How long should you be prepared in France? 72 hours.

The French government's guide Tous responsables face aux risques builds its emergency kit around the first 72 hours of a crisis, which it says are often the hardest. Keep 6 litres of bottled water per person, food that needs no cooking, a battery radio, a torch, medicines, cash and copies of your documents.

The official rule in France
hours
72 hours on your own, by official advice
010 days
Water
litres in total, per person
Emergency
free from any phone
At a glance

The official numbers for France

Every figure comes from the official source, linked below.

Plan forThe first 72 hoursThe checklist is titled Le kit pour 72h
Water6 litres per personBottled. The guide gives a total, not a daily amount
FoodNon-perishable, needs no cookingTins, baby jars, pet food
Check your kitTwice a year
Emergency numbers112 · 15 · 17 · 18112 EU · 15 ambulance · 17 police · 18 fire · 114 by text
The kit

What the official kit list includes

The kit from the government guide Tous responsables face aux risques.

  1. Battery radio with spare batteries01
  2. First-aid kit02
  3. Medicines03
  4. Basic tools (multi-tool, can opener)04
  5. Non-perishable food that needs no cooking05
  6. Warm clothes and a survival blanket06
  7. Torch, candles, lighter or matches07
  8. Phone charger08
  9. Spare glasses09
  10. Drinking water, 6 litres per person10
  11. Cash11
  12. Spare house and car keys12
  13. Books and games13
  14. Photocopies of documents in a waterproof pouch14

Translated from French by Kaulav.

Water maths

How much water to store

The guide says 6 litres of bottled water per person for the kit. For a household, that works out to:

1 personlitres
2 peoplelitres
3 peoplelitres
4 peoplelitres
5 peoplelitres

Kaulav's arithmetic from the guide's 6 litres per person.

Beyond the kit

Also advised

What the official guidance adds.

Sources

Straight from the source

Kaulav is independent. We summarise official guidance, link to it, and never rewrite safety steps.

What is the French 72-hour kit?

“Lorsqu'une crise survient, les premières 72h sont souvent les plus éprouvantes.”

“When a crisis strikes, the first 72 hours are often the hardest.” (Kaulav's translation)

It's the emergency kit in the government's Tous responsables guide: water, no-cook food, a battery radio, a first-aid kit, medicines, a torch, warm clothes, cash, spare keys and copies of documents, enough for the first 72 hours.

Quoted from the official source. In an emergency, call 112.
Good to know

Questions people ask

What is the French 72-hour kit?

It's the emergency kit in the government's Tous responsables guide: water, no-cook food, a battery radio, a first-aid kit, medicines, a torch, warm clothes, cash, spare keys and copies of documents, enough for the first 72 hours.

How much water does France recommend storing?

6 litres of bottled water per person for the 72-hour kit. The guide gives this as a total, not a daily amount.

Who publishes the French guide?

The French government, through the SGDSN, the Secretariat-General for National Defence and Security. It's on info.gouv.fr.

From the official advice to your kitchen table

Kaulav turns this into
your household's plan.

A kit sized to who lives with you, reminders before anything expires, offline maps and a power-cut mode, all built on France's official advice. Works with no internet. iPhone, early 2027.

Join the waitlist · $9.99 founding price
Compare

Every government gives a different number

United KingdomdaysCabinet OfficeUnited StatesSeveral daysReady.gov · FEMAGermanyideallydaysBBKNetherlandshoursNCTV · Denk vooruitFranceYou are herehoursSGDSNSwedenat leastdaysMSB, now MCFEuropean Unionat leasthoursEuropean Commission