How to find an out-of-hours doctor in France

Your usual doctor in France should be available during regular working hours, generally 08:00 to 20:00, and sometimes on Saturday morning.

If, exceptionally, your doctor cannot see you during their usual hours, they may provide details of a colleague you can contact instead.

If, however, you need out-of-hours care during nights, weekends, and public holidays, there are several different options both in person and online.

Call the national helpline: 116 117

If you need assistance finding an out-of-hours doctor, calling the national helpline on 116 117 is a good place to start. 

This service connects you with volunteer GPs who can guide you to an available doctor in your area.

Whether you need a home visit or an appointment at an on-call medical centre, this line can help direct you to the right care.

Maisons médicales de garde

Maisons médicales de garde (MMGs) are on-call medical centres that offer out of hours care on evenings, weekends, and public holidays when other surgeries are closed. 

These centres are typically linked to local hospitals, retirement homes, or multidisciplinary clinics and provide care for urgent medical issues that require diagnosis and treatment. 

While you can go directly to an MMG for urgent care, it is recommended to call 15 (the emergency services number) first in cases of a medical emergency.

The cost of a consultation with a médecin de garde is more than for a normal-hour appointment but is still state-reimbursed at the usual 70% (additional dépassements d’honoraires are not usual), with  the rest covered by your mutuelle top-up health insurance.

There are allowed extra amounts on top of the standard fee (eg. €30 for to see a general practitioner), for example up to €42.50 for a consultation between 20:00 and midnight and €46 for a home visit. 

Extras can rise to €51.50 for consultations between midnight and 06:00 and €59.50 to be seen at home.

To find the nearest MMG, search for ‘maison médicale de garde’ followed by your town or department name on Google, or use the sante.fr website.

SOS Médecins and online consultations

SOS Médecins is a well-known service offering home visits and in-person consultations outside regular hours. 

You can book an appointment via SOS Médecins France, through its app, or by calling 3624 (€0.15 per minute plus the price of the call). 

SOS Médecins is available 24/7 and can arrange either in person visits or a telephone or online consultation. Locate the nearest branch to you using their online map.

As with maisons médicales de garde the prices vary depending on the time of day and type of service, with home visits at €72.50 between 20:00 and midnight. 

Doctors in the SOS Médecins network accept the carte Vitale, so you can be reimbursed by the state (70%) and your mutuelle if you have one.

Online consultations with Qare

For online consultations, Qare is a private company that offers video calls with a GP from 06:00 to midnight. 

Qare can supply you with a prescription if necessary, and consultation prices range from €30 to €100. Qare will also accept your carte Vitale for reimbursement.

Other drop-in clinics and emergency care

In cities you will increasingly find other drop-in medical clinics where it is possible to see a GP or nurse in the evening or at weekends, without them being official maisons médicales de garde.

They often record all out-of-hours patients as having been seen due to an emergency, but Assurance Maladie is seeking to reduce this practice.

You can often find such doctors with a search on the Doctolib website by specifying that you are looking for a doctor immediately/shortly in your local area. 

Click the compass arrow in the Où ? box to use your location, then click the Disponibilités tab near the top of the results page and choose Aujourd’hui for appointments available today.

If you are dealing with a medical emergency and cannot quickly find a doctor, another option is to phone 15 for immediate assistance. 

Medical professionals on the line can guide you on the best course of action, whether it is visiting a clinic or heading to an A&E department.