Introduction: Today, social media platforms such as Twitter are used by individuals to disseminate health information, as well as to share or discuss their health status. In this context, an exploratory study was conducted to investigate whether Twitter data can serve as a proxy for monitoring seasonal influenza outbreaks in France, particularly at the regional level. Methods: An automated system capable of real-time collection and preprocessing (geolocation and classification) of flu-related tweets was developed. Data collected from August 8, 2016, to March 26, 2017, were then compared with data from the SurSaUD® syndromic surveillance system (OSCOUR® and SOS Médecins networks). Results: In total, over the study period, the system collected 238,244 tweets related to influenza, of which 130,559 were located in France. After a data cleaning step, the algorithm classified 22,939 tweets indicating influenza-like illness. A positive and statistically significant correlation was observed between tweets indicating flu-like symptoms and consultations for influenza/flu-like syndrome reported by the OSCOUR® and SOS Médecins networks, both at the national and regional levels. Discussion - Conclusion: This exploratory study demonstrated that Twitter data, when used to complement existing systems, can be used to monitor seasonal influenza epidemics in France and at the regional level. The system will need to be improved to confirm the trends observed during the next influenza epidemic.