Alliance Française is an organisation dedicated to promoting the study and the use of the French language, as well as the appreciation of culture, particularly of those who share the French language in their common heritage.

Alliance Française is not a commercial enterprise. In each country, it is self-managed, registered according to local laws as a non-profit-making association and is run by a committee made up of members of the community from a wide range of fields, including business, science, education and culture. Its constitution is approved by Alliance Française de Paris Ile-de-France, which insists on adherence to a certain set of principles, among them the obligation for the association not to be involved in any political, religious or racial issue.

State-approved by the French authorities, Alliance Française is supported by the French Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education, which contribute to its budget, by means of staff, selective assistance connected to specific cultural or investment plans and, in some countries, subsidies for the running costs.