Montpellierruns on a handful of strong industries. If you’re job-hunting or weighing a move, here’s where the opportunities (and the big-name employers) are.
Top industries & employers
Health, medtech & biotech
CHU de Montpellier, Horiba Medical, Sensorion, Institut du Cancer de Montpellier, Dedalus, MedVallée cluster
The métropole has organised its whole economic strategy around MedVallée, a global-health cluster spanning hospital research, medical devices, diagnostics and digital health — and the medical faculty it sits on has taught continuously since 1220.
Software, gaming & digital
Ubisoft Montpellier, Dell, IBM, Sopra Steria, Teads legacy teams
French Tech Méditerranée holds the French Tech Capitale label, and Ubisoft's Montpellier studio — Rayman, Beyond Good & Evil — is one of the best-known games studios in Europe outside the capital cities.
Research & higher education
Université de Montpellier, CNRS, INRAE, CIRAD, IRD, Institut Agro
An unusually strong concentration in agronomy, tropical and development research alongside the biomedical base — CIRAD and IRD give the city a research footprint pointed at Africa and the tropics that no other French city has.
Agriculture, wine & agri-food
Languedoc and Pic Saint-Loup estates, Vignerons du Sud cooperatives, INRAE Montpellier
The Languedoc is the largest wine region in France by area and it starts at the city limits, with a research and cooperative infrastructure to match; the wine trade is a live part of the local economy, not scenery.
Public sector & administration
Ville et Métropole de Montpellier, Région Occitanie, Préfecture de l'Hérault, Rectorat
Montpellier is the préfecture of the Hérault and shares regional capital functions with Toulouse, so public administration, the university and the CHU together account for a large share of stable local employment.
Tourism & events
Sud de France Arena, Corum congress centre, Montpellier Tourisme, coastal resorts
A conference and events economy on top of a beach economy — the coast is ten kilometres away and the season is long, which shapes hiring, rents and how empty the city feels in August.
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