Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Piedras Negras

For one person, living is cheaper in Piedras Negras: $1,137 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Piedras Negras
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Piedras Negras Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Piedras Negras

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,137

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Piedras Negras

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

A single person spends $2,018 per month in Montreal vs $1,137 in Piedras Negras, rent included.

Montreal $2,018
Piedras Negras $1,137

A couple spends around $3,085 per month in Montreal vs $1,838 in Piedras Negras, rent included.

Montreal $3,085
Piedras Negras $1,838

A family of three spends $4,152 per month in Montreal vs $2,539 in Piedras Negras, rent included.

Montreal $4,152
Piedras Negras $2,539

Montreal costs about 77% more than Piedras Negras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montreal sits 49% above the global median, while Piedras Negras is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$11.12 MX$205

69.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$44.57 MX$824

57.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$8.45 MX$156

26.15%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$3.63 MX$67.1

5.79%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$1.42 MX$26.26

35.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$1.00 MX$18.50

54.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$2.53 MX$46.72

146.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$4.05 MX$74.9

75.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$1.66 MX$30.69

39.16%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$2.53 MX$46.83

24.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$1.71 MX$31.52

87.72%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$2.45 MX$45.35

43.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$8.36 MX$155

53.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$8.11 MX$150

41.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$11.28 MX$209

18.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$2.76 MX$51.1

13.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.59 MX$29.34

-9.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$1.88 MX$34.68

84.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$1.82 MX$33.67

68.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$1.99 MX$36.84

-4.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$1.80 MX$33.24

-1.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$1.48 MX$27.36

58.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$1.08 MX$19.96

43.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$4.50 MX$83.1

152.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$10.60 MX$196

0.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$1.81 MX$33.37

25.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$3.12 MX$57.7

-9.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$0.68 MX$12.55

291.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$2.66 MX$49.22

20.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$2.25 MX$41.56

-34.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$11.14 MX$206

195.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.33 MX$24.65

0.75%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$20.8K MX$385.2K

35.07%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$24.0K MX$443.9K

-18.29%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$49.75 MX$919

52.68%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$22.89 MX$423

48.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$29.83 MX$551

41.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$34.41 MX$636

-13.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

$20.06 MX$371

1.10%

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$5.31 MX$98.0

109.98%

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

$507 CA$717

$221 MX$4,089

129.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$4,069 MX$75.2K

294.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$55.1 MX$1,018

4.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$40.69 MX$752

-7.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$100 MX$1,854

-8.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$90.7 MX$1,675

20.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$596 MX$11.0K

111.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$393 MX$7,263

141.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$1,039 MX$19.2K

105.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$776 MX$14.3K

107.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,960 CA$7,011

$1,876 MX$34.7K

164.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,838 CA$5,425

$1,173 MX$21.7K

227.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,827 CA$3,997

$1,618 MX$29.9K

74.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.3

-60.35%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Last update for Piedras Negras: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

Piedras Negras

$393 34.6% 58.5% $555

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

Piedras Negras

$263 23.1% 24.1% $83

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

Piedras Negras

$188 16.6% 34.6% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

Piedras Negras

$102 9% 32.7% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

Piedras Negras

$129 11.3% 3.3% $4.4

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

Piedras Negras

$17 * 1.5% 83.1% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

Piedras Negras

$45 4% 13.5% $7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,260 in Montreal versus $596 in Piedras Negras. 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 75% 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 $45.00 in Piedras Negras. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $346 vs $263 – making Piedras Negras the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇲🇽 Piedras Negras

🕒 Local time

03:16 3:16 AM

02:16 2:16 AM

1 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

173,959

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Piedras Negras 3,010 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Piedras Negras

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 Piedras Negras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal costs about 77% more than Piedras Negras, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,027 per month in Montreal and $1,706 in Piedras Negras. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70.0 in Montreal and $45.00 in Piedras Negras. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 32% more in Montreal, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Piedras Negras, where all-in costs run around $1,137, than in Montreal at $2,018. In Piedras Negras it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Piedras Negras costs $1,137 versus $2,018 in Montreal. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Piedras Negras. 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.