Pass Culture

What Pass Culture does

Pass Culture is a French government-backed digital platform operated as a société par actions simplifiée (SAS), created in 2019 and held 70% by the French State and 30% by Caisse des dépôts et consignations. It provides French youth aged 15-21 with access to cultural offers through two complementary instruments: an individual share delivered via a consumer mobile and web application (iOS, Android, web), in which eligible users receive €50 at age 17 and €150 at age 18 (with a potential €50 bonus reaching €200 total for youth with disabilities or from lower-income households following the March 2025 reform), and a collective share for school classes (collèges and lycées, now extending to 6e and 5e) managed through the Ministry of Education's ADAGE platform with a €62 million budget allocated for 2026. The platform connects 4.7 million account holders (2019-2025) with 35,000+ cultural partners across cinema, live performance, museums, books, music, and digital content, achieving 90% registration among 18-20 year olds and reaching 73% of students through collective actions in 2023-2024.

The technology stack comprises an open-source application (source code publicly accessible via GitHub) with PostgreSQL database infrastructure, hosted on Google Cloud (with a cloud migration announced in February 2025), a consumer mobile/web app (passculture.app), a professional portal (passculture.pro) where cultural actors publish offers free of charge, and institutional integrations with ADAGE for schools and EduConnect for student identity verification. An Observatoire des pratiques culturelles des jeunes operates as an internal research function, publishing monthly ritualized surveys to a representative sample of ~80,000 users and partnering with CNRS, Sciences Po, INED, Sorbonne Université, CNC, and CNM for academic studies on youth cultural behaviors. A recommendation engine personalizes offer discovery, and the platform maintains an accessibility filter integrated via the acceslibre partnership (2024). Distribution is institutionalized through an Ambassadors program (~400 youth in 13 cities plus Martinique and Réunion), four thematic Clubs (Book, Ciné, Scène, Musique) with 300 members, and partnerships with major cultural institutions including Festival de Cannes, Festival d'Avignon, ONDA, and Biarritz Nouvelles Vagues.

The business model is entirely publicly funded: there is no commercial revenue, no user fees, and no subscription pricing for end users or cultural partners. The SAS receives budget allocations from the French Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education, executes disbursements of individual credits to users (who spend directly with cultural partners), and administers collective credits for schools. Governance is exercised through a strategic committee comprising representatives of the State, Caisse des dépôts, and qualified personalities, with a government financial controller participating in an advisory capacity. No third-party private equity or venture capital investors are involved, and the entity is not listed on any exchange. The company's 180 employees operate from a single headquarters at 35 Boulevard de Sébastopol in Paris.

Name

Pass Culture

Legal name

SAS pass Culture

Website

https://pass.culture.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Pass Culture is a French state-owned digital platform (SAS, 70% French State / 30% Caisse des dépôts) providing cultural credits to 4.7 million youth aged 15-21 and to schools, connecting them with 35,000+ cultural partners across cinema, live performance, museums, books, and digital content.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Cultural Access Platform

NAICS

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71), Travel Agencies (561510)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural, Heritage & Arts Travel Agencies (THAKAFAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Language Immersion & Cultural Exchange Programs (THAKAGAE), Performing Arts & Music Lessons (Dance, Drumming, Instrument Lessons, Theater) (THAJAKAC), Cultural Heritage & Traditional Festivals (Folk, Ethnic, Indigenous) (MPAGAEAB)

Keywords

• Youth cultural access
• Cultural credit platform
• Arts education funding
• Digital cultural marketplace
• Cultural discovery platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public Funding (Government Subsidies): Pass Culture is a French government policy initiative funded entirely by public money. The individual part provides credit to young people (€50 at 17, €150 at 18, with potential €50 bonus for disabled or low-income youth). The collective part for schools had a budget of €62 million in 2026. The company operates as a SAS (simplified joint-stock company) with capital held 70% by the French State and 30% by Caisse des dépôts et consignations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Pass Culture operates a digital platform with two distinct components: an individual share providing age-based cultural credit (€20-€50) to 15-21 year-olds via a mobile app to spend on cultural offerings (books, concerts, cinema, museums, courses), and a collective share routed through ADAGE that supplies schools from 6e to terminale with budgets for educational cultural activities. A professional portal enables cultural actors to publish offers and process reservations.

Product overview

Pass Culture is a French government-backed digital platform (SAS, created 2019, 70% state-owned / 30% Caisse des dépôts) that promotes youth cultural access through two complementary shares: an individual share (application for 15–21 year olds with age-based credit) and a collective share (for school groups via ADAGE). The product portfolio consists of: (1) the consumer-facing pass Culture app (iOS/Android/web) for discovering and booking cultural offers; (2) the pass Culture pro professional portal for cultural actors to publish and manage offers; (3) the ADAGE-integrated collective share for teachers to reserve EAC activities; (4) the Ambassadors programme and four Clubs (Book, Ciné, Scène, Musique) that engage ~700 young cultural prescribers; and (5) an internal Observatoire research function that publishes monthly cultural reference studies. The platform connects over 35,000 cultural partners and 4.7 million young users (2019–2025).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Application pass Culture (part individuelle) Mobile (iOS/Android) and web application that gives young people aged 15-21 an age-based annual credit (€20 at age 15-17, €30 at age 18, €50 at age 19-21) to discover, reserve and pay for cultural offers (books, music, cinema, museums, live performance, video games, artistic courses). A March 2025 reform added a bonus of up to €100 for books, music and live performance spending.
• pass Culture pro Web platform at passculture.pro for cultural actors (libraries, bookshops, concert halls, cinemas, museums, schools of art, artistic education providers) to register, publish their cultural offers, manage reservations, handle payments and track their activity with the young audience.
• Part collective pass Culture (ADAGE) Institutional feature within the ADAGE platform that equips secondary schools (collège and lycée, including 6e and 5e) with per-pupil budgets to finance artistic and cultural education projects (residencies, workshops, performances, screenings, museum visits) led by partner cultural actors.
• Programme Ambassadeurs du pass Culture Volunteer programme engaging students in higher education to represent the pass Culture at events, in classrooms and on campuses; ambassadors are recruited and trained, and feed field insights back to the SAS.
• Clubs du pass Culture

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Festival d'AvignoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 July 2026Pass Culture presence at the Festival d'Avignon, one of France's major theater festivals, to engage young audiences with contemporary performing arts.
• Biarritz Film Festival - Nouvelles VaguesflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026Partnership renewed for the 4th consecutive year. Pass Culture Jury present at the festival, engaging young audiences with independent cinema. Annual collaboration supporting youth film discovery.
• ONDA (Office National de Diffusion Artistique)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 June 2026Partnership to strengthen proximity between 3 million young people on pass Culture and live performance (spectacle vivant). ONDA is the national office for artistic distribution in France, supporting touring and live performance across the country.
• Festival de CannesflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 May 2026Five years of partnership celebrating cinema with the Festival de Cannes. Pass Culture engages young audiences with major film festival events and French cinema.
• Association des Maires de France (AMF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational association of French mayors. Pass Culture works with AMF to reach and inform local elected officials about the platform and its benefits for youth in their municipalities.
• Assemblée des départements de FrancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRepresenting French departments. Partnership to inform departmental councils about pass Culture and support local implementation.
• Fédération des élus de la cultureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederation of local elected officials focused on culture. Collaboration on cultural policy implementation and pass Culture deployment at local level.
• CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrance's national research agency. Pass Culture partners with CNRS researchers for academic studies on youth cultural practices and behaviors.
• Sciences PocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolitical science institute. Academic partnership for research on cultural practices and policy impact analysis of the pass Culture program.
• INED (Institut National d'Études Démographiques)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational institute for demographic studies. Collaboration on quantitative studies of youth cultural behaviors and demographic analysis.
• Sorbonne UniversitécoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor French university. Academic partnership for research on youth cultural practices, digital culture, and arts education.
• CNC (Centre National du Cinéma et de l'Image Animée)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational cinema center. Partnership for cinema sector studies, supporting the film industry and analyzing youth consumption of cinematic content.
• CNM (Centre National de la Musique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational music center. Partnership for music sector studies and support for music industry engagement with youth audiences.
• OPC (Opéra de Paris)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParis Opera. Partnership for classical and contemporary performing arts offers to young audiences through pass Culture.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Viator: Tripadvisor-owned marketplace for tours, attractions, and cultural experiences globally. Comparable in marketplace mechanics (discovery, booking, partner supply) and cultural experience focus, though commercial and international in scope.
• GetYourGuide: Global marketplace for tours, attractions, and cultural experiences. Comparable to Pass Culture in its role connecting users to bookable cultural experiences (museums, theater, tours), but operates as a commercial platform across many countries rather than a single-country government policy instrument.

Emerging players

• ClassPass: Subscription marketplace for fitness, wellness, and cultural classes/workshops. Comparable in its credit/subscription model for accessing a network of cultural and creative class providers, similar to Pass Culture's individual credit for workshops and lessons.
• Headout: Curated marketplace for in-person experiences including museums, tours, and cultural attractions. Comparable to Pass Culture in the cultural discovery and last-minute booking model, particularly for museums and local experiences, though commercial and not government-subsidized.

Direct peers

• TiQets: Digital ticketing platform for museums, attractions, and cultural experiences. Most directly comparable to Pass Culture in its cultural discovery and ticketing function for museums and exhibitions, though commercial and globally distributed rather than state-funded and youth-focused.
• Culture Pass NYC: New York City's free cultural pass for NYC residents aged 13-21, providing access to cultural institutions. The closest international policy analog to Pass Culture — same target demographic, same government-backed individual credit model, same cultural discovery function — making it the most direct conceptual peer.

Regional players

• BlaBlaCar Cultural/Experience division: French digital platform with adjacent experience-discovery functions. While primarily a carpooling platform, BlaBlaCar's French origin and digital marketplace model for French users provides a regional peer benchmark for domestic digital platforms of similar scale and institutional complexity.
• FNAC (cultural retail): Major French cultural retailer (books, music, video, cultural goods) that participates as a partner on Pass Culture. Comparable as a French cultural distribution channel with similar customer demographic, though a traditional retailer rather than a digital marketplace.

Others

• Bilibili (China cultural/youth platform): While not a direct cultural booking peer, Bilibili serves as a comparable in youth-focused cultural content and community engagement in China. Relevant as a benchmark for how a youth-oriented cultural engagement platform can build community, content, and data at scale.
• Spotify France: Music streaming platform that partners with Pass Culture to surface offers to young users. While a global commercial platform rather than a direct peer, Spotify's music discovery model and partnership with Pass Culture for youth music engagement makes it thematically relevant.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgithub.com/pass-culture/pass-culture-main
• Xx.com/pass_Culture

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pass Culture