Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Criciuma

For one person, living is cheaper in Criciuma: $769 a month against $2,059 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Criciuma
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Criciuma Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,059

/mo nomad

Criciuma

🇧🇷 Brazil

$769

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Criciuma

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,059 in Montreal versus $769 in Criciuma.

Montreal $2,059
Criciuma $769

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,123 in Montreal versus $1,146 in Criciuma.

Montreal $3,123
Criciuma $1,146

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,187 in Montreal versus $1,523 in Criciuma.

Montreal $4,187
Criciuma $1,523

Living in Montreal is roughly 168% more expensive than in Criciuma, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montreal is 52% above, Criciuma is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.84 CA$26.63

$5.81 R$29.43

224.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.2 CA$104

$22.21 R$113

229.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.90

$5.94 R$30.09

77.44%

Cappuccino

$3.97 CA$5.61

$1.39 R$7.05

185.61%

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

$1.94 CA$2.74

$1.09 R$5.52

77.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 CA$2.22

$0.73 R$3.71

115.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.42 CA$9.08

$1.56 R$7.90

311.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.20 CA$10.19

$2.00 R$10.16

260.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.32 CA$3.28

$0.97 R$4.90

139.18%

White Bread (500g)

$3.19 CA$4.51

$1.49 R$7.55

114.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.19 CA$4.50

$1.10 R$5.57

190.00%

Eggs

$3.68 CA$5.20

$2.00 R$10.13

84.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.24 CA$18.72

$8.31 R$42.12

59.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.69 CA$16.53

$3.51 R$17.78

233.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.98 CA$19.76

$8.71 R$44.15

60.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$2.04 R$10.34

53.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 CA$2.05

$1.22 R$6.17

18.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.38 CA$4.78

$0.99 R$5.04

241.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.11 CA$4.40

$1.57 R$7.98

98.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 CA$2.72

$1.21 R$6.12

59.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 CA$2.58

$1.09 R$5.51

67.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.36 CA$3.34

$0.82 R$4.15

187.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 CA$2.12

$0.69 R$3.52

117.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.12 CA$15.73

$2.46 R$12.46

352.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.60 CA$14.98

$4.73 R$23.97

124.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.14

$1.12 R$5.68

98.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 CA$4.01

$1.40 R$7.10

102.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.62 CA$3.71

$1.00 R$5.08

162.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.1 CA$112

$40.09 R$203

97.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.23 CA$4.56

$0.50 R$2.54

546.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.10

$0.79 R$4.01

87.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.22 CA$45.55

$2.34 R$11.84

1276.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.92

$1.31 R$6.63

3.82%

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

$27.6K CA$39.1K

$23.4K R$118.8K

17.94%

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

$21.2K CA$30.0K

$30.9K R$156.9K

-31.51%

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

$77.0 CA$109

$72.1 R$365

6.88%

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

$34.14 CA$48.26

$12.31 R$62.4

177.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.19 CA$59.7

$21.92 R$111

92.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.81 CA$43.56

$28.52 R$145

8.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.66 CA$27.79

$39.86 R$202

-50.68%

Cinema Ticket

$11.47 CA$16.22

$7.15 R$36.25

60.42%

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

$506 CA$716

$170 R$861

197.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K CA$23.0K

$2,980 R$15.1K

444.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.3 CA$81.0

$49.26 R$250

16.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.10 CA$53.9

$29.58 R$150

28.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$81.7 R$414

12.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$42.36 R$215

159.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,237 CA$1,748

$242 R$1,227

410.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$977 CA$1,381

$210 R$1,063

365.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,180 CA$3,082

$409 R$2,072

433.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 CA$2,273

$270 R$1,370

494.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,113 CA$7,228

$1,194 R$6,054

328.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,744 CA$5,293

$633 R$3,209

491.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,957 CA$4,180

$317 R$1,606

833.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

10.74

-58.29%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 20, 2026

Last update for Criciuma: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$977 47.4%

Criciuma

$210 27.3% 78.5% $767

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$351 17.1%

Criciuma

$170 22.1% 51.5% $181

Eating Out

Montreal

$290 14.1%

Criciuma

$100 13% 65.6% $190

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$153 7.5%

Criciuma

$106 13.8% 30.7% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$134 6.5%

Criciuma

$91 11.9% 31.7% $42

Getting Around

Montreal

$100 4.9%

Criciuma

$49 6.3% 51.6% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$54 2.6%

Criciuma

$43 5.6% 20.3% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,237 in Montreal and $242 in Criciuma. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montreal pays 833% 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: $73.0 in Montreal vs $22.00 in Criciuma for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $351 vs $170 per month, with Criciuma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇧🇷 Criciuma

🕒 Local time

15:26 3:26 PM

16:26 4:26 PM

1 h ahead of Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

214,493

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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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Between locations

Montreal Criciuma 8,600 km ≈ 11 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 Criciuma: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Criciuma is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 168% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 833% 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: $1,237 in Montreal versus $242 in Criciuma. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Criciuma runs roughly 97% less than in Montreal. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $506 in Montreal versus $170 in Criciuma. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $769 in Criciuma versus $2,059 in Montreal, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Criciuma but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes Criciuma the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Criciuma 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 Criciuma 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 Criciuma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 168% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.