Paris has two purpose-built congress centres, both operated by Viparis: the Palais des Congrès at Porte Maillot and the Paris Convention Centre at Porte de Versailles. The short answer is that the size of your plenary decides first, and the balance between breakout sessions and exhibition space decides next.
Figures published by Viparis and checked on 17 September 2026. Capacities are maxima and depend on the layout.
| Criterion | Palais des Congrès de Paris | Paris Convention Centre |
|---|---|---|
| Largest room | Grand Amphithéâtre, 3,700 seats | Plenary, 5,200 seats |
| Other plenary-scale rooms | 3 further amphitheatres, from 370 seats | Modular conference rooms on level 7.3 |
| Breakout rooms | 22 conference rooms (100 to 380 seats) and 82 meeting rooms | 26 modular conference rooms and around 25 meeting rooms |
| Exhibition space | 18,000 m² across 7 spaces | 70,163 m² over four levels, with 169,400 m² of pavilions in the adjoining park |
| Location | Porte Maillot, 17th arr. | Porte de Versailles, 15th arr. |
| Public transport | Metro 1, RER C, RER E, tram T3b | Metro 12, trams T2 and T3a |
| From CDG airport | RER B to Magenta, then RER E | RER B to Châtelet – Les Halles, metro 14 to Madeleine, then metro 12 |
| From Orly airport | Metro 14 to Châtelet, then metro 1 | Metro 14 to Madeleine, then metro 12 |
| Main logistics point | Pre-booked delivery slots at a congested junction | Vehicle access through the exhibition park and long walking distances |
| Best suited to | Congresses of 1,000 to 3,700 with many parallel sessions | Congresses of 3,000 to 5,200, or congress plus large exhibition |
Sources: Viparis venue pages for the Palais des Congrès de Paris and the Paris Convention Centre, checked on 17 September 2026. Detailed figures are in our venue guides.
The two venues are often shortlisted together because they are the only buildings in Paris designed from the ground up for large congresses, and because a single operator runs both. They answer different briefs, however, and the choice usually becomes obvious once three questions have been settled: how many delegates must sit together in the plenary, how many sessions run in parallel, and how much exhibition space the programme needs.
If more than 3,700 delegates must attend the opening or closing session in a single room, the Paris Convention Centre is the only purpose-built option in Paris, with its 5,200-seat plenary. Below that threshold both venues can host the plenary, and the decision moves to the rest of the programme. Keep a margin: the seated capacity for your layout, once stage, control desk and camera positions are drawn in, is lower than the published maximum.
The Palais des Congrès was built around parallel sessions. With four amphitheatres, 22 conference rooms and 82 meeting rooms, it suits scientific and medical congresses that run a dozen tracks at the same time and need rooms of very different sizes. The Paris Convention Centre offers fewer but larger modular rooms on its upper levels, which suits programmes with a few large parallel sessions rather than many small ones.
When the exhibition is as important as the sessions, the Paris Convention Centre has the clear advantage: it sits inside the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles park, so a congress can be paired with pavilion space on a scale no other Paris venue offers. The Palais des Congrès has 18,000 m² of exhibition space, comfortable for sponsor areas and poster sessions but not for a trade show.
Porte Maillot is directly linked to the RER E and the RER C, which makes the Palais des Congrès easy to reach from the business districts in western Paris, but the junction is congested and deliveries run on strict slots. The Paris Convention Centre is served by metro 12 and two tram lines; the distances from the park entrances to the congress levels are long, so wayfinding and welcome staff need more attention on opening day. Both guides detail these points: see the Palais des Congrès de Paris and the Paris Convention Centre.
For fewer than about a thousand delegates, both buildings can feel oversized. The Salles du Carrousel beneath the Louvre, UNESCO House or a hotel conference floor may serve such a programme better; our guide to Paris convention and conference centres compares them, and the venues by capacity guide sorts the options by audience size.
The Paris Convention Centre has the larger plenary, with 5,200 seats against 3,700 for the Grand Amphithéâtre of the Palais des Congrès, and far more exhibition space. The Palais des Congrès has more rooms for parallel sessions.
Yes. Both are operated by Viparis, which also runs Paris Expo Porte de Versailles and the Salles du Carrousel.
The Palais des Congrès requires one change: RER B to Magenta, then RER E to Porte Maillot. The Paris Convention Centre requires two: RER B to Châtelet – Les Halles, metro 14 to Madeleine, then metro 12 to Porte de Versailles.
The Paris Convention Centre, because it sits inside the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles exhibition park and can be combined with its pavilions.