When you need to change your IP address to a French one you have several alternatives. Let’s take a look at them and hopefully you will find something useful.

What is a French IP address?

A French IP address is an IP that is assigned to an ISP or hosting provider that provides Internet services in France. The most common French IPs have the following format:

• from 57.0.0.0 to 57.255.255.255
• France Telecom – from 90.0.0.0 to 90.127.255.255
• Free SAS – from 78.192.0.0 to 78.255.255.255
• France Telecom – from 92.128.0.0 to 92.191.255.255
• France Telecom – from 86.192.0.0 to 86.255.255.255

If you are interested in finding more info regarding the French IP blocks you should check this post.

4 Ways to get a French IP address

1. Use Web Proxies

Web proxies are very simple to use and you don’t have to install anything. Just visit the proxy, type in the desired URL and press the Go or Submit button. The site will be loaded from the IP of the proxy, not from your IP address. The major problem of web proxies is the speed that is quite low.

On Free-Proxy.cz you can find several proxies located on French servers.

Must read: Risks of using a proxy site.

2. Manually change your IP using paid or open proxies

Another solution to consider is to manually change your IP. Go to sites that list proxies (e.g. SamAir.ru), find a proxy from France and then change your browser’s settings to use that proxy. Take for example 188.165.223.173:8122 and configure your browser to use it when you connect to the internet.

If you don’t know how to manually change your IP you should check these posts:

• Firefox 3.0: How To Manually Hide Your IP
• Internet Explorer: How To Manually Hide Your IP Using Internet Explorer
• Google Chrome: How To Hide Your IP While Browsing Using Google Chrome
• Safari: How To Manually Mask Your IP Using Safari

3. Use an application that exposes French IP address

Update 2015: These software apps are no longer available. I recommend trying a VPN service.

As far as I know, there is no free hide IP that can change your IP address to a French one. But there are paid solutions like Invisible Browsing and IP Privacy. If you are interested in IP Privacy you can benefits from a 50% discount (only during March 2009) exclusively for my readers.

4. Use a VPN service

VPN services offer great browsing speed and a high level of anonymity. It is probably the best choice when it comes to hiding your real IP address, but they are not free. Here is a list of VPN services that offer access to French servers.

Are you not happy with the VPN speed? Learn about the things that may impact your VPN connection.

Conclusion

To sum up, there are several options when you need to change your IP address to one from France. The easiest one is by using web proxies, but due to performance problems (speed), you may also consider the other options listed above. I would personally recommend trying a VPN service.