How much does a general practitioner earn in France? What is his salary in 2024? What studies do you need to complete to practice this profession? Becoming a doctor is very often a vocation, a life goal. However, before embarking on this path, it is important to know how to achieve it as well as the remuneration and the different career plans available to the general practitioner. Business Cool deciphers this profession for you!
In France, the general practitioner is THE referring doctor for all citizens. His goal is to treat his patients, but also to liaise with specialist doctors. The general practitioner can work in a private practice or in a hospital, he can also make home visits or even work for occupational medicine, etc. The latter recently demonstrated in Paris to demand an increase in the price of consultations (wishing to increase them from 25 to 50€), but what is the current salary of general practitioners in France?
What studies are necessary to become a general practitioner?
Before focusing on the salary of general practitioners, you must first know the duration of studies that you will need to complete if you one day wish to access this position. Above all, know that the minimum duration of higher education to become a general practitioner is 9 years. Some of the longest and most difficult studies it is possible to carry out. These studies take place in four main stages:
- 1st year: PASS or L.AS
- 2 and 3rd year: MMOPK (Midwifery, Medicine, Odontology, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy)
- 4, 5 and 6th year: Practice with the DFASM externship
- 7, 8 and 9th year: The internship during which future doctors obtain the DES and defend their thesis in order to officially become “Doctor”.
To find out more about PASS and L.AS, visit on the AuFutur website !
The different possible career paths for a general practitioner
Once their studies are completed, several career paths are available to young general practitioners. In general, most choose either a career in a hospital or a solo or group career in a practice.
However, many other options exist for GPs. They can work as occupational doctors, social security doctors, or even school doctors. In addition, some specialize as emergency doctors (e.g. SAMU) or engage in humanitarian missions.
Physicians seeking additional challenges or adrenaline can also serve their country by enlisting as medics in the military, although additional ESA training is required.
As you can see, there are various career paths for general practitioners, which leads to variation in doctor salaries in France.
The salary of a general practitioner
How much does a private general practitioner earn?
The average income of a private general practitioner varies depending on several factors such as his place of practice, his experience and, of course, his number of patients. In France, the salary of a private general practitioner tends to evolve in particular thanks to the increase in medical procedures and the various aids intended to combat medical deserts.
According to Health Insurance statistics, in 2020, the average annual income of private general practitioners in France was around 85,000 euros gross, or around 7,080 euros gross per month. However, it is important to remember that the profession of doctor is one of the professions where the hours worked far exceed the classic 35 hours per week.
How much does a doctor earn for each consultation? What is important to note is that, if you pay 25 euros for a consultation, the private general practitioner will receive more. In fact, the consultation brings in 31 euros on average for each doctor. To this, we must also add the fact that the average duration of consultations has reduced in recent years, going from 20 minutes to 15 minutes per day. Considering the fact that a doctor works 7 hours a day over 5 days and 47 weeks a year (including 5 weeks of leave, if the doctor decides to take his 5 weeks of leave, which only rarely happens because vacations are not paid), this therefore represents a salary of up to 203,980 gross per year for a private general practitioner. Please note, from this salary, you must deduct expenses related to the medical office, social security contributions, etc. However, these figures are based on an average of seven hours of work per day which is generally far exceeded.
In 2023, we consider that the salary of a private general practitioner is between 4,500 euros and 5,000 euros net per month.
How much does a salaried general practitioner earn?
Like private general practitioners, salaried doctors see their income vary depending on several criteria such as their experience, their geographical area or even the size of their employer.
According to data from the Technical Agency for Hospitalization Information (ATIH), the average gross monthly salary of a full-time employed general practitioner in public health establishments was approximately 6,760 euros gross. .
The media Medelse estimates that, by 2040, more than 50% of active general practitioners under the age of 70 will work as employees. A figure which can be explained by the new demands of the young generation of doctors. The latter are more interested in testing different experiences in their career, having the possibility of changing geographical areas and above all having a more stable pace of life even if it means receiving slightly lower remuneration.
How much does a replacement general practitioner earn?
Know that you can also, as with teachers, be a replacement general practitioner. In this case, two types of remuneration exist:
- Remuneration in retrocession. This is the one-off replacement of a freelance colleague, this remuneration is in the form of a retrocession. Clearly, the replaced doctor pays the replacement part of the income generated during his absence. The retrocession is generally around 75% for a classic consultation. The average salary of these replacements therefore necessarily differs depending on the type of doctor they replace. However, it is estimated that their income is between 3,000 and 6,000 euros net per month.
- Remuneration on a daily basis. This system is used during very short missions. A doctor may be required to carry out a daily replacement mission in a hospital, a clinic or even an EHPAD. In this case, he is not paid per consultation, but per day. On average, a general practitioner’s package for one day is 500 euros net.
