The history of trams in France dates back more than 150 years, to a time before modern motors and electrically powered transport. It was during the first half of the nineteenth century that the first tram was started in Loire, France. Some claim that this initial tram was based on a steam system. The other earlier types of trams include the horse trams, girder track trams and neumatic trams, which ran on compressed air. Out of these different types of trams, the one that functioned on the basis of compressed air survived for a longer time in France than the other types before electric trams were introduced. The first French electrical tram network came into existence in the year 1895 in the city of Versailles, which replaced steam based trams in France.

Over the next century the trams in France went under several developments. These developments were hampered during the two World Wars, and picked up again only after France could come out of its crisis caused by severe losses in the wars. There were cities like Lille and Saint-Etienne that used the trams as their mode of transport even during war, though in other parts of France, the tram system came to a halt. The latest trams in France have modernized track systems and designer comfordiv coaches. These improvements have given the tram system a new look, making it one of the most attractive modes of transport within the cities of France.

Modern trams in France include ground level power supply trams, which were developed by the Bordeaux tramway network in France. It is also called Alimentation par Sol, abbreviated as APS. These types of trams have the deck floor at the same level as the roads, and are therefore are more convenient to board or detrain compared with other types of trams. This technology was initially developed by Innorail, which is now owned by Alstom the world leader in tram development.

Another of the trams in France is the Guided Light Transit, which has rubber tires and is guided by a fixed rail laid in the ground. This was developed by Bombardier Transportation, a German corporation headquartered in Berlin. Another type of tram that runs on rubber tires is the Translohr system, which was developed by the local French company Lohr Industrie. The other modernized trams in France include the Eurotram and Citadis tram, which have innovative designs and concepts that improve upon their earlier counterparts.