Every month, Nonli's social listening measures the views generated by Reels on the Instagram accounts of France's regional daily newspapers (the "PQR"). Here is the May 2026 TOP 40.
Le Parisien strings together a third month above 100 million views. Behind it, the podium moved: La Dépêche du Midi climbed to 2nd place and La Provence onto the podium, while the jump of the month is spectacular.
1. The Month's Top 5#
Le Parisien continued its streak at 116.6 million views from 220 posts. La Dépêche du Midi gained two spots to take 2nd place: 46.4 million views, +53% in a month, with an 82.5% efficiency. La Provence climbed back onto the podium at 3rd place with 34 million views, +78%.
Le Progrès followed at 33.7 million from 357 posts, the cadence record of the month (11.5 posts/day). Le Dauphiné Libéré closed the top 5 at 30.7 million.
2. The Full TOP 40#
Le Parisien
116,567,367
La Dépêche du Midi
46,428,323
La Provence
33,993,842
Le Progrès
Le Dauphiné Libéré
L'Est Républicain
Sud Ouest
Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace
Nice-Matin
Midi Libre
Ouest-France
Var-Matin
La Montagne
Chaîne nationale des régions
Le Bien Public
L'Indépendant
Le Berry Républicain
L'Est-Éclair
La Voix du Nord
Journal L'Alsace
Le Populaire du Centre
Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire
Charente Libre
La République du Centre
Le JDC
Vosges Matin
France-Antilles Guadeloupe
Presse Océan
L'Union
Courrier Picard
Le Télégramme
La Nouvelle République
Paris-Normandie
L'Yonne Républicaine
Le Républicain Lorrain
Le Courrier de l'Ouest
La République des Pyrénées
Le Petit Bleu d'Agen
Le Maine Libre
France-Antilles MartiniqueHow to read the "Views per follower" column: 100% means an average post earns as many views as the account has followers. On Instagram, Reels circulate far beyond communities, and the regional press benefits from it more than anyone.
3. What Stands Out#
Var-Matin delivered the most spectacular month of the PQR series: views multiplied by more than ten and a jump from 26th to 12th place. The Riviera account, already noticed for its outsized ratios in February, converted efficiency into volume.
Nice-Matin more than doubled its views (+110%), and L'Est-Éclair gained five spots (18th).
Efficiency reached rare levels this month: Le Petit Bleu d'Agen at 1542%, Le Courrier de l'Ouest at 425%, Le Berry Républicain at 395%. For these small newsrooms, every Reel that takes off reaches several times the equivalent of their entire community.
4. Methodology#
The data comes from Nonli's social listening, which continuously tracks the public Instagram accounts of the French regional daily press. The ranking covers views on Reels published between May 1 and 31, 2026, read through the Nonli API. Since views keep accruing after publication, small differences with later readings are normal. Follower counts are those observed when the ranking was generated.
In the same series, previous month: April 2026 ranking.
This ranking is published every month on this blog and on Nonli's LinkedIn page. To track these metrics for your own accounts and your market, get in touch.