New York is intense, demanding, and incredibly stimulating for children. The French community is long-established and well organised, from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn, and the bilingual school offering keeps growing. First landmarks before you dive in.
Currency
US dollar ($)
Language
English
Time vs Paris
6h behind
Emergencies
911
FIAFE network
The Accueil for French-speaking families
In each city, a volunteer-run association from the FIAFE network welcomes, informs and helps French-speaking families settling in.
Accueil New York
Since 1990
Since 1990, Accueil New York has helped French-speaking families tame the city: drop-in sessions at the French Consulate on Fifth Avenue, workshops, cultural outings and a precious support network for the first months.
Where to meet them
Drop-in sessions twice a month at the Consulate General of France (934 Fifth Avenue), upon registration.
Two large national networks also support the French abroad, each with its local chapter.
UFE
UFE États-Unis New York
The New York chapter of the Union des Français de l'Étranger: mutual aid, events and practical advice (tax, assets, settling in) for the French in New York.
The local French chamber of commerce (CCI France International network) is a real asset for work: networking, job offers and help to restart a career or start a business locally.
CCI France International
French-American Chamber of Commerce, New York
New York's French-American business network, with over 750 members: networking evenings, a job board and hands-on support that really helps when a spouse is looking for work or starting out locally.
To follow local life in French: news, what's on, good addresses and, often, a directory of French-speaking professionals.
French Morning
MediaIn French
Born in New York in 2006, the leading news site for the French and francophiles in the United States: news, practical life, education, health, property, children's outings, and every spring the list of French-language summer camps in New York and New Jersey.
The US French-speaking directory, by category: health (dentists, dermatologists, general practice, psychiatrists and psychotherapists), children's activities and babysitting, education, property, lawyers; professionals list themselves.
The New York edition of the online daily for French expatriates: news, settling in, housing, education, health, events, community, and the Petit Guide de New York, a free pocket guide produced with the consulate general for newcomers.
The edition's expat directory: useful addresses, property, services and French-speaking professionals in New York, complemented by the Petit Guide de New York handed out at the consulate.
The French-language site connecting French speakers in the United States with French-friendly businesses and professionals: a New York edition with practical guides (health, visas, housing, education), news, outings and classified ads.
The New York edition's health directory: family doctors, dentists, physiotherapists, acupuncture, expat health insurance; some listings cover other cities, check the address.
Before you even land in New York, Facebook groups are the best shortcut: ask your questions, find a flat, a nanny, a second-hand stroller, and often your first friends.
Private In English
Everything to Do NYC
132,500 members · ≈ 3 posts/week
City Guide and Thought Gallery bring you “Everything to Do NYC,” a community of people helping each other get everything we can from the city. We share...
Vous venez habiter/séjourner à New York, vous êtes à la recherche d'un logement, vous cherchez des colocs, ou vous voulez être au courant des bons plans,...
Welcome to Manhattan Parents (formerly Upper West Side Moms)!
For nearly a decade, our community has connected thousands of Manhattan families. Today,...
Une communauté sélective d'entraide et bons plans pour immigrés et expatriés Français à New-York. Répondre à toutes les questions d’entrée pour être...
Parenting in New York City. Because it's all about tribes.
Keep it clean and advertisement-free.
Join our other Moms' Groups too:
Brooklyn Moms
Soho / Hudson Square Moms
Tribeca Moms
West Village Moms
Battery Park City Moms
Our group is a place where Upper West Side moms can connect, share experiences, and build lasting friendships. Whether you're a first-time mom or have a growing family, you'll find a warm and welcoming community here.
We hope your experience in our Upper West Side Mom Group is enriching, empowering, and filled with joy. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful community. If you ever have any questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out to our group administrators or any of our friendly members.
Here's to an incredible journey of motherhood in the heart of the Upper West Side!
Warm regards,
Admin
Facebook nous donne la possibilité de s'exprimer librement, partager des conseils mais surtout s'entraider...
A qui est destiné ce groupe :
TOUT CEUX ET...
Bonjour cher.e Frenchy,
Tu viens de rejoindre la Frenchy Community à New York et nous te souhaitons la bienvenue.
Ce groupe c’est quoi ?
Une communauté...
Welcome To The New York Parents And Families Group. Our goal is to provide information, and resources parents and families can use to make living in NYC an easier experience. We also like to provide parents & families with community resources if they need the help.
Any post deemed inappropriate by the Admin Team will be deleted, and its author removed & blocked.
If you live in, or are planning a child’s birthday party in Brooklyn, please visit our website for an unforgettable event.
https://www.maxadventuresny.com/. We look forward to helping you to provide your children with a great experience.
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Compiled from Facebook's public search, links checked in July 2026. Group sizes change all the time.
AEFE network
Accredited French schools
Schools accredited by the French Ministry of Education follow the French curriculum: your child can continue their schooling seamlessly, abroad and back in France.
Source: official AEFE directory, verified June 2026. aefe.gouv.fr
Tutoring and private lessons
To support your children's schooling across two systems, two solutions designed for expat families.
Axiom Academic
Private lessons and tutoring for expat families: French curriculum, IB and British curriculum, at home or online, with teachers who know the schools in your city.
The Lycée Français de New York is an institution, and a constellation of bilingual schools completes the picture. A precious local twist: free French-English dual language programmes exist in some public schools.
Good to know
French and bilingual private schools are excellent but pricey: negotiate this line in an expat package.
Free French dual language programmes in public schools (Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens) are in high demand.
The school year runs September to late June; July-August summer camps are part of the budget.
Between LFNY, The École or Kennedy, visit early: admissions are decided in autumn for the following year.
French-speaking community
French Morning was born in New York, and the French community is everywhere: around the Lycée on the Upper East Side, in Carroll Gardens on the Brooklyn side, and in dual language programmes across the city.
Good to know
Accueil New York (FIAFE network) has held its sessions at the Consulate since 1990.
Carroll Gardens and its surroundings in Brooklyn are the historic French family neighbourhood.
Facebook groups of French-speaking parents in New York are very active, from gear swaps to nanny tips.
French cultural institutions (FIAF, bookshops, film clubs) give children a real language bath.
A place has closed, something has changed?
The arrival reflex
The apps to download when you land
Drop your bags, download these and you're set: the apps everyone in New York uses to get around, get things delivered and organise daily life.
Getting around
Citymapper
New Yorkers' favourite for combining subway, bus, ferry and walking: real-time routes, the right station exit, line alerts.
The official subway and bus app: real-time arrivals and (frequent) weekend works. Good to know: the subway is tap-to-pay (OMNY), bank card or phone at the turnstile, automatic weekly fare cap.
What mums ask when they arrive in New York, in short, sourced answers.
Public school or the Lycée Français: where do we start?
Public school is free from age 3 (3-K) and placement depends on your address: newcomers enrol at the zoned school or, by appointment, at a Family Welcome Center, with the child's proof of address, birth and vaccination documents. The Lycée Français de New York and the private bilingual schools (The École, Kennedy, FASNY) are excellent but very expensive, and admissions are decided in autumn for the following year. Our Schools and School fees pages detail both systems: /en/cities/new-york/school-fees/.
Source ↗Are there free French-English public schools?
Yes, and it is a New York speciality: PS 58 in Carroll Gardens opened the city's first public French-English dual language programme in 2007, followed by PS 110 in Greenpoint, PS 84 on the Upper West Side and others. The parents' association EFNY, which helped create them, also teaches French after school in thirteen public schools in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Seats are in high demand and tied to the zone: choose the neighbourhood by the school, see /en/cities/new-york/settling-in/.
Source ↗Is health insurance compulsory for the children?
No law forces you to, the federal tax penalty having disappeared for years after 2018, but without insurance every visit or ER trip is billed at full price. Take the employer's family plan on hiring; children under 19 living in the state can also join Child Health Plus, free or $15 to $60 a month depending on income, with no immigration status condition. It is all explained on our Health page: /en/cities/new-york/health/.
Source ↗How do I find a paediatrician, ideally French-speaking?
First choose a paediatrician in your insurance network, they will follow the child from birth to 18 and fill in the school forms. To consult in French, the consulate publishes a list of French-speaking doctors in its district (GPs, paediatrician, dentists, gynaecologists, ophthalmologists), which we reproduce with French Morning's health directory on our Health page: /en/cities/new-york/health/.
Source ↗Which number do I call if my child is ill at night?
911 only for a life-threatening emergency (breathing difficulty, seizure, serious accident): the ambulance and hospital ER are billed, often heavily. For a suspected ingestion, the poison centre answers 24/7 on 212-POISONS, free and with interpretation. For a fever or an ear infection, a neighbourhood urgent care clinic takes walk-ins evenings and weekends; the children's hospital emergency departments are on /en/cities/new-york/health/.
Source ↗Which neighbourhood should we settle in with children?
French families follow the schools: the Upper East Side around the Lycée Français and the consulate, the Upper West Side for Central Park and the natural history museum, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope and Greenpoint in Brooklyn for the public dual language programmes and brownstones, Larchmont in Westchester or Hoboken in New Jersey for a house and an accredited French school. The further from Manhattan, the more space you get. Our Settling in page reviews the neighbourhoods: /en/cities/new-york/settling-in/.
In order: download each person's I-94 record, book a Social Security appointment for whoever is working (a spouse without a work permit will apply for an ITIN from the IRS instead), open a bank account with the passport, choose the employer's health plan, enrol the children at the zoned school, then register with the French consular register, online, free and valid 5 years. Details on /en/cities/new-york/settling-in/.
Source ↗Do my children pay for the subway and bus?
Up to three children under 44 inches tall travel free with a fare-paying adult on the subway and local buses; above that height they pay the full $3 fare, there is no child fare. Pay each ride with the same contactless card: once you have spent $35 in seven days, the following rides are free. No need to buy a pass in advance.
Source ↗Daycare, nanny, 3-K: how do you get a little one looked after?
Before age 3, everything is private and expensive: daycares, a nanny at home often shared between two families, or a city-licensed family daycare, more affordable. Relief comes with 3-K and Pre-K for All: a free school-day seat for all NYC children from the year they turn 3, regardless of immigration status, applied for online on MySchools the winter before the school year. Facebook groups of French-speaking mums are the best nanny exchange.
Source ↗My child does not speak English: how will they cope at school?
Very well, and faster than you: New York public schools welcome children from all over the world and provide English support (English as a New Language) to students learning the language. The real challenge then becomes keeping French: dual language programmes and EFNY after-school classes, the FIAF library, the Albertine bookshop, French summer camps. Our addresses are on /en/cities/new-york/family-outings/.
Source ↗Is New York really that expensive for a family?
Yes for three items: housing (the 1.41% vacancy rate measured in 2023 says it all), childcare for under-3s and health, whose real cost far exceeds the premium. The rest balances out: free public school from age 3, free subway for little ones, free museums with the IDNYC card or through Culture Pass, free pools and concerts in summer. Our Settling in page details the budget line by line: /en/cities/new-york/settling-in/.
Source ↗Where can I meet other French-speaking mums?
Accueil New York holds its drop-in sessions twice a month at the consulate general on Fifth Avenue and organises workshops and outings for newcomers. The school gates of the Lycée Français and the dual language programmes, Carroll Park in Brooklyn, Albertine's children's events and the Central Park Bastille Day do the rest. The local French-language media (French Morning, lepetitjournal.com New York, French District) list the week's events.
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