France had 4,029 traffic enforcement cameras on 1 January 2025, the latest count published by ANTAI, the agency that processes camera fines. Fixed speed cameras are announced by road signs; mobile cameras, including the units in unmarked cars, and red-light cameras are not. A margin of 5 km/h below 100 km/h, or 5% above it, is always deducted from the camera reading, so a recorded 97 km/h counts as 92 km/h. Fixed fines start at 68 or 135 euros. Figures are from official pages read on 17 October 2026.
Speed camera types in France
ANTAI splits the network into 3,423 fixed cameras, 396 relocatable roadworks cameras and 210 mobile cameras. Its breakdown by type, as of 1 January 2025:
| Type | What it checks | Signed? | Number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed speed camera | Speed at one point, including turret models | Yes, radar signs | 698 classic, 1,411 turret |
| Discriminating camera | Speed, cars and heavy goods vehicles told apart | Yes | 530 |
| Average speed camera ("tronçon") | Average between entry and exit, from number plate readers | Yes | 69 |
| Roadworks camera ("autonome") | Speed through roadworks, moved between sites | Yes, a roadworks sign | 396 |
| Mobile and on-board | Speed, from a parked vehicle or an unmarked car | No | 210 |
| Red-light camera | Crossing the stop line on red | No | 536 classic, 108 turret |
| Level crossing camera | Crossing after a safety delay of 3 seconds in built-up areas, 5 outside | No | 71 |
The Ministry of the Interior publishes the fixed cameras as open data on data.gouv.fr (last updated 30 December 2025). How average speed checks work is in section control explained.
Which cameras are signed
Since a decision of the Minister of the Interior on 15 February 2013, ANTAI says, all fixed speed cameras carry radar signs. Mobile cameras are not signed; ANTAI says they can check speeds anywhere. Red-light and level crossing cameras are not announced either: the lights are the signal.
The new-generation mobile camera (ETM) sits in an unmarked car driven by uniformed gendarmes or police officers, photographs speeding vehicles while moving and uses an infra-red flash the driver cannot see. The mobile units that UK police use are covered in mobile speed cameras.
The 5 km/h margin
ANTAI gives the margin for fixed, discriminating, mobile and average speed cameras as 5 km/h below 100 km/h and 5% above, "always in favour of the driver". Its example: recorded at 97 km/h, the figure used is 92 km/h.
The ETM targets heavy speeding: ANTAI gives its margin as 10 km/h for speed limits below 100 km/h and 10% for limits above 100 km/h, and says vehicles are flashed from 146 km/h on a motorway, 124 km/h on an express road, 102 km/h on a national or departmental road and 61 km/h in a built-up area. The margin is a deduction, not an allowance: an excess under 5 km/h still carries a fixed fine (see below). Speed camera tolerance sets France beside the UK, the Netherlands and Germany.
French speed limits
Service-Public (verified 29 December 2025) gives 130 km/h on motorways, 110 km/h on roads with two carriageways and a central barrier, 90 km/h on roads with at least two lanes in one direction, 80 km/h on two-way roads without a central separator and 50 km/h in built-up areas. In rain or other precipitation the first three drop to 110, 100 and 80 km/h, and in visibility under 50 metres the limit is 50 km/h everywhere. Local authorities can lower these limits, and on two-way roads without a central separator they can set 90 km/h instead of 80.
Fines and points
Service-Public sets the penalty by the size of the excess:
| Excess | Fixed fine | Points removed |
|---|---|---|
| Under 5 km/h | 68 euros (limit above 50 km/h) or 135 euros (limit of 50 km/h or less) | None |
| 5 to 19 km/h | Same amounts | 1 |
| 20 to 29 km/h | 135 euros | 2 |
| 30 to 39 km/h | 135 euros | 3 |
| 40 to 49 km/h | 135 euros | 4 |
| 50 km/h or more | A délit: up to 3 months in prison and up to 3,750 euros | 6 |
From 30 km/h over, Service-Public adds possible further penalties such as a licence suspension of up to 3 years, and at 50 km/h or more the vehicle can be immobilised. ANTAI says the reduced fixed fine is 45 euros instead of 68 and 90 euros instead of 135 if paid within 15 days of the date on the notice, with 15 extra days for card payment online or by the voice server. Payment counts as acknowledging the offence and can lead to points being removed.
After a camera records you
According to ANTAI, the camera sends its data to the National Processing Centre in Rennes, which reads the number plate, identifies the holder of the registration document through the French Vehicle Registration System (SIV) and sends the notice by post or email, if those details are in the SIV. None of the official pages read says how a notice reaches the keeper of a car registered outside France. GOV.UK says French police give on-the-spot fines, including for speeding.
Warning devices and the law
In France, article R413-15 of the Code de la route punishes holding, carrying or using a device that can detect or disturb the equipment used to record traffic offences with a fifth-class fine and the loss of six points, and its paragraph V, added by a decree of 3 January 2012, extends this to devices or products meant to warn of or inform about the location of that equipment; using these warnings is the driver's own responsibility. The Conseil constitutionnel's commentary on decision 2021-948 QPC adds that both bans concern speed control only. Service-Public lists the penalty for radar detectors as a fine of up to 1,500 euros, 6 points, seizure of the device (and of the vehicle if the device is fitted to it) and a possible licence suspension of up to 3 years. The law country by country compares France with the rest of Europe.
What BlitzBuddy does in France
In France BlitzBuddy shows fixed speed cameras, red-light cameras and most average speed checks at their exact location, from the official list of the Ministry of the Interior. It makes no promise about mobile cameras or police checks. Its camera warnings stay on in France, and the signs on the road take priority over the app.
In the UK and Ireland BlitzBuddy gives no speed camera warnings; your speed, your trips and reports from other drivers still work, and the warnings switch on by themselves when you arrive in France. BlitzBuddy is free, with no ads and no subscription. It is available for iPhone; the Android version is coming soon.
The documents and equipment France requires cover the rest of the trip; the speed cameras topic lists every camera guide.
Sources
- Les radars en France, ANTAI (in French)
- Traffic enforcement cameras in France, ANTAI
- Payment, ANTAI
- Understanding how road traffic offences are automatically processed, ANTAI
- Vitesse au volant, Service-Public (in French, verified 29 December 2025)
- Permis de conduire : barème des points retirés par infraction, Service-Public (in French, verified 27 February 2026)
- Commentaire de la décision n° 2021-948 QPC, Conseil constitutionnel (in French; quotes article R413-15)
- Liste des radars fixes en France, Ministry of the Interior on data.gouv.fr (in French)
- France travel advice: safety and security, GOV.UK
Sources read on 17 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Are speed cameras signposted in France?
Fixed ones are: ANTAI says all carry radar announcement signs. Mobile, red-light and level crossing cameras are not signed, and the unmarked-car units use an infra-red flash drivers cannot see.
How much margin do French speed cameras allow?
ANTAI says 5 km/h below 100 km/h and 5% above: a recorded 97 km/h counts as 92 km/h. The new-generation mobile cameras in unmarked cars use 10 km/h where the limit is under 100 km/h and 10% where it is above.
How much is a speeding fine in France?
Service-Public gives 68 euros when the limit is above 50 km/h and the excess is under 20 km/h, and 135 euros where the limit is 50 km/h or less, or from 20 km/h over. ANTAI says it drops to 45 or 90 euros if paid within 15 days of the date on the notice.
Is it legal to use a speed camera app in France?
Article R413-15 of the Code de la route bans devices that detect or disturb enforcement equipment, and its paragraph V, added by a decree of 3 January 2012, extends this to devices that warn of or inform about its location. BlitzBuddy's warnings stay on in France; using them is your own responsibility.
