Since the opening of public data (Open Data) on companies registered in the French Trade and Companies Register (RCS) or the Trades Register (RM), a number of websites have appeared to publish this information. Here is a short review of the main French websites offering legal information on companies.
The 5 websites to know
Five essential websites for finding information on French companies.
Infogreffe.fr, the historic website
The historic website, run by the economic interest group (GIE) bringing together the commercial court registries across France. All the information is there, since any company must go through the registry to publish its changes.
However, the site leaves little information freely available to the public; you have to buy each document (Kbis extract, accounts, minutes of shareholder meetings...).
Societe.com, the pioneer of open data
Founded in 1999, well before the open data movement, societe.com was the first website to make more information available for free than Infogreffe.
Its company summary sheet is clearer than Infogreffe's, and its data updates are the fastest available.
Note that you can create free alerts to follow your customers, suppliers and competitors...
Pappers.fr, opening up documents
Taking full advantage of the Open Data movement, Pappers went even further by making all of a company's documents available for free: articles of association, annual accounts, beneficial owners.
This is currently the most comprehensive website, even if it is not the quickest to update its data.
In addition to these 3 major sites providing company information, other sources can complement or enrich them.
Bodacc.fr, the official bulletin of civil and commercial announcements
All acts recorded in the trade and companies register (RCS), whether incorporations, registrations, sales and transfers, insolvency proceedings, conciliation proceedings, professional recovery proceedings, amendments, deregistrations or filing of accounts, must be officially published in a gazette of announcements: the BODACC.
This site is therefore useful for consulting the original publication, which serves as the official notice to third parties about the company. You can also create alerts.
Note that the BODACC also publishes civil announcements of personal recovery procedures, i.e. information on individual over-indebtedness, potentially with the judicial liquidation of a debtor who owns assets that can be sold for the benefit of creditors, or without judicial liquidation otherwise.
This information can be useful in a professional context, for sole proprietors, micro-entrepreneurs or craftspeople.
The Company Directory (annuaire-entreprises.data.gouv.fr)
The latest arrival (in 2020) of the Open Data movement, this site is published by the French State. It was created by Etalab, the department responsible for opening up public data within the Interministerial Digital Directorate, together with the General Directorate for Enterprises.
An interesting point: this site publishes all the public data held by the administration on a company, an association or a public body. So it goes beyond companies registered with the RCS.
A few tips for making the most of these websites
Each site has its own strength; here is our advice on using them wisely.
Which source should you choose for your needs?
Each website has its strengths: some excel at giving free access to documents, others at legal news or monitoring. Rather than relying on a single platform, choose the tool that fits the question you are asking. The diagram below summarizes the most common uses for the manager of a small or medium-sized business.
Check a partner before signing a contract
Before signing a contract, granting a payment term or choosing a subcontractor, a few minutes of checking are enough to rule out the most common risks. First check that the company is properly registered and active, then that its manager matches the person you are dealing with.
Best practice: cross-check at least two sources, an official one (Company Directory, BODACC, Infogreffe) and an enriched one (Pappers, Societe.com), to confirm each important piece of information.
- Check the company's SIREN number and legal form;
- Confirm the registered office address and the registration date;
- Identify the manager and, where relevant, the beneficial owners;
- Review the latest filed accounts to assess financial health;
- Search the BODACC for any insolvency proceedings, amendments or deregistrations.
Set up automatic monitoring
Rather than checking company pages by hand on a regular basis, activate the alerts offered by Societe.com, Pappers or the BODACC. You will be notified as soon as a customer, supplier or competitor amends its articles of association, changes manager, files its accounts or becomes subject to a proceeding. It saves valuable time and is a simple way to anticipate unpaid invoices.
In practice, Societe.com alerts are the most reliable, with a notification email as soon as a change is known. They are free for up to 25 companies followed. The Plus plan raises this to 500 monitored entities, and even 2,000 with the Pro plan.
Warning: data published online may be several days or weeks behind, and a free company page has no legal value. For anything important (credit, litigation, sale of a business), request an official Kbis extract of less than three months old from the commercial court registry.
A reputable registered office address boosts your credibility
These pages are also consulted by your own customers, banks and partners: the address of your registered office appears there in full transparency. A professional business domiciliation in a business center gives you a prestigious, lasting address while keeping your business separate from your home.
In conclusion
No single platform replaces the others: the Company Directory and the BODACC for official reliability, Pappers and Societe.com for richness of data and monitoring, Infogreffe for certified documents. Combine them according to your needs and make a habit of cross-checking your sources.
Are you setting up or transferring a company and looking for a professional registered office address? Our team will support you through the process.