Job fairs in France 2026: city by city, who's hiring when

With 305 800 executive recruitments forecasted in France for 2026 according to the latest APEC projections (a return above the 300 000 hiring threshold after two years in decline), the French employment market is picking up again. For candidates, job fairs remain one of the most efficient channels to meet several employers in a single day. For HR teams, it's a qualified candidate acquisition channel that still justifies the travel.

This calendar lists the 11 major confirmed job and recruitment fairs in France for 2026, sorted by date. For each event : exact dates, venue, target audience and practical tips.

Why target French job fairs in 2026

Three dynamics make 2026 favorable :

• Executive hiring rebound : +4 % vs 2025 per APEC, driven by high value-added services (tech, consulting, financial services, energy transition)

• Persistent shortage in transition energy, cybersecurity, nursing, primary school teachers, construction

• Apprenticeship as political priority : dedicated forums and weeks multiply in spring and back-to-school

Seasonality is strong and explains why most fairs cluster in two windows :

• January-March : H1 hiring peak, "professional mobility" and "first job" fairs

• September-November : back-to-school, executive recruitment, alternance and career changes

Summer and the December lull host very few job events. Plan your travel accordingly.

All 11 dates at a glance

Always check the organiser's official website before travelling : some dates may shift or split between online and in-person.

Fair / forum	Venue	2026 dates	Type
Salon du Travail et de la Mobilité Professionnelle	Grande Halle de la Villette, Paris	22-23 Jan 2026	Employment + retraining + mobility
Forum Objectif Emploi (10th edition)	Centre Panthéon, Paris	2-5 Feb 2026	Graduate / executive employment
Paris pour l'emploi des jeunes	Halle de la Villette annex, Paris-Montreuil	19 Feb 2026	Youth 16-30, apprenticeship
Forum de l'emploi Armée du Salut (3rd ed.)	Palais de la Femme, Paris 11th	31 March 2026	Social inclusion employment
Pépites de l'Alternance	Brittany region, multi-site	1 Apr - 8 Jul 2026	Apprenticeship
Forum Jobs d'été (CIDJ + Info Jeunes IDF)	Saint-Ouen	22 Apr 2026	Student summer jobs
Forum de l'emploi Fontenay-sous-Bois	Fontenay-sous-Bois (94)	6 May 2026	Local employment + training
Forum Cap Emploi Charleville-Mézières	A.A.E.A., Charleville-Mézières	28 May 2026	Disability employment
Semaine de l'Alternance - Cohésion Sociale	Multi-site	1-5 June 2026	Social sector apprenticeship
Forum 24H Emploi Formation Tours	Palais des Congrès, Tours	3 Sept 2026	Multi-sector, broad public
Forum des Formations Euroméditerranée	Marseille (Euromed perimeter)	23 Sept 2026	Training + local employment

January-February 2026 : the H1 peak

Salon du Travail et de la Mobilité Professionnelle (22-23 January 2026)

The flagship opening event of the year, at the Grande Halle de la Villette in Paris. The fair covers four interlinked themes : employment, continuous training, career change and mobility. Hall-style format with multiple zones, hourly conferences, "speed-meeting" spaces with on-site recruiters. One of the most complete events of the January-March season, attracting both executives in mobility, jobseekers and people in retraining.

Best for : executives repositioning, households planning a career change, active candidates across multiple sectors.

Forum Objectif Emploi (2-5 February 2026)

Tenth edition of this high-impact university event, held in the Galleries of the Centre Panthéon (Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University). Across four days, around a hundred employers receive students and recent graduates with CV workshops, mock interviews and sectoral conferences. Format complementary to Paris pour l'Emploi (broader public) : here the audience is targeted master's/doctoral.

Best for : Paris 1 and other Île-de-France university students, recent bac+4/+5 graduates, junior executives.

Paris pour l'Emploi des Jeunes (19 February 2026)

250+ employers gathered on a single day in Paris-Montreuil (Halle de la Villette annex), from 10am to 5pm. Format dedicated to youth aged 16 to 30 : training centres, apprenticeship contracts, alternance, first jobs, internships. Visitor rotation is dense, speed-meeting format dominates. Event is free with recommended online registration.

Best for : students, young people seeking apprenticeship or first jobs, parents accompanying a child in orientation.

March-May 2026 : inclusion, apprenticeship, summer jobs

Forum de l'emploi de l'Armée du Salut (31 March 2026)

Third edition at the Palais de la Femme (Paris 11th), from 10am to 5pm. Open to all audiences with focus on professional inclusion of people distant from employment. Intimate format with CV writing workshops, self-presentation workshops, direct meetings with social and inclusive employers.

Best for : people in precarious situations, candidates without recent experience, employers with inclusion missions.

Pépites de l'Alternance (1 April - 8 July 2026)

Regional programme in Brittany spread over three months, organised by GREF Bretagne. Hybrid format between fair and roadshow, with stops in several Breton cities dedicated to alternance and apprenticeship. For regional organisers, it's an interesting model of multi-site coordination on a single theme.

Best for : young Bretons in apprenticeship projects, parents, career counsellors, Breton companies seeking apprentices.

Forum Jobs d'été (22 April 2026)

Co-organised by CIDJ and the Info Jeunes Île-de-France network in Saint-Ouen, this mono-thematic forum targets student summer jobs (July-August). Wednesday afternoon format adapted to school rhythm, with traditional sector employers (catering, animation, retail, events, theme parks, e-commerce logistics).

Best for : high school and university students looking for a summer job, summer-specialised temp agencies.

Forum de l'emploi de Fontenay-sous-Bois (6 May 2026)

Typical Val-de-Marne local format, organised by France Travail and the municipality. The local agency leads the central pavilion with around thirty local employers (home services, retail, logistics, regional construction). Short format, free, no prior registration.

Best for : eastern 94 jobseekers, candidates with reduced geographic mobility, employers with local hiring needs.

May-June 2026 : regional and thematic events

Forum Cap Emploi Charleville-Mézières (28 May 2026)

Cap Emploi is the French public employment service specialised in disability. The 2026 Ardennes edition takes place Thursday 28 May at the A.A.E.A. (8 rue Pierre Curie, Charleville-Mézières), from 9am to noon. Concentrated morning format : about twenty Cap Emploi partner employers receive candidates with disabilities for interviews or information on accessible positions.

Best for : disabled candidates in Ardennes, OETH employers (obligation to employ disabled workers).

Semaine de l'Alternance - Cohésion Sociale (1-5 June 2026)

National programme over five days, dedicated to apprenticeship in social cohesion professions (animation, mediation, social intervention, home services). Several cities host simultaneous forums in person and national webinars. The sector faces chronic shortage : opportunity for employers to capture young apprentices before back-to-school.

Best for : young people orienting toward social professions, social and medico-social employers, apprenticeship training organisations.

September 2026 : the recruitment back-to-school

Forum 24H Emploi Formation Tours (3 September 2026)

Back-to-school event at the Palais des Congrès in Tours. The 24H Emploi format is a registered brand deployed in several French cities throughout the year. In Tours, the 2026 edition is confirmed for 3 September, single day from 9am to 6pm, multi-sector with strong representation of home services, regional construction and large retail chains. Hall format, free access with recommended online registration.

Best for : Tours metropolitan area jobseekers, Centre-Val de Loire mobility candidates, students in first job search at back-to-school.

Forum des Formations Euroméditerranée Marseille (23 September 2026)

Organised by the Marseille Maison de l'Emploi in the Euroméditerranée perimeter (the developing urban hub in northern Marseille), from 1.30pm to 5.30pm. Afternoon format suited to youth and jobseekers looking to train for the sector's economic needs (port logistics, tertiary, construction, hospitality).

Best for : young Marseille residents in orientation, jobseekers looking to retrain, Euromed training partners.

Three practical tips

1. Target recruiters before D-day. Most major fairs publish the exhibitor list 2 to 4 weeks ahead. Identifying 8 to 12 priority employers efficiently splits the 3 to 4 typical visit hours. Preparing a CV tailored per target profile (not a generic one) significantly increases response rate.

2. Go midweek for two-day fairs. On two-day formats (Salon du Travail, Forum Objectif Emploi), the first day is historically less crowded than the second. Recruiters are more available, queues shorter, conversations longer.

3. Follow up at D+3. Recruiters are buried under CVs after a fair. A short follow-up email referencing the discussed position and the contact's name multiplies response chances by three or four.

On the organisation side, these forums run on substantial logistics : exhibitor registration, stand planning, candidate management upstream, meeting tracking. Keyqo, a French software specialised on exhibitor management and interactive floor plan editing, supports notably public structures (local authorities, Employment Houses, Chambers of Commerce) that organise these recurring events.

FAQ

What are the biggest job fairs in France in 2026 ?

The three largest by visitor volume are the Salon du Travail et de la Mobilité Professionnelle (22-23 January 2026, Grande Halle de la Villette), Paris pour l'Emploi des Jeunes (19 February 2026, 250+ employers on one day), and the Forum Objectif Emploi from Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (2-5 February 2026). All are held in Paris in the January-February window, the historical H1 executive recruitment peak.

When is Paris pour l'Emploi des Jeunes 2026 ?

Paris pour l'Emploi des Jeunes 2026 takes place on 19 February 2026 in Paris-Montreuil, from 10am to 5pm. The free event brings together over 250 employers and training centres, on a single day dedicated to young people aged 16 to 30 looking for apprenticeship, internship or first jobs.

Are job fairs free in France ?

Yes, almost all job and recruitment fairs in France are free for candidates. No entry fee is requested. Most propose recommended but not mandatory online registration, which eases access and allows receiving the detailed programme in advance. Only potential costs are travel and accommodation if coming from another region.

What is the best job fair for young people in 2026 ?

For students and recent graduates, two events to prioritise : Paris pour l'Emploi des Jeunes (19 February 2026) for a speed-meeting format with 250+ employers, and Forum Objectif Emploi (2-5 February 2026, Paris 1) for a university format targeted bac+4/+5 with in-depth workshops. In regions, apprenticeship programmes like Pépites de l'Alternance in Brittany (April-July 2026) open access to apprenticeship contracts before back-to-school.

Are there disability-specific job fairs in France in 2026 ?

Yes, the Cap Emploi network organises several dedicated forums across France. The Charleville-Mézières 2026 edition takes place 28 May 2026 from 9am to noon at the A.A.E.A. (8 rue Pierre Curie). Other regional Cap Emploi branches organise their own local forum, check capemploi.info according to your department.

How to find job fairs near me in France ?

Three reference sources to check regularly : the official France Travail calendar (francetravail.fr, regional agenda), regional agendas like Mon Emploi en Île-de-France or GREF Bretagne, and specialised platforms like PMEJob or Studyrama Emploi which aggregate national calendars. Also follow regional France Travail accounts on LinkedIn, which announce local forums 3 to 6 weeks in advance.

Going further

If you follow other sector calendars or organise events yourself, here are our complementary guides :

• Tech trade shows in France 2026: the B2B calendar of major events : another sector calendar with CES Europe, Viva Tech, Big Data & AI Paris

• Organize a professional event: 12-step complete checklist : operational method to organise on the organiser side

• Organize a trade show: complete A-to-Z guide : full guide to structure the logistics of a forum or fair

Sources :

• APEC, 2026 executive recruitment forecasts, corporate.apec.fr

• France Travail, 2026 employment agenda, francetravail.fr

• Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University, Forum Objectif Emploi 2026

• Cap Emploi national, 2026 forum calendar, capemploi.info

• GREF Bretagne, Pépites de l'Alternance 2026 agenda

• PME Job, 2026 employment agenda, pmejob.fr

• Marseille Maison de l'Emploi, 2026 employment events

• evous Paris, 2026 job fairs agenda