Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Puebla

For one person, living is cheaper in Puebla: $1,161 a month against $2,003 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Puebla
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Puebla Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,003

/mo nomad

Puebla

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,161

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Puebla

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

A single person spends $2,003 per month in Montreal vs $1,161 in Puebla, rent included.

Montreal $2,003
Puebla $1,161

A couple spends around $3,048 per month in Montreal vs $1,853 in Puebla, rent included.

Montreal $3,048
Puebla $1,853

A family of three spends $4,092 per month in Montreal vs $2,545 in Puebla, rent included.

Montreal $4,092
Puebla $2,545

Montreal costs about 73% more than Puebla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Montreal sits 49% above the global median, while Puebla is 13% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.31 CA$27.46

$9.88 MX$180

95.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.5 CA$107

$48.13 MX$876

56.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.63 CA$15.11

$9.43 MX$171

12.73%

Cappuccino

$3.93 CA$5.58

$3.35 MX$60.9

17.31%

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

$1.92 CA$2.73

$1.54 MX$28.05

24.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$1.19 MX$21.59

24.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.30 CA$8.96

$2.85 MX$51.9

121.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.19 CA$10.22

$3.85 MX$70.1

86.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$1.58 MX$28.77

40.51%

White Bread (500g)

$3.06 CA$4.35

$3.10 MX$56.3

-1.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 CA$4.18

$1.85 MX$33.67

58.92%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$5.02

$3.46 MX$62.9

2.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.19 CA$18.76

$6.70 MX$122

96.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.24 CA$15.98

$5.77 MX$105

94.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.81 CA$19.65

$11.22 MX$204

23.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 CA$4.84

$2.72 MX$49.42

25.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.05

$1.73 MX$31.44

-16.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 CA$4.64

$1.96 MX$35.68

66.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 CA$4.09

$2.05 MX$37.30

40.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CA$2.64

$2.10 MX$38.22

-11.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 CA$2.60

$2.02 MX$36.81

-9.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 CA$3.45

$1.53 MX$27.89

58.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 CA$2.17

$1.31 MX$23.91

16.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.45 CA$16.29

$5.22 MX$95.0

119.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 CA$14.73

$14.06 MX$256

-26.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 CA$3.15

$1.43 MX$26.02

55.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$4.01

$2.57 MX$46.66

9.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.58 CA$3.66

$0.56 MX$10.25

360.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.9 CA$109

$24.50 MX$446

213.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 CA$4.63

$5.46 MX$99.2

-40.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.11

$1.98 MX$36.04

-25.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.04 CA$46.99

$15.74 MX$286

109.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 CA$1.93

$1.51 MX$27.45

-9.93%

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

$27.4K CA$39.0K

$21.5K MX$391.6K

27.41%

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

$20.0K CA$28.4K

$25.1K MX$456.0K

-20.31%

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

$76.1 CA$108

$62.1 MX$1,129

22.66%

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

$34.68 CA$49.32

$18.96 MX$345

82.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.69 CA$60.7

$23.89 MX$434

78.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.94 CA$41.17

$42.50 MX$773

-31.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.33 CA$28.91

$13.53 MX$246

50.26%

Cinema Ticket

$11.21 CA$15.94

$5.69 MX$103

97.01%

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

$505 CA$718

$416 MX$7,562

21.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.0K CA$22.8K

$20.2K MX$367.3K

-20.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 CA$83.2

$58.4 MX$1,062

0.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.00 CA$54.1

$62.0 MX$1,128

-38.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.7 CA$132

$102 MX$1,846

-8.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 CA$150

$96.8 MX$1,761

9.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,764

$639 MX$11.6K

94.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$986 CA$1,402

$354 MX$6,439

178.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,990

$882 MX$16.0K

138.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,615 CA$2,297

$664 MX$12.1K

143.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,043 CA$7,173

$1,660 MX$30.2K

203.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,830 CA$5,447

$905 MX$16.5K

323.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,920 CA$4,154

$663 MX$12.1K

340.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.46

10.96

-59.31%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 6, 2026

Last update for Puebla: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$986 47.9%

Puebla

$354 31% 64.1% $632

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$344 16.7%

Puebla

$265 23.2% 22.8% $78

Eating Out

Montreal

$293 14.2%

Puebla

$180 15.8% 38.4% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$154 7.5%

Puebla

$105 9.2% 31.7% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.5%

Puebla

$143 12.5% 8.1% $11

Getting Around

Montreal

$98 4.8%

Puebla

$42 3.7% 57% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$51 2.5%

Puebla

$54 4.7% 4.9% $2.5

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,240 in Montreal versus $639 in Puebla. 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 340% 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 $75.0 in Montreal versus $48.00 in Puebla. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $344 vs $265 – making Puebla the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇲🇽 Puebla

🕒 Local time

03:35 3:35 AM

01:35 1:35 AM

2 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

1,542,232

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.627 EUR

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.627 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Montreal Puebla 3,710 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Puebla

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 Puebla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal costs about 73% more than Puebla, 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 $3,005 per month in Montreal and $1,741 in Puebla. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 29% 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 mid-range dinner for two costs $75.0 in Montreal and $48.00 in Puebla. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Puebla, where all-in costs run around $1,161, than in Montreal at $2,003. In Puebla it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Puebla costs $1,161 versus $2,003 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 Puebla. 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.