Perhaps it's no surprise that over one in two Parisians dream of leaving the city, according to a 2012 survey at least.
Fresh stats published on Thursday by French statistics agency Insee found that daily consumer costs in the rest of France, or Les Provinces as the area outside the capital is known, were 8.8 percent cheaper than inside the capital.
The agency noted that the figures took into account consumption patterns.
The biggest difference, unsurprisingly, was in the cost of housing – which is 24.7 percent more expensive in Paris. The soaring rental costs alone in Paris were 49 percent more expensive, but the figure was brought down by the fact that other housing expenditures like garbage and maintenance were only six percent dearer.
The report also found that hotels and restaurants were around eight percent more expensive in Paris than the rest of France, that transport was almost six percent dearer, and “leisure and culture” was close to seven percent more costly.
Meanwhile food and non-alcoholic beverages were 6.4 percent more pricey, household furniture was four percent dearer, and “health” up at 6.5 percent more expensive.
The only things that were around even were medicine and gas prices, and Paris was only a cheaper option when it came to buying cultural goods like computers, books and cameras.
Of course, living outside of Paris means a much more spacious home for the same amount of money too, something the study didn't take into account.
French channel BFM TV spoke to a man who had left Paris to live in Normandy, and who for €250,000 had bought a 120-metre square home with a garden. The same amount of money would have got him a 30 metre squared flat in Paris, the channel noted.
The former Parisian added that he noticed other glaring differences in day-to-day life, such as cinema tickets costing as little as €6 in Normandy, compared to as much as €11 in Paris, or a coffee on the terrace sinking from an average of €3.20 in Paris to just €1.40 in his new home town.
Earlier this year a survey revealed how much more you could get for your money outside Paris when it comes to rent.
The survey compared statistics for 12 cities around France and found that Paris, unsurprisingly, was a rare exception when it comes to average apartment size.
In fact, you can get an apartment almost twice as big for €624 if you choose to leave Paris and live in Nice, where you'd be able to score 29 square metres, meaning you'll probably have the luxury of having a separate bedroom.
And it only gets bigger from there.
Montpellier in the south saw an average size of 40m2 if you have €624 to fork out, while Lille and Marseille both recorded 41m2 as the size one could get for the national average rent price.
So why do the Parisians stick it out?
The obvious answer is that wages are higher in the capital. Indeed, a previous Insee study found that Parisians rake in between eight and ten percent more money each year than the rest of their compatriots.
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