Paris, France’s capital, is also the most populous. It covers an area of over 105 km (41 miles). Paris has been a major European finance center, diplomacy, and commerce since the 17th century. Paris Region’s capital and seat of government, the City of Paris, is home to an estimated 12,174,880 people, roughly 18 percent of France’s population.

In 2017, the Paris Region’s GDP was EUR709 billion (or $808 billion). The Economist Intelligence Unit Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2018 ranked Paris as the second most expensive global city, behind Singapore, Hong Kong, Oslo, and Geneva. In 2018, Paris was ranked second to Hong Kong and Singapore in terms of cost, according to another source.

It lies near the mouth of Rhone on the Gulf of Lion coast. Marseille is France’s second-largest city, with an area of 241km2 (93 sq mi). It was home to 870,018 people in 2016. The metropolitan area of Marseille, covering 3,174 km2 (1.225 mi), is the third largest in France, after Lyon and Paris. The Eurostat definition has a population of 1,760 653, or 3,100 329 (2019). Its inhabitants are called Marseillais.

Bordeaux Metropole has a population totaling 257,804 (2019). Bordeaux Metropole is the centre of Bordeaux Metropole. It had a population of 796,273 in 2019 and is the sixth-largest French city after Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, and Lille. The greater metropolitan area is home to 1,247,977 people.

It is also the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine area and the Gironde prefecture. Its residents are “Bordelais” for men and “Bordelaises for women.

Lyons or Lyons is France’s third largest city. It also has the second-largest urban region. It is situated at the confluence of the Rhone and Saone rivers, approximately 470 km (292 miles) southeast of Paris, 325 km (199 mi) north-east of Marseille, and 56 km (30.5 mi) northeastern of Saint-Etienne.

Strasbourg is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the European Parliament. Located at the border with Germany in the historic region of Alsace, it is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin department.