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Newspapers
The main French newspapers have a reading age (RA) of about 15 to 16 yrs (I sampled 10 articles from each one below). This means that they at about C1 and are not really for beginners.
In order of popularity, the 4 key ones are:
Aujourdhui en France , and Le Parisien
Centre left (like the Guardian). Establishment/Elites’ paper. RA 16.6 yrs
Dedicated sports newspaper. RA 15.54 yrs
You might think that a quick-read populist paper like 20 minutes (the time it takes to read it) would be at a lower level. Not so - in fact the sample gave a readability of 17.23 yrs - possibly because it has to use denser text to get the information over. You can however download a free pdf of the current paper (top left of the main page).
Easy to read newspapers:
PlayBac is an organisation which publishes some short daily and weekly papers/magazines for young French people. They are short and cover about 10 mins of reading. They suggest a target age range for French children; I have checked the readabilities, and they are not far out, so I have put in a suggested language level.
Le Petit Quotidien - for 6 to 10 yrs (B1)
Mon Quotidien - for 10 to 13 yrs, and (B2)
L'ACTU (short for les actualitiés) - for 13 to 18 yrs. (B2 - C1)
To check which one is right for you, there are examples from one year ago on the site (to the right on the main page). Cost is about € 19 a month; they will deliver abroad, though you will pay more for this. You can get loads of previous issues if you subscribe.
JDE (Journal des Enfants). Weekly news, targeting 9 - 14 yr olds (overall RA is actually 10.3 yrs, so B1/B2). Paper or digital form from € 1.60 a week.
1jour1actu. News and Information, with weekly paper, and website (including really good animated clips - 1jour1question). Overall RA is 12.2 yrs (B2), but a lot of it is visual, with a limited vocabulary - therefore probably accessible with B1+. A lot of content is free on the site, but subscriptions start at about € 60 a year.
One interesting online news/affairs online publication is Le Journal de Montréal. This has a readability of just below 15 yrs, but seems significantly easier to read (about B2) - probably because of the American influence on the language. Free, with loads of short articles, albeit with a Canadian/Montreal bias.
Magazines
There are a large number of mainstream weekly or monthly French magazines. As most are to do with the television, I have separated out the ones with a wider appeal. From here, the most popular 10 for each (in order) are:
General Interest
Television
The readabilities of the 'General Interest' group are typically around 16 yrs, which corresponds to C1 (interestingly, this is a level higher than popular books).
Easy to read magazines:
This is a French organisation which publishes two main magazines for people learning French. Each article has the CEF grade at the start.
1. Beginner to Intermediate. They say A1 to B1, but the actual average RA is 11.5 yrs, so closer to B2. With glossaries, this probably lowers it all a bit. As always, try the sample to make sure you can manage it easily.
2. Intermediate to Advanced. They say B1 to C2, and the actual average RA is 13.4 yrs, so probably close to what they say.
The magazines come out every 2 months. There are 50 pages covering a range of general interest topics, from about € 100 a year. This includes a CD to help with understanding and using spoken language.
I really like Bien Dire - it has good content, and is well written. Each article has the CEF grade at the start and new vocabulary is eased in contextually. They give translation of key words, but apart from this, everything is in French. Some grammar and quizzes (which I generally avoid).
Rendez-vous, and La Vie Outre-Manche are two magazines by this English company, which come out every two months. They have an optional CD of some of the text, plus spoken exercises. General articles cover French culture, entertainment, places to visit, etc. From £ 33 per year, with free delivery in the UK.
Rendez-vous is 36-40 pages, and is at 'lower intermediate' level (usually means B1). The average RA of the articles is actually about 14.9 yrs (I checked and rechecked it carefully), which is nearer to B2/C1. Even allowing for the use of glossaries, this does seem a bit harder than the target audience. Unfortunately, there don't seem to be any samples for people to check before they buy.
La Vie Outre-Manche is 40-44 pages, and is for 'broadly upper intermediate to advanced' levels (usually means B2 to C1/2). The RA is about 16.4 yrs, which would correspond with the suggested range.
Key words are translated in a glossary, and they sometimes use parallel text. They also have work on points of grammar, and exercises for comprehension and vocabulary (again, I avoid this sort of stuff).
There are also many children's magazines, and two of the main sources are:
Fleurus Presse, and Bayard Presse
These are typically aimed at specific age ranges, so you can match them up to your level on the CEF. There are also usually examples you can check out (look for ‘feuilleter’) – as always, make sure you can manage them easily.
You’ll get idiomatic French phrases, and insights into the lives and interests of French children. There are also often neologisms incorporating English words, which make it all easier to understand.
Typically 1 issue a month, at about € 5 each. You also pay extra for delivery to another country.