In the USA, I was paying the same price per month for my house that I owned that was three bedrooms and two full bathrooms as I am for a one bedroom and one bathroom apartment. My apartment came furnished and in a great area of Paris, so for me it was worth it. I also don’t need a car and can bicycle everywhere. There is always a trade-off.

Bureaucracy: The paperrrrrrrr in Paris. And if it’s not paper that they want, it’s an obscene amount of emails for one simple thing, like delivering a cat tree or yoga mat to my house. In some cases, they say they tried to deliver and just drop it off at some location where I have to hunt it down and lug it home, all while dragging my half-blind dog behind me. For my pet registration, I had to find someone with a book of checks, another person to photocopy their documents, and now someone to help me post them. Fun times.

Small spaces: While my apartment in Paris is notably smaller than my house in the USA, I am still much happier. I have almost everything I need to be happy, which starts with my 3 pets, and I am accumulating little things here and there to make the apartment work better for me. Optimizing space is key in any Paris apartment, as you will find.

Language barrier: I’m not going to lie. It’s tough sometimes. You try your best to speak French, and they act like you’re speaking a language no one on Earth has ever heard of before. Or they may switch to English. Better yet, they correct you anytime you make a mistake. Living amongst the French is not for the faint of heart, but once you break down their barriers, they are funny, interesting, and very talkative. Don’t be afraid to self-deprecate a bit. They’ll appreciate the humor.

Adjustment: Even though I was desperate to live in Paris, it’s still a foreign country to me and can feel strange at times. I feel like I was more prepared than many people, at least mentally, and I still get disoriented once in a while. Adjusting to hearing another language all the time, not knowing if you’re picking up what the French culture is putting down, and staring at items in an aisle at the grocery store wondering what the actual hell you’re about to put into your basket are real adjustments. The more you make light of it and remember how badass you are for making this move, the easier it is to move on from the discomfort.

All of these things make my move to Paris a bit challenging, but not one of them makes me regret my decision to be here. I’m obsessed with my life here, and each and every day feels like a gift that God gave to me for a reason I am still trying to figure out.

I don’t know the answer to that, only you do. There wasn’t a person in the world that could tell me Paris wasn’t right for me, and I was determined for it to become a reality. For years I prepared myself, I visited, I walked neighborhoods to see where I wanted to live, and I finally made the decision when the time felt right.

If you’re ready to dive in and learn some French, get a little uncomfortable, deal with the bureaucracy, and get cozy with some inconveniences, you might be getting ready for your move. You’ll acquire access to delicious foods, city living, ease of travel all over Europe, and much more that will enhance your stay here. The best part? If you hate it, you can always make a new choice. If you don’t ever do it? You’ll never know what you might have fallen in love with.

My vote? Take the plunge. Make the move. Paris might just be the best decision you’ve ever made. Check out my guide on is Paris a good place to live for more information on what I think.

One of the Many Reasons to Move

Saying you want to move to Paris is cute and romantic. Actually doing it requires visas, money (way more than you may think), housing, paperwork, packing, and the patience of a saint. For 2.5 months of my life, every decision I made to get to Paris was massive. From selling my house and car to shutting down my real estate business, I was uprooting my entire 46-year-old existence in a city I had lived in almost my entire life. Some decisions were easy and some felt impossible. Each day was something massive, or so it felt.

I kept track of all the steps by making list after list, consulting with ChatGPT, other expats, and anyone that would help me understand this move. I had to interview real estate agents, find and commit to an apartment, figure out how to transport three pets, and decide what items in my life would be sold or given away and what few I would take with me. It’s not easy. Some days it’s still hard. But I wouldn’t change it for a single thing.

If you’re ready for this, start by reading my guide on how to move to Paris. It will give you a more technical feel of what you’re looking at before your move.

Sunday Evening Walk in Paris

I did not move to Paris because I thought I was leaving some problems for zero problems. I did it because I wanted a very different look for my life, and that is exactly what I got. Today, as I write this, I can’t believe I’m able to commit to a life of writing to give the world insight on my experiences, interests, and other things that light me up (and might light you up too). My dog gets to come with me almost everywhere, riding in a backpack while we bike around town. The windows are open and it’s fall weather. My friends and I get together with no phone interruptions.

I’m still new to living in Paris, and I’m sure there are frustrations and challenges ahead that I haven’t even encountered yet. But a little over a month into this life, I can tell you I would make the same decision all over again. Moving to Paris was difficult, expensive, overwhelming, and at times completely terrifying, but I get to wake up every morning in a city I spent years dreaming about calling home. Paris isn’t perfect, and neither is life here, but I didn’t move here looking for perfect. I moved here looking for a life that felt more like mine. So far, I’ve found it.

If you liked this blog, you might also like the one I wrote about how to move to Paris and is Paris a good place to live?

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