Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Arequipa

For one person, living is cheaper in Arequipa: $719 a month against $2,003 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Arequipa
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Arequipa Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,003

/mo nomad

Arequipa

🇵🇪 Peru

$719

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Arequipa

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

A single person spends $2,003 per month in Montreal vs $719 in Arequipa, rent included.

Montreal $2,003
Arequipa $719

A couple spends around $3,048 per month in Montreal vs $1,114 in Arequipa, rent included.

Montreal $3,048
Arequipa $1,114

A family of three spends $4,092 per month in Montreal vs $1,510 in Arequipa, rent included.

Montreal $4,092
Arequipa $1,510

Montreal costs about 179% more than Arequipa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montreal sits 49% above the global median, while Arequipa is 46% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.31 CA$27.52

$3.41 PEN 11.69

466.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.5 CA$108

$27.27 PEN 93.5

176.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.63 CA$15.15

$5.68 PEN 19.46

87.15%

Cappuccino

$3.93 CA$5.60

$2.47 PEN 8.45

59.11%

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

$1.92 CA$2.73

$0.82 PEN 2.82

134.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$0.38 PEN 1.31

289.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.30 CA$8.98

$2.07 PEN 7.10

204.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 CA$10.24

$4.40 PEN 15.08

63.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CA$3.17

$1.33 PEN 4.57

66.92%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.36

$1.36 PEN 4.68

125.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 CA$4.19

$1.52 PEN 5.20

93.42%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$5.03

$2.25 PEN 7.73

56.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.19 CA$18.79

$6.39 PEN 21.89

106.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.24 CA$16.02

$4.37 PEN 14.98

157.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.81 CA$19.69

$7.48 PEN 25.65

84.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.85

$1.77 PEN 6.07

92.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.06

$1.22 PEN 4.19

18.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 CA$4.65

$1.13 PEN 3.89

188.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 CA$4.10

$1.03 PEN 3.52

179.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CA$2.65

$0.64 PEN 2.19

190.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 CA$2.60

$0.67 PEN 2.30

171.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$0.54 PEN 1.86

350.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.17

$0.76 PEN 2.60

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.45 CA$16.32

$5.18 PEN 17.76

121.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 CA$14.76

$5.04 PEN 17.26

105.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$2.72 PEN 9.34

-18.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$4.02

$2.20 PEN 7.55

28.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 CA$3.67

$0.28 PEN 0.95

821.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.9 CA$110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 CA$4.64

$2.01 PEN 6.88

61.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$1.97 PEN 6.76

-24.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 CA$47.09

$13.00 PEN 44.55

154.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.94

$1.53 PEN 5.26

-11.11%

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

$27.4K CA$39.1K

$19.2K PEN 65.7K

43.06%

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

$20.0K CA$28.5K

$25.0K PEN 85.8K

-20.22%

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

$76.1 CA$109

$24.05 PEN 82.5

216.51%

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

$34.68 CA$49.43

$10.15 PEN 34.80

241.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.69 CA$60.9

$23.01 PEN 78.9

85.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.94 CA$41.26

$25.05 PEN 85.9

15.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.33 CA$28.97

$8.13 PEN 27.88

150.06%

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 CA$15.98

$7.41 PEN 25.39

51.28%

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

$505 CA$720

$74.8 PEN 256

575.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.8K

$6,596 PEN 22.6K

142.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 CA$83.4

$48.85 PEN 167

19.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.00 CA$54.2

$26.46 PEN 90.7

43.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 CA$132

$68.0 PEN 233

36.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$151

$57.3 PEN 196

84.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,768

$354 PEN 1,213

250.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 CA$1,405

$236 PEN 809

317.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,996

$714 PEN 2,449

194.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,615 CA$2,302

$418 PEN 1,431

286.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,043 CA$7,188

$1,991 PEN 6,824

153.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,830 CA$5,459

$974 PEN 3,340

293.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,920 CA$4,163

$617 PEN 2,115

373.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

-70.27%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 6, 2026

Last update for Arequipa: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$986 47.9%

Arequipa

$236 33.3% 76.1% $750

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$344 16.7%

Arequipa

$174 24.6% 49.4% $170

Eating Out

Montreal

$293 14.2%

Arequipa

$98 13.8% 66.6% $195

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$154 7.5%

Arequipa

$57 8.1% 62.7% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.5%

Arequipa

$90 12.7% 32% $42

Getting Around

Montreal

$98 4.8%

Arequipa

$13 * 1.8% 86.8% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$51 2.5%

Arequipa

$40 5.6% 22.4% $11

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,240 in Montreal versus $354 in Arequipa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 373% higher in Montreal, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $75.0 in Montreal versus $27.00 in Arequipa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $344 vs $174 – making Arequipa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇵🇪 Arequipa

🕒 Local time

09:46 9:46 AM

08:46 8:46 AM

1 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

17,062

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, 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).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Between locations

Montreal Arequipa 6,890 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Arequipa

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 Arequipa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal costs about 179% more than Arequipa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,005 per month in Montreal and $1,078 in Arequipa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arequipa, 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 $75.0 in Montreal and $27.00 in Arequipa. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 97% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Arequipa, where all-in costs run around $719, than in Montreal at $2,003. In Arequipa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Arequipa costs $719 versus $2,003 in Montreal. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Arequipa. 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.