How Much Does It Cost to Build or Renovate a Hotel in France? 2026 Guide
The quick answer
Building a hotel in France costs roughly €1,200–1,800 per sqm for a budget property, €1,800–2,800 per sqm for midscale, €4,000–6,000 per sqm for luxury, and more for a palace. These figures exclude land, professional fees and FF&E/OS&E. Renovating is not automatically cheaper: a heavy restructuring of a 5-star hotel in Paris approaches €5,000 per sqm.
On top of the works come professional fees of 12–15% of the construction cost and the FF&E and OS&E, which weigh 10–20% of the total investment budget and are the line most financing plans underestimate.
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What a Hotel Costs by Standing
Standing is the first variable: it moves the construction cost per sqm by a factor of three to four. The figures below are works costs, excluding land, professional fees and FF&E/OS&E.
Construction cost per sqm
Budget (2-star): around €1,200–1,800 per sqm
Midscale (3–4-star): €1,800–2,800 per sqm
Upscale (4–5-star): around €2,800–4,000 per sqm
Luxury (5-star): €4,000–6,000 per sqm and above
Palace: beyond €6,000 per sqm, with no real ceiling
These ranges draw on Figurz benchmarks for a major French city and on developer feedback. In 2019, Vinci Immobilier and Bouygues Bâtiment quoted about €2,000 per sqm of works for a classic 4-star hotel and about €5,000 per sqm for a heavy restructuring of a 5-star in Paris (Hospitality ON). These references are several years old: index them to construction cost inflation before using them in a financial model.
Cost per key
Going from sqm to key requires a surface area: the room itself, but also corridors, public areas and technical rooms. The same arithmetic explains the gap between standings. The Rue de Bassano project in Paris, at around €5,000 per sqm, came to nearly €300,000 per delivered turnkey room, which implies about 60 sqm of gross floor area per key. As standing rises, finishes get more expensive, rooms get larger and public areas expand, so cost per key climbs much faster than cost per sqm.
On the FF&E and OS&E line, Figurz 2026 benchmarks per key, for a standard room in a new build in Western Europe, run from €8,000–15,000 in budget, €15,000–28,000 in midscale, €28,000–55,000 in upscale, to €55,000–120,000+ in luxury. Suites, F&B outlets, spa and back-of-house are budgeted separately. The full breakdown is in our per-key benchmark guide.
Paris, regional cities, coast and mountains: the destination effect
At equal standing, destination affects land far more than works. The same developers put land at nearly 70% of the investment cost of a hotel in central Paris, against land priced at €50–300 per sqm in Saint-Étienne, Bordeaux or Lille for a 4-star at about €2,000 per sqm of works. A 4-star therefore costs a comparable amount to build and a very different amount to own.
On the coast or in the mountains, the extra cost comes from elsewhere: supply logistics, seasonal work windows and difficult access. It is priced case by case from the site study and the schedule, and it adds to the standing ratio rather than replacing it.
New Build vs Renovation: How Big Is the Gap?
Renovation is cheaper than new construction only as long as the structure stays untouched. Once the restructuring becomes heavy, the cost per sqm catches up with new build and then exceeds it, which is why a heavy restructuring of a 5-star in Paris reaches about €5,000 per sqm.
Building new
A new build offers the most predictable budget: the programme, the room grid and the networks are drawn on a blank page. The risks come from the ground (see below), from land and from permit timelines, not from the building itself.
Renovating: the state of the structure decides everything
In renovation, cost depends on what the existing building can accept. A light renovation, limited to second fix, finishes and equipment, stays clearly below new build. A heavy restructuring (full strip-out, underpinning, new room grids in floors not designed for them) costs as much as new build, with more uncertainty. A developer and a contractor interviewed in 2019 pointed to the same main risk: an incomplete or poorly coordinated tender package that leaves contractors room to interpret and creates gaps on the real cost of the works (Hospitality ON). A structural survey before purchase is worth more than an arbitration afterwards.
Asbestos and lead: the extra cost that shows up mid-project
In France, an asbestos survey is mandatory for any building whose building permit predates 1 July 1997. Depending on the material (floor tiles, adhesives, flocking, fibre-cement roofing) and how accessible it is, asbestos removal quotes range, as an order of magnitude, from €25 to €100 per sqm (Ootravaux, Bourse des Crédits), with site containment and disposal at specialised facilities. The real danger is not the unit price but late discovery. A pre-works survey with destructive sampling avoids a work stoppage and a schedule that slips by several months.
Listed buildings: constraints and delays
A hotel in a listed or registered building changes the logic: specific authorisations, review by the Architecte des Bâtiments de France, heritage-qualified professionals, imposed materials and techniques. The works cost per sqm goes up, but the larger effect on the financing plan is the length of the approval process and the works, because every month of delay costs interest during construction and lost operating income. Price it with a heritage architect from the first sketch, never as a flat percentage.
Basements: The Line That Derails the Structure Budget
An underground level often costs as much per sqm as a standard floor, without producing a single room. It is where the gap between the initial estimate and the final cost is most frequent, because it depends on ground conditions that are only known after the surveys.
Foundations and underground levels
Each basement level adds excavation, retaining structures (diaphragm walls, soldier-pile walls or soil nailing, depending on the ground), spoil disposal and waterproofing. If the water table is high, dewatering during construction and protection against hydrostatic pressure come on top. These costs cannot be deduced from the standing ratio per sqm: they add to it.
Underground parking or a car park structure
Parking is often required by the local urban plan. Digging it is expensive and creates non-sellable volume. Building a multi-storey car park above ground, or sharing a public car park nearby, limits the risk but moves the issue to operations. The trade-off is made by comparing the cost per space built with the fee of a neighbouring car park, not by a general rule.
Clay soil or sloping sites: what the geotechnical study reveals
Since the ELAN law, a geotechnical design study (G2) is mandatory before building in areas with medium or high exposure to clay shrink-swell, including for commercial buildings (Groupama). In these areas the soil swells when wet and shrinks when dry, which can require deeper foundations, ground beams or piles. On a sloping site, the same study drives retaining structures and overall stability.
The practical advice is simple: commission the soil study before the purchase agreement, not after. It costs a tiny fraction of the budget, and it can change the price you are willing to pay for the land.
Hotels Near a River: Flood Plans, Waterproofing and Sump Pumps
Close to a river, the first question is not price but whether you can build at all. In France, the flood risk prevention plan (PPRi) can ban a project, restrict it, or make it conditional on protective measures that cost real money. Check it before making any offer on the land.
What the PPRi says
A PPRi divides the territory into zones, generally red (strong constraint, construction very limited) and blue (moderate constraint, buildable with requirements). It sets a reference level, the water level of the reference flood, and everything depends on where the project sits relative to it. Rules commonly require the habitable floor to sit 30 cm to 1 m above that level, and basements are banned or must be watertight (Construires).
For a hotel, the sleeping function is the most sensitive: some plans do not allow accommodation below the reference level and require a refuge area above it (see for example this information sheet from a PPRi in the Bouches-du-Rhône). Each regulation is local, so only the PPRi of the municipality counts.
Typical extra costs
There is no price scale: the extra cost depends on how many levels are affected and what the regulation requires. Items to plan for:
Raising the ground floor above the reference level, with consequences for access ramps and accessibility
Waterproofing and tanking of underground levels where they remain allowed
Sump pumps and protected networks, with redundancy and backup power
Flood barriers at openings, and electrical and technical equipment moved above the reference level
Water-resistant materials below the reference level, and a refuge area
On the operating side, expect a higher insurance premium and a crisis management plan. The order of magnitude should be priced at sketch stage with the engineering team, because the reference level reshapes the whole project: levels, programme and facades.
The Most Underestimated Line: FF&E and OS&E
FF&E (furniture, lighting, curtains, equipment) and OS&E (linens, tableware, uniforms, operating consumables) represent 10–20% of a hotel's total investment budget, FF&E and OS&E combined. It is the line you discover last, and the one most often cut when financing is tight. Per-key benchmarks are in the standing section above, and our article on what a hotel really costs beyond the construction budget goes deeper on the gap.
Why everyone underestimates it
The first reason is structural: the construction budget is priced by quantity surveyors and project teams who, by habit, leave FF&E and OS&E outside their scope. The financing plan then adds a serious works figure and a rough "furniture" line. The boundary is also blurry: built-in joinery and technical packages belong to the construction budget, and putting them in the wrong place creates gaps or duplicates.
The second reason is the economics of the project. In a tender, nobody has an incentive to state the real number: the client prefers good news, the supplier who aligns with an unrealistic budget wins the contract, and the gap only shows up at order time. Everyone optimises their own position and the project pays for it, through dumping, quality cuts or an extra financing round late in the game.
The third reason is timing: the FF&E and OS&E estimate often arrives once the design is already frozen, which is when it can no longer influence it.
How to estimate it from day one, independently
At feasibility stage, an FF&E and OS&E budget is built from three inputs: the hotel category, the number of rooms and the location. That is what Figurz does. It is an independent tool with no incentive to understate the figure: its only value is to give a realistic budget. It gives you a first FF&E and OS&E envelope in a minute, to compare against the assumptions of your financial model before they are locked.
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In Short: What Moves a Hotel Budget
Five variables explain most of the gap between two projects that look comparable on paper.
Standing: it multiplies the works cost per sqm by three to four between budget and luxury, and the cost per key by even more.
New build or renovation: light renovation stays below new build, heavy restructuring catches up with it; asbestos and listed status weigh mostly on the schedule.
Basements: they add to the standing ratio and depend on ground conditions that only the geotechnical study reveals.
Proximity to a river: the PPRi can ban, restrict or add cost to the project through its reference level and the protective measures it requires.
FF&E and OS&E: 10–20% of the total investment budget, outside the scope of most construction estimates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to build a 100-room hotel?
Multiply the total floor area by the per-sqm ratio for the standing. As an illustration, assuming 40 sqm of gross floor area per key, a 100-key midscale hotel is 4,000 sqm; at €1,800–2,800 per sqm, the works come to €7.2–11.2 million, excluding land, professional fees and FF&E/OS&E.
What share of the budget do FF&E and OS&E represent?
Between 10 and 20% of the total investment budget, FF&E and OS&E combined. The exact share depends on standing, room mix and the size of the public areas.
Is renovating a hotel cheaper than building new?
Only if the structure stays intact. A light renovation costs clearly less; a heavy restructuring, with asbestos removal and underpinning, catches up with new build and carries more uncertainty.
When should you estimate the FF&E and OS&E budget?
At feasibility stage, before the financial model and the design are frozen. The later the estimate arrives, the less it can influence the project.
Ready to put a number on your project? Get your free FF&E and OS&E budget in under a minute.
About the author: Martin Bretécher has spent 15+ years in hotel FF&E and OS&E procurement, delivering over 3,100 keys across Europe and beyond. He co-founded Figurz to give hotel investors an independent, realistic budget, with no incentive to understate it.
Sources
Hospitality ON, "The main risk is in the lack of coordination" (Paris Asset Forum, December 2019): works costs, professional fees, land share
Groupama, ELAN law and geotechnical study: G2 study mandatory in clay areas
Construires, PPRi and PPRN: typical PPRi requirements
Ootravaux and Bourse des Crédits: indicative asbestos removal cost
Figurz 2026 benchmarks: works ratios in a major French city and FF&E/OS&E budgets per key
