Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Mar del Plata

For one person, living is cheaper in Mar del Plata: $1,038 a month against $2,003 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 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
42

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
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Mar del Plata Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,003

/mo nomad

Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,038

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Mar del Plata

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 Mar del Plata actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,003 in Montreal versus $1,038 in Mar del Plata.

Montreal $2,003
Mar del Plata $1,038

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,048 in Montreal versus $1,787 in Mar del Plata.

Montreal $3,048
Mar del Plata $1,787

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,092 in Montreal versus $2,536 in Mar del Plata.

Montreal $4,092
Mar del Plata $2,536

Living in Montreal is roughly 93% more expensive than in Mar del Plata, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montreal is 49% above, Mar del Plata is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.31 CA$27.52

$19.74 ARS 29.9K

-2.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.5 CA$108

$60.3 ARS 91.4K

25.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.63 CA$15.15

$12.52 ARS 19.0K

-15.10%

Cappuccino

$3.93 CA$5.60

$3.13 ARS 4,743

25.56%

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

$1.92 CA$2.73

$2.51 ARS 3,813

-23.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$2.03 ARS 3,071

-27.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.30 CA$8.98

$4.06 ARS 6,151

55.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 CA$10.24

$3.02 ARS 4,585

138.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CA$3.17

$1.08 ARS 1,634

105.56%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.36

$2.20 ARS 3,330

39.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 CA$4.19

$3.16 ARS 4,785

-6.96%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$5.03

$2.36 ARS 3,575

49.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.19 CA$18.79

$5.86 ARS 8,885

125.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.24 CA$16.02

$6.65 ARS 10.1K

69.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.81 CA$19.69

$12.52 ARS 19.0K

10.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.85

$3.32 ARS 5,030

2.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.06

$2.43 ARS 3,687

-40.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 CA$4.65

$1.48 ARS 2,242

120.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 CA$4.10

$2.05 ARS 3,115

40.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CA$2.65

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 CA$2.60

$1.01 ARS 1,532

80.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CA$3.46

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.17

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.45 CA$16.32

$3.60 ARS 5,463

218.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 CA$14.76

$2.94 ARS 4,457

252.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.16

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$4.02

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 CA$3.67

$1.29 ARS 1,954

100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.9 CA$110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 CA$4.64

$1.63 ARS 2,468

99.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$0.64 ARS 967

131.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 CA$47.09

$6.40 ARS 9,707

416.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.94

$1.36 ARS 2,064

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

$27.4K CA$39.1K

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

$20.0K CA$28.5K

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

$76.1 CA$109

$79.0 ARS 119.8K

-3.66%

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

$34.68 CA$49.43

$8.23 ARS 12.5K

321.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.69 CA$60.9

$30.10 ARS 45.6K

41.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.94 CA$41.26

$31.31 ARS 47.5K

-7.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.33 CA$28.97

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 CA$15.98

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

11.32%

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

$505 CA$720

$304 ARS 460.4K

66.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 CA$83.4

$87.7 ARS 133.1K

-33.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.00 CA$54.2

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 CA$132

$121 ARS 184.2K

-23.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$151

$54.8 ARS 83.1K

93.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,768

$328 ARS 497.2K

278.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 CA$1,405

$253 ARS 383.9K

289.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,996

$801 ARS 1.2M

162.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,615 CA$2,302

$654 ARS 992.3K

146.77%

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

$610 ARS 925.5K

378.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

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

Last update for Montreal: October 6, 2026

Last update for Mar del Plata: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$986 47.9%

Mar del Plata

$253 24.7% 74.3% $733

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$344 16.7%

Mar del Plata

$198 * 19.3% 42.3% $145

Eating Out

Montreal

$293 14.2%

Mar del Plata

$278 27% 5.2% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$154 7.5%

Mar del Plata

$117 11.4% 23.6% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.5%

Mar del Plata

$119 * 11.6% 10.5% $14

Getting Around

Montreal

$98 4.8%

Mar del Plata

$10 * 1% 89.8% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$51 2.5%

Mar del Plata

$51 5% 0.2% $0.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,240 in Montreal and $328 in Mar del Plata. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montreal pays 379% 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 $60.0 in Mar del Plata for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $344 vs $198 per month, with Mar del Plata cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🕒 Local time

07:37 7:37 AM

08:37 8:37 AM

1 h ahead of Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

593,337

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, 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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Mar del Plata 9,420 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Mar del Plata

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 Mar del Plata: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mar del Plata wins on cost – living expenses run 93% lower than in Montreal. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Mar del Plata the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 379% 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 $328 in Mar del Plata. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 73% higher in Montreal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,003 per month in Montreal versus $1,038 in Mar del Plata – a 93% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,038 in Mar del Plata versus $2,003 in Montreal, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mar del Plata but tight or insufficient in Montreal. The gap between the two cities makes Mar del Plata the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Mar del Plata delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,038 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Mar del Plata hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Montreal and Mar del Plata 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 Mar del Plata gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in Montreal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.