Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Acuna

For one person, living is cheaper in Acuna: $1,128 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in Montreal
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Montreal Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Acuna
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Acuna Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Acuna

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,128

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Acuna

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

A single person spends $2,018 per month in Montreal vs $1,128 in Acuna, rent included.

Montreal $2,018
Acuna $1,128

A couple spends around $3,085 per month in Montreal vs $1,861 in Acuna, rent included.

Montreal $3,085
Acuna $1,861

A family of three spends $4,152 per month in Montreal vs $2,594 in Acuna, rent included.

Montreal $4,152
Acuna $2,594

Montreal costs about 79% more than Acuna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montreal sits 49% above the global median, while Acuna is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$12.22 MX$226

54.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$40.26 MX$744

74.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$8.18 MX$151

30.32%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$3.04 MX$56.1

26.32%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$1.26 MX$23.26

52.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$1.16 MX$21.43

32.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$2.25 MX$41.51

176.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$3.51 MX$64.9

102.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$1.82 MX$33.55

26.92%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$2.58 MX$47.59

21.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$1.73 MX$31.92

85.55%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$2.50 MX$46.18

40.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$7.88 MX$146

62.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$7.96 MX$147

43.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$12.30 MX$227

8.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$3.08 MX$57.0

1.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.52 MX$28.10

-5.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$1.95 MX$35.95

77.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$1.74 MX$32.16

76.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$1.95 MX$36.12

-2.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$1.86 MX$34.34

-4.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$1.36 MX$25.17

72.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$1.22 MX$22.50

27.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$4.08 MX$75.3

178.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$10.98 MX$203

-3.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$1.58 MX$29.24

43.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$3.32 MX$61.3

-15.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$0.59 MX$10.92

350.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$2.47 MX$45.72

29.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$2.14 MX$39.55

-30.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$12.51 MX$231

162.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.31 MX$24.23

2.29%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$22.6K MX$417.6K

24.58%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$26.6K MX$491.6K

-26.22%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$55.5 MX$1,025

36.96%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$21.62 MX$399

57.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$29.24 MX$540

44.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$37.72 MX$697

-21.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

$19.85 MX$367

2.17%

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$5.30 MX$97.9

110.38%

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

$507 CA$717

$242 MX$4,477

109.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$4,625 MX$85.5K

247.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$55.0 MX$1,017

4.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$43.44 MX$803

-13.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$111 MX$2,043

-16.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$93.6 MX$1,729

17.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$543 MX$10.0K

132.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$367 MX$6,785

158.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$963 MX$17.8K

121.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$817 MX$15.1K

97.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,960 CA$7,011

$2,129 MX$39.4K

132.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,838 CA$5,425

$1,319 MX$24.4K

191.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,827 CA$3,997

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.3

-60.35%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Last update for Acuna: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

Acuna

$367 32.5% 61.3% $580

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

Acuna

$268 23.8% 22.6% $78

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

Acuna

$187 16.5% 35.2% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

Acuna

$106 9.4% 30.1% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

Acuna

$136 12.1% 2% $2.7

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

Acuna

$16 * 1.4% 84.2% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

Acuna

$48 4.3% 7.2% $3.7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,260 in Montreal versus $543 in Acuna. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70.0 in Montreal versus $40.00 in Acuna. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $346 vs $268 – making Acuna the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇲🇽 Acuna

🕒 Local time

03:47 3:47 AM

02:47 2:47 AM

1 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

160,225

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Acuna 2,990 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Acuna

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

Montreal vs Acuna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montreal is pricier by about 79%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,027 per month in Montreal and $1,693 in Acuna. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Acuna, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70.0 in Montreal and $40.00 in Acuna. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 29% more in Montreal, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Acuna, where all-in costs run around $1,128, than in Montreal at $2,018. In Acuna it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Acuna – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Acuna. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Montreal makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.