France Number Format

Format Rules

What's different here

French number format

French (fr-FR) writes 1234567.89 as 1 234 567,89 €, and there are two different invisible characters in it. The spaces between digit groups are U+202F NARROW NO-BREAK SPACE. The space before € (and before %) is U+00A0 NO-BREAK SPACE. Neither is the U+0020 you type.

Three spaces that look the same

Both no-break spaces keep a number on one line. Swap in U+0020 and a long amount can wrap mid-number. Keep them, and a plain string comparison fails:

const s = new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR').format(1234567.89);
s === "1 234 567,89";          // → false
s.includes("\u202F");          // → true
const norm = t => t.replace(/[\u00A0\u202F]/g, ' ');
norm(s) === "1 234 567,89";    // → true

formatToParts() shows which character sits where:

new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR', { style: 'currency', currency: 'EUR' })
  .formatToParts(1234.5)
  .filter(p => ['group', 'decimal', 'literal'].includes(p.type))
  .map(p => `${p.type} U+${p.value.codePointAt(0).toString(16).toUpperCase().padStart(4, '0')}`)
  .join(', ');
// → "group U+202F, decimal U+002C, literal U+00A0"

In tests, compare formatToParts() results or normalise both sides. When parsing, accept all three spaces as group separators, because users type U+0020.

Francophone variants

Values are CLDR 48.2 / Intl output for 1234567.89:

fr-CA uses the wider no-break space. fr-CH now uses the Swiss apostrophe, switches to a period decimal inside CHF amounts, and puts no space before %.

Q&A

Why won't my French-formatted number match my test string?

Your test string has U+0020. Intl uses U+202F between groups and U+00A0 before € or %. Normalise both sides, or compare formatToParts() output.

Is there a space before % in French?

In fr-FR, fr-BE and fr-CA, yes: 13 %, and it's a no-break space. fr-CH has none: 13%.

Can I use a regular space as the thousands separator?

Accept it in input. In output, keep what Intl produces, so the number can't wrap.

Do Canada, Switzerland and Belgium format like France?

Belgium (fr-BE) matches France. Canada (fr-CA) groups with U+00A0 instead of U+202F. Switzerland (fr-CH) groups with an apostrophe and writes CHF amounts with a period decimal (1'234'567.89 CHF), which is CLDR data, not a typo.

Code Examples

// Basic number
new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR').format(1234567.89)
// → "1 234 567,89"

// Currency
new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR', {
  style: 'currency',
  currency: 'EUR'
}).format(1234567.89)
// → "1 234 567,89 €"

// Percentage
new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR', {
  style: 'percent',
  minimumFractionDigits: 1
}).format(0.125)

// Compact notation
new Intl.NumberFormat('fr-FR', {
  notation: 'compact'
}).format(1234567)

Negative Number Formats

Edge Cases & Notes