Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Contagem

For one person, living is cheaper in Contagem: $788 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Contagem
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Contagem Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Contagem

🇧🇷 Brazil

$788

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Contagem

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

A single person spends $2,018 per month in Montreal vs $788 in Contagem, rent included.

Montreal $2,018
Contagem $788

A couple spends around $3,085 per month in Montreal vs $1,272 in Contagem, rent included.

Montreal $3,085
Contagem $1,272

A family of three spends $4,152 per month in Montreal vs $1,755 in Contagem, rent included.

Montreal $4,152
Contagem $1,755

Montreal costs about 156% more than Contagem, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montreal sits 49% above the global median, while Contagem is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$6.06 R$30.73

210.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$30.50 R$155

130.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$7.32 R$37.10

45.63%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$1.76 R$8.93

118.18%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$1.42 R$7.19

35.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$0.58 R$2.96

165.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$1.32 R$6.69

371.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$2.57 R$13.05

176.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$1.00 R$5.09

131.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$1.84 R$9.34

70.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$1.37 R$6.94

134.31%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$1.98 R$10.06

77.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$10.07 R$51.1

27.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$3.47 R$17.61

230.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$7.50 R$38.03

78.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$1.91 R$9.69

64.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.17 R$5.91

23.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$0.94 R$4.75

269.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$1.67 R$8.48

83.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$1.09 R$5.53

74.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$0.99 R$5.00

78.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$0.85 R$4.33

175.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$0.82 R$4.14

89.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$1.64 R$8.31

593.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$6.04 R$30.61

75.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$1.02 R$5.18

122.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$1.37 R$6.94

105.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$1.50 R$7.61

77.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

$80.1 R$406

-3.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$1.19 R$6.04

168.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$0.79 R$3.99

87.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$6.28 R$31.84

423.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.32 R$6.67

1.52%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$23.5K R$119.3K

19.66%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$31.6K R$160.4K

-37.95%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$76.2 R$386

-0.26%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$10.11 R$51.3

235.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$19.26 R$97.7

119.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$26.55 R$135

12.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

$23.62 R$120

-14.14%

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$7.31 R$37.04

52.53%

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

$507 CA$717

$144 R$732

251.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$2,630 R$13.3K

510.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$61.6 R$312

-6.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$49.74 R$252

-24.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$68.6 R$348

33.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$48.25 R$245

127.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$232 R$1,174

444.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$158 R$798

501.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$488 R$2,475

337.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$334 R$1,693

383.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,960 CA$7,011

$1,991 R$10.1K

149.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,838 CA$5,425

$1,015 R$5,146

278.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,827 CA$3,997

$261 R$1,324

982.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

10.67

-58.01%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Last update for Contagem: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

Contagem

$158 20% 83.4% $790

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

Contagem

$179 22.7% 48.3% $167

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

Contagem

$111 14.1% 61.3% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

Contagem

$106 13.4% 30.7% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

Contagem

$103 13% 23.1% $31

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

Contagem

$91 11.6% 7.4% $7.3

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

Contagem

$41 5.2% 20.9% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,260 in Montreal versus $232 in Contagem. 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 983% 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 $70.0 in Montreal versus $31.00 in Contagem. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $346 vs $179 – making Contagem the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇧🇷 Contagem

🕒 Local time

07:48 7:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

1 h ahead of Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

621,863

💱 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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Contagem 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Contagem

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 Contagem: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montreal is pricier by about 156%, 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 $1,183 in Contagem. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 4% less in Contagem. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $507 per month in Montreal and $144 in Contagem. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Contagem, where all-in costs run around $788, than in Montreal at $2,018. In Contagem it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Contagem – 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 Contagem. 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.