Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Caruaru

For one person, living is cheaper in Caruaru: $665 a month against $2,003 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Caruaru
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Caruaru Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,003

/mo nomad

Caruaru

🇧🇷 Brazil

$665

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Caruaru

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,003 in Montreal versus $665 in Caruaru.

Montreal $2,003
Caruaru $665

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,048 in Montreal versus $1,106 in Caruaru.

Montreal $3,048
Caruaru $1,106

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,092 in Montreal versus $1,547 in Caruaru.

Montreal $4,092
Caruaru $1,547

Living in Montreal is roughly 201% more expensive than in Caruaru, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montreal is 49% above, Caruaru is 50% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.31 CA$27.52

$5.95 R$29.70

224.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.5 CA$108

$29.63 R$148

154.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.63 CA$15.15

$8.08 R$40.35

31.56%

Cappuccino

$3.93 CA$5.60

$1.53 R$7.62

156.86%

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

$1.92 CA$2.73

$1.06 R$5.27

81.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$0.70 R$3.50

111.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.30 CA$8.98

$1.74 R$8.71

262.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 CA$10.24

$2.33 R$11.63

208.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CA$3.17

$1.23 R$6.13

80.49%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.36

$1.12 R$5.62

173.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 CA$4.19

$1.38 R$6.88

113.04%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$5.03

$2.09 R$10.43

68.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.19 CA$18.79

$4.54 R$22.65

190.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.24 CA$16.02

$5.07 R$25.31

121.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.81 CA$19.69

$7.68 R$38.34

79.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.85

$1.38 R$6.89

146.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.06

$1.02 R$5.07

41.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 CA$4.65

$0.86 R$4.27

279.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 CA$4.10

$1.13 R$5.63

154.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CA$2.65

$1.64 R$8.20

13.41%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 CA$2.60

$1.24 R$6.19

46.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$0.76 R$3.78

219.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.17

$0.89 R$4.45

70.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.45 CA$16.32

$3.05 R$15.23

275.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 CA$14.76

$7.83 R$39.10

32.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$1.53 R$7.66

45.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$4.02

$2.44 R$12.18

15.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 CA$3.67

$0.93 R$4.62

177.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.9 CA$110

$26.88 R$134

186.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 CA$4.64

$1.22 R$6.09

166.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$1.94 R$9.69

-23.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 CA$47.09

$3.11 R$15.51

962.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.94

$1.29 R$6.46

5.43%

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

$27.4K CA$39.1K

$23.6K R$118.0K

16.01%

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

$20.0K CA$28.5K

$33.1K R$165.1K

-39.59%

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

$76.1 CA$109

$56.4 R$282

34.92%

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

$34.68 CA$49.43

$8.13 R$40.58

326.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.69 CA$60.9

$9.96 R$49.73

328.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.94 CA$41.26

$14.85 R$74.1

94.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.33 CA$28.97

$30.39 R$152

-33.10%

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 CA$15.98

$7.14 R$35.65

57.00%

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

$505 CA$720

$109 R$545

362.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.8K

$6,766 R$33.8K

136.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 CA$83.4

$40.41 R$202

44.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.00 CA$54.2

$50.7 R$253

-25.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 CA$132

$89.4 R$446

3.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$151

$66.1 R$330

60.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,768

$164 R$820

655.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 CA$1,405

$132 R$657

649.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,996

$349 R$1,740

502.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,615 CA$2,302

$263 R$1,314

513.56%

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

$263 R$1,312

1011.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

-59.45%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 6, 2026

Last update for Caruaru: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$986 47.9%

Caruaru

$132 19.7% 86.7% $854

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$344 16.7%

Caruaru

$171 25.5% 50.3% $173

Eating Out

Montreal

$293 14.2%

Caruaru

$111 16.5% 62.2% $182

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$154 7.5%

Caruaru

$75 11.1% 51.5% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.5%

Caruaru

$111 16.6% 16.4% $22

Getting Around

Montreal

$98 4.8%

Caruaru

$42 6.2% 57.6% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$51 2.5%

Caruaru

$29 4.4% 43.3% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,240 in Montreal and $164 in Caruaru. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montreal pays 1011% 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: $75.0 in Montreal vs $30.00 in Caruaru for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $344 vs $171 per month, with Caruaru cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇧🇷 Caruaru

🕒 Local time

10:16 10:16 AM

11:16 11:16 AM

1 h ahead of Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

377,911

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Montreal Caruaru 7,060 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
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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 Caruaru: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal and Caruaru differ by about 201% in total monthly costs ($2,003 vs $665 including rent). Caruaru is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1011% 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: $1,240 in Montreal versus $164 in Caruaru. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $505 in Montreal versus $109 in Caruaru. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 101% higher in Montreal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $665 in Caruaru versus $2,003 in Montreal, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Caruaru but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes Caruaru 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 Caruaru 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 Caruaru gentler on the wallet – expenses run 201% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.