Disappointment at the meeting. On the night of December 31, 2025 to January 1, 2026, savers will pocket the interest on their Livret A. And they risk being somewhat disappointed. Indeed, if for a Livret A with a ceiling of 22,950 euros, the gains will rise to almost 500 euros (495.33 euros), savers at the level of the average outstanding (7,500 euros) will only collect 161.97 euros. And for 1,000 euros invested, they can only expect 21.58 euros in interest.
Worse, the harvest does not look better for 2026. After having already fallen twice in 2025, the Livret A rate is expected to fall further next year. With the decline in inflation, the remuneration of the French favorite savings account is in fact expected at 1.5% or even 1.4% on February 1, 2026. Hence the desire, for a large number of savers, to seek alternative solutions.
LEP remains the best alternative
First of all, if the remuneration of your Livret A disappoints you, start by checking if you are eligible for the Popular Savings Booklet (LEP). Especially since all you need to do is ask your bank. This savings product, which works exactly like a Livret A – although with a lower ceiling of 10,000 euros – is reserved for savers with modest incomes. But to stay below the eligibility threshold of 22,823 euros this year for a single person, you must earn less than approximately 1,900 euros net per month. And the great advantage of the LEP is that its rate must always be at least 0.5% higher than that of the Livret A. You will therefore always be a winner!
Life insurance benefits
Second possibility: life insurance. An alternative so natural that the collection of this savings product has increased significantly since the start of the year: 14.2 billion euros more than in 2024, for a total of 160.3 billion euros paid over the first ten months of the year. Be careful, however, because only the part called “euro funds” is guaranteed in capital, that is to say without risk, like on a Livret A.
For the most prudent savers, it is nevertheless possible to pay their savings only into euro funds, and for a return which promises to be higher: according to the first estimates of the firm Facts & Figures, the average performance of guaranteed capital supports could rise to 2.65%, or even 2.7%, in 2025. Indeed, unlike a Livret A, the rate of which is known at any time, the return on a life insurance contract is only communicated in beginning of the year by the insurer for the past year. But, provided you choose your contract carefully, you can expect more than this average return. However, be careful with taxation, because your performance will be at a minimum subject to social security contributions (17.2%).
Bonds, SCPI… slightly riskier options
Finally, several other investments should also do better than Livret A in 2026, but this time on condition of taking a little more risk. Within life insurance or via your securities account, you can, for example, directly subscribe to bonds, or bond funds, which are nothing other than “baskets” made up of numerous bonds. Currently, the highest-yielding corporate bonds can offer you up to 4% per year. For the best dated bond funds, the yield can climb up to 5% or 6%. In both cases, it will nevertheless be necessary to subtract the tax, namely the 30% of the Single Flat-rate Withholding (PFU), and accept a risk greater than that of your Livret A, the obligations being generally rated between 2 and 3 out of 7 on the risk scale.
This will also be the case if you opt instead for a real estate investment, for example via real estate investment companies (SCPI), with a risk traditionally between 3 and 4 out of 7, and an average return expected at 4.7% this year (and 7% to 10% for the best vehicles). However, say goodbye to the liquidity of your Livret A: the recommended investment period is in fact at least eight years.
