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How many satellites does France have?

As of October 17, 2026, France owns 102 active satellites, 0.6% of the world's 17,101 and the 6th most of any country. The biggest single group is Kineis, with 25 satellites (25% of the total).

102

Active satellites

0.6%

Of the world total

6th

Rank among countries

Launches in 2025

An Ariane 5 rocket standing on its launch pad at night under floodlights — Arianespace's Ariane 5 rocket with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope on the launch pad at the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, on December 23, 2021. Photo: NASA/Bill Ingalls.

What they do

Communications accounts for 52 of France's active satellites (51%).

Communications52 (51.0%)
Signals intelligence23 (22.5%)
Technology demonstration8 (7.8%)
Earth imaging6 (5.9%)
Science5 (4.9%)
Earth science4 (3.9%)

Where they orbit

Upper low Earth orbit (600 to 2,000 km)39 (38.2%)
Lower low Earth orbit (80 to 600 km)36 (35.3%)
Geosynchronous orbit17 (16.7%)
Highly elliptical orbit6 (5.9%)
Medium Earth orbit2 (2.0%)

Who operates them

The largest operators, and the largest families of satellites, owned by France.

By operator

Kineis25 (24.5%)
EutelsatSA23 (22.5%)
Unseen Labs19 (18.6%)
CNES8 (7.8%)
DGA/CNES6 (5.9%)
DGA3 (2.9%)

By satellite family

Kineis25 (24.5%)
BRO18 (17.6%)
EUTELSAT14 (13.7%)
Eutelsat5 (4.9%)
Pleiades4 (3.9%)

Operator names are as written in GCAT, usually transliterated from the original language. Families group satellites by the first word of their name.

How the fleet has grown

At the end of 2005, France had 65 payloads in Earth orbit. By the end of 2025 it had 177.

Payloads owned by France in Earth orbit at the end of each year, working or not.

Launches

France has made 354 orbital launch attempts since its first in 1965, and 7 of them in 2025. Its busiest year was 1999 with 16.

Orbital launch attempts by France each year. 2026 is partial, through October 16.

Sources and method

GCAT by Jonathan McDowell, CC BY 4.0. Updated October 17, 2026. Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat).
Active means GCAT lists the satellite as working or possibly still transmitting, a status GCAT says is often a guess. Ownership is by the owner's country, not the launch country.