Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Caraguatatuba

For one person, living is cheaper in Caraguatatuba: $843 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Caraguatatuba
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Caraguatatuba Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Caraguatatuba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$843

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Caraguatatuba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,018 in Montreal versus $843 in Caraguatatuba.

Montreal $2,018
Caraguatatuba $843

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,085 in Montreal versus $1,363 in Caraguatatuba.

Montreal $3,085
Caraguatatuba $1,363

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,152 in Montreal versus $1,883 in Caraguatatuba.

Montreal $4,152
Caraguatatuba $1,883

Living in Montreal is roughly 139% more expensive than in Caraguatatuba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montreal is 49% above, Caraguatatuba is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$7.70 R$39.04

144.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$29.38 R$149

139.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$9.23 R$46.80

15.49%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$2.37 R$11.99

62.03%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$1.23 R$6.25

56.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$0.88 R$4.48

75.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$2.36 R$11.96

163.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$3.27 R$16.60

117.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$1.00 R$5.09

131.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$1.61 R$8.17

95.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$1.40 R$7.10

129.29%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$1.96 R$9.96

79.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$5.89 R$29.84

117.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$3.32 R$16.82

245.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$7.98 R$40.47

67.79%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$2.15 R$10.89

46.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.67 R$8.46

-13.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$1.46 R$7.39

137.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$1.42 R$7.19

116.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$1.27 R$6.45

49.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$0.82 R$4.13

115.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$0.71 R$3.60

229.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$0.79 R$3.99

96.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$2.16 R$10.96

426.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$7.00 R$35.46

51.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$1.50 R$7.58

51.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$2.59 R$13.11

8.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$0.98 R$4.96

171.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

$23.55 R$119

228.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$1.16 R$5.89

175.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$0.73 R$3.70

102.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$3.52 R$17.85

834.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.30 R$6.59

3.08%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$15.7K R$79.3K

79.88%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$29.5K R$149.6K

-33.48%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$66.3 R$336

14.55%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$13.05 R$66.2

160.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$22.44 R$114

88.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$21.64 R$110

37.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

$16.29 R$82.6

24.49%

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$8.17 R$41.40

36.47%

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

$507 CA$717

$223 R$1,130

127.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$4,271 R$21.7K

275.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$57.8 R$293

-0.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$56.6 R$287

-33.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$78.3 R$397

17.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$59.2 R$300

85.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$416 R$2,110

202.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$237 R$1,201

299.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$879 R$4,453

143.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$522 R$2,648

208.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,960 CA$7,011

$1,681 R$8,523

194.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,838 CA$5,425

$1,217 R$6,170

215.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,827 CA$3,997

$336 R$1,704

740.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

8.15

-45.03%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Last update for Caraguatatuba: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

Caraguatatuba

$237 28.1% 75% $711

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

Caraguatatuba

$176 20.9% 49.2% $171

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

Caraguatatuba

$145 17.2% 49.8% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

Caraguatatuba

$102 12.1% 33.1% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

Caraguatatuba

$113 13.5% 15.1% $20

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

Caraguatatuba

$32 3.8% 67.2% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

Caraguatatuba

$38 4.5% 27.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,260 in Montreal and $416 in Caraguatatuba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montreal pays 741% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $70.0 in Montreal vs $29.00 in Caraguatatuba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $346 vs $176 per month, with Caraguatatuba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇧🇷 Caraguatatuba

🕒 Local time

03:22 3:22 AM

04:22 4:22 AM

1 h ahead of Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

134,873

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Montreal Caraguatatuba 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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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 Caraguatatuba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Caraguatatuba is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 139% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 741% higher in Montreal, 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: $1,260 in Montreal versus $416 in Caraguatatuba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 97% higher in Montreal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Caraguatatuba – a meal for two runs $29.00 versus $70.0 in Montreal. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $843 in Caraguatatuba versus $2,018 in Montreal, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Caraguatatuba but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes Caraguatatuba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Caraguatatuba is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Montreal, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Montreal and Caraguatatuba 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 Caraguatatuba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 139% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.