Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between McAllen, TX and Montreal

For one person, living is cheaper in McAllen, TX: $1,788 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in McAllen, TX
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McAllen, TX Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Montreal
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Montreal Living Index

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McAllen, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$1,788

/mo nomad

Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in McAllen, TX and in Montreal

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in McAllen, TX and in Montreal actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,788 in McAllen, TX versus $2,018 in Montreal.

McAllen, TX $1,788
Montreal $2,018

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,731 in McAllen, TX versus $3,085 in Montreal.

McAllen, TX $2,731
Montreal $3,085

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,674 in McAllen, TX versus $4,152 in Montreal.

McAllen, TX $3,674
Montreal $4,152

Living in McAllen, TX costs roughly 11% less than in Montreal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: McAllen, TX 32% above, Montreal 49% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.21 $18.21

$18.82 CA$26.61

-3.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.3 $76.3

$70.3 CA$99.4

8.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.93 $7.93

$10.66 CA$15.06

-25.61%

Cappuccino

$4.53 $4.53

$3.84 CA$5.43

17.97%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 $2.44

$1.92 CA$2.71

27.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 $1.93

$1.54 CA$2.18

25.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.97 $4.97

$6.23 CA$8.81

-20.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.40 $5.40

$7.10 CA$10.03

-23.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 $0.97

$2.31 CA$3.27

-58.01%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 $2.94

$3.14 CA$4.44

-6.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.36 $4.36

$3.21 CA$4.54

35.83%

Eggs

$3.37 $3.37

$3.52 CA$4.97

-4.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.87 $9.87

$12.81 CA$18.11

-22.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.58 $12.58

$11.46 CA$16.20

9.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.09 $15.09

$13.39 CA$18.92

12.70%

Apples (1kg)

$5.14 $5.14

$3.14 CA$4.43

63.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$1.44 CA$2.03

65.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.28 $3.28

$3.47 CA$4.91

-5.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 $2.06

$3.07 CA$4.34

-32.90%

Potato (1kg)

$2.96 $2.96

$1.90 CA$2.69

55.79%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.77 CA$2.50

48.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.74 $1.74

$2.34 CA$3.31

-25.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.55 CA$2.19

34.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.68 $8.68

$11.38 CA$16.09

-23.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.75 $15.75

$10.63 CA$15.03

48.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 $2.09

$2.27 CA$3.21

-7.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$2.82 CA$3.99

-21.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.29 $4.29

$3.20 CA$4.53

34.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 $0.78

$1.48 CA$2.09

-47.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 $0.89

$1.34 CA$1.90

-33.58%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.0K $27.0K

$28.2K CA$39.8K

-4.09%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.5K $23.5K

$19.6K CA$27.8K

19.48%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$164 $164

$76.0 CA$107

116.39%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$37.59 $37.59

$33.95 CA$48.00

10.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.3 $66.3

$42.31 CA$59.8

56.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.90 $44.90

$29.76 CA$42.07

50.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

Cinema Ticket

$12.23 $12.23

$11.15 CA$15.77

9.69%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$908 $908

$507 CA$717

79.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.5 $78.5

$57.6 CA$81.4

36.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.89 $44.89

$37.58 CA$53.1

19.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.2 $74.2

$91.9 CA$130

-19.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 $96.6

$110 CA$155

-11.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$816 $816

$1,260 CA$1,782

-35.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 $669

$948 CA$1,340

-29.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 $1,342

$2,137 CA$3,021

-37.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,144 $1,144

$1,614 CA$2,281

-29.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,676 $1,676

$4,960 CA$7,011

-66.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,700 $1,700

$3,838 CA$5,425

-55.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,646 $3,646

$2,827 CA$3,997

28.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.48

4.48

44.64%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for McAllen, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

McAllen, TX

$669 37.4%

Montreal

$948 47% 41.6% $279

Groceries & Markets

McAllen, TX

$364 20.4%

Montreal

$346 17.2% 4.8% $17

Eating Out

McAllen, TX

$277 15.5%

Montreal

$288 14.3% 3.9% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

McAllen, TX

$268 15%

Montreal

$152 7.5% 43.3% $116

Clothing & Footwear

McAllen, TX

$132 7.4%

Montreal

$133 6.6% 0.8% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

McAllen, TX

$69 3.9%

Montreal

$52 2.6% 24.9% $17

Getting Around

McAllen, TX

$8.2 * 0.5%

Montreal

$99 4.9% 1102% $90

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $816 in McAllen, TX and $1,260 in Montreal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

McAllen, TX pays 29% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $76.0 in McAllen, TX vs $70.0 in Montreal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $364 vs $346 per month, with Montreal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 McAllen, TX

🇨🇦 Montreal

🕒 Local time

21:48 9:48 PM

22:48 10:48 PM

1 h ahead of McAllen, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

142,210

1,762,949

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

CAD to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

McAllen, TX Montreal 3,070 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

McAllen, TX
Montreal

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

McAllen, TX vs Montreal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

McAllen, TX and Montreal differ by about 13% in total monthly costs ($1,788 vs $2,018 including rent). McAllen, TX is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 29% higher in McAllen, TX, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $816 in McAllen, TX versus $1,260 in Montreal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $908 in McAllen, TX versus $507 in Montreal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in McAllen, TX – a meal for two runs $76.0 versus $70.0 in Montreal. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,788 in McAllen, TX versus $2,018 in Montreal, a $3,000 budget is realistic in McAllen, TX but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes McAllen, TX the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, McAllen, TX and Montreal are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find McAllen, TX gentler on the wallet – expenses run 13% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.