Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Alexandria

For one person, living is cheaper in Alexandria: $1,044 a month against $2,003 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Alexandria
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Alexandria Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,003

/mo nomad

Alexandria

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,044

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Alexandria

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 Alexandria actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,003 in Montreal versus $1,044 in Alexandria.

Montreal $2,003
Alexandria $1,044

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,048 in Montreal versus $1,704 in Alexandria.

Montreal $3,048
Alexandria $1,704

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,092 in Montreal versus $2,364 in Alexandria.

Montreal $4,092
Alexandria $2,364

Living in Montreal is roughly 92% more expensive than in Alexandria, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montreal is 49% above, Alexandria is 22% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.31 CA$27.52

$15.61 JMD 2,466

23.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.5 CA$108

$76.6 JMD 12.1K

-1.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.63 CA$15.15

$8.75 JMD 1,381

21.49%

Cappuccino

$3.93 CA$5.60

$5.28 JMD 834

-25.57%

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

$1.92 CA$2.73

$1.16 JMD 184

65.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$0.68 JMD 107

117.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.30 CA$8.98

$2.27 JMD 359

177.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 CA$10.24

$3.21 JMD 508

123.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CA$3.17

$4.09 JMD 646

-45.72%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.36

$3.86 JMD 610

-20.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 CA$4.19

$1.59 JMD 250

84.91%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$5.03

$3.53 JMD 557

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.19 CA$18.79

$11.57 JMD 1,826

14.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.24 CA$16.02

$6.39 JMD 1,009

75.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.81 CA$19.69

$10.30 JMD 1,626

34.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.85

$6.22 JMD 983

-45.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.06

$3.93 JMD 621

-63.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 CA$4.65

$7.47 JMD 1,180

-56.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 CA$4.10

$3.01 JMD 475

-4.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CA$2.65

$3.33 JMD 525

-44.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 CA$2.60

$2.59 JMD 409

-29.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$3.12 JMD 492

-22.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.17

$1.47 JMD 232

3.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.45 CA$16.32

$9.74 JMD 1,538

17.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 CA$14.76

$11.57 JMD 1,827

-10.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$2.90 JMD 458

-23.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$4.02

$4.07 JMD 643

-30.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 CA$3.67

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.9 CA$110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 CA$4.64

$1.17 JMD 185

177.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$3.13 JMD 494

-52.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 CA$47.09

$6.42 JMD 1,013

414.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.94

$1.42 JMD 224

-4.23%

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

$27.4K CA$39.1K

$44.9K JMD 7.1M

-38.91%

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

$20.0K CA$28.5K

$32.9K JMD 5.2M

-39.34%

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

$76.1 CA$109

$174 JMD 27.5K

-56.31%

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

$34.68 CA$49.43

$30.04 JMD 4,744

15.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.69 CA$60.9

$53.0 JMD 8,365

-19.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.94 CA$41.26

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.33 CA$28.97

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 CA$15.98

$13.14 JMD 2,074

-14.69%

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

$505 CA$720

$359 JMD 56.7K

40.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.8K

$8,225 JMD 1.3M

94.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 CA$83.4

$23.28 JMD 3,676

151.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.00 CA$54.2

$31.50 JMD 4,974

20.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 CA$132

$77.3 JMD 12.2K

19.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$151

$102 JMD 16.1K

3.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,768

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 CA$1,405

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,996

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,615 CA$2,302

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,043 CA$7,188

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,830 CA$5,459

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,920 CA$4,163

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

9.45

-52.80%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 6, 2026

Last update for Alexandria: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$986 47.9%

Alexandria

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$344 16.7%

Alexandria

$388 37.6% 13% $45

Eating Out

Montreal

$293 14.2%

Alexandria

$240 23.2% 18.2% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$154 7.5%

Alexandria

$257 24.9% 67.6% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.5%

Alexandria

$105 10.2% 20.6% $27

Getting Around

Montreal

$98 4.8%

Alexandria

$17 * 1.6% 82.8% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$51 2.5%

Alexandria

$26 * 2.5% 48.9% $25

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $75.0 in Montreal vs $77.0 in Alexandria for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $344 vs $388 per month, with Montreal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇯🇲 Alexandria

🕒 Local time

06:00 6:00 AM

05:00 5:00 AM

1 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

1,927

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Alexandria 3,040 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Alexandria

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 Alexandria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal and Alexandria differ by about 92% in total monthly costs ($2,003 vs $1,044 including rent). Alexandria is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,005 in Montreal and $1,567 in Alexandria to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $505 in Montreal versus $359 in Alexandria. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Alexandria – a meal for two runs $77.0 versus $75.0 in Montreal. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,044 in Alexandria versus $2,003 in Montreal, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Alexandria but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes Alexandria 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, Montreal and Alexandria 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 Alexandria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 92% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.