Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and San Juan

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $1,684 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 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
84

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
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San Juan Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

San Juan

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,684

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in San Juan

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

A single person spends $2,018 per month in Montreal vs $1,684 in San Juan, rent included.

Montreal $2,018
San Juan $1,684

A couple spends around $3,085 per month in Montreal vs $2,772 in San Juan, rent included.

Montreal $3,085
San Juan $2,772

A family of three spends $4,152 per month in Montreal vs $3,861 in San Juan, rent included.

Montreal $4,152
San Juan $3,861

Montreal costs about 20% more than San Juan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Montreal and San Juan sit above the global median – Montreal by 49%, San Juan by 25%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$12.36 ₡5,541

52.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$61.3 ₡27.5K

14.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$11.46 ₡5,139

-6.98%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$4.42 ₡1,982

-13.12%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$2.77 ₡1,240

-30.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$1.94 ₡870

-20.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$3.31 ₡1,483

88.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$4.45 ₡1,996

59.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$2.34 ₡1,052

-1.28%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$3.18 ₡1,425

-1.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$2.51 ₡1,125

27.89%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$3.46 ₡1,551

1.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$10.66 ₡4,782

20.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$10.33 ₡4,633

10.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$13.90 ₡6,233

-3.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$4.97 ₡2,230

-36.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.59 ₡714

-9.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$4.64 ₡2,079

-25.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$3.95 ₡1,771

-22.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$3.86 ₡1,731

-50.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$3.75 ₡1,684

-52.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$1.07 ₡479

118.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$3.08 ₡1,379

-49.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$6.00 ₡2,691

89.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$19.72 ₡8,844

-46.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$2.76 ₡1,236

-17.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$3.69 ₡1,654

-23.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$1.37 ₡614

94.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$2.41 ₡1,079

32.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$1.54 ₡693

-3.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$8.58 ₡3,849

283.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.55 ₡695

-13.55%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

30.13%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$34.9K ₡15.6M

-43.70%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$96.4 ₡43.2K

-21.18%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$35.06 ₡15.7K

-3.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$59.3 ₡26.6K

-28.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$66.9 ₡30.0K

-55.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$7.50 ₡3,362

48.67%

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

$507 CA$717

$1,001 ₡449.1K

-49.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$16.9K ₡7.6M

-4.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$70.9 ₡31.8K

-18.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$55.3 ₡24.8K

-32.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$126 ₡56.6K

-27.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$134 ₡60.2K

-18.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$717 ₡321.3K

75.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$593 ₡266.1K

59.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$1,850 ₡829.6K

15.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$1,386 ₡621.4K

16.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,960 CA$7,011

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,838 CA$5,425

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,827 CA$3,997

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

8.62

-48.03%

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

Last update for Montreal: October 12, 2026

Last update for San Juan: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

San Juan

$593 35.2% 37.4% $354

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

San Juan

$398 23.6% 14.9% $52

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

San Juan

$231 13.7% 19.9% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

San Juan

$191 11.3% 25.3% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

San Juan

$174 10.3% 30.4% $41

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

San Juan

$16 * 0.9% 84.2% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

San Juan

$82 4.9% 57.3% $30

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 $717 in San Juan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $70.0 in Montreal versus $61.0 in San Juan. Groceries tell a different story – $346 in Montreal vs $398 in San Juan – so Montreal wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇨🇷 San Juan

🕒 Local time

11:09 11:09 AM

09:09 9:09 AM

2 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

27,000

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, 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).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Montreal San Juan 4,080 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
San Juan

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 San Juan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal costs about 20% more than San Juan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. 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 $2,526 in San Juan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Juan, 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 $61.0 in San Juan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 15% cheaper in Montreal – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in San Juan, where all-in costs run around $1,684, than in Montreal at $2,018. In San Juan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. San Juan costs $1,684 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 San Juan. 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.