Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montreal and Tibas

For one person, living is cheaper in Tibas: $1,712 a month against $2,018 in Montreal, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Tibas
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Tibas Living Index

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Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,018

/mo nomad

Tibas

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,712

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Montreal and in Tibas

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

A single person spends $2,018 per month in Montreal vs $1,712 in Tibas, rent included.

Montreal $2,018
Tibas $1,712

A couple spends around $3,085 per month in Montreal vs $2,656 in Tibas, rent included.

Montreal $3,085
Tibas $2,656

A family of three spends $4,152 per month in Montreal vs $3,599 in Tibas, rent included.

Montreal $4,152
Tibas $3,599

Montreal costs about 18% more than Tibas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Montreal and Tibas sit above the global median – Montreal by 49%, Tibas by 27%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.82 CA$26.61

$12.27 ₡5,502

53.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.3 CA$99.4

$34.09 ₡15.3K

106.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 CA$15.06

$10.78 ₡4,837

-1.11%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$3.90 ₡1,751

-1.54%

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

$1.92 CA$2.71

$2.23 ₡1,001

-13.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 CA$2.18

$1.86 ₡834

-17.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.23 CA$8.81

$2.78 ₡1,248

124.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.10 CA$10.03

$4.39 ₡1,971

61.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.31 CA$3.27

$2.34 ₡1,051

-1.28%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 CA$4.44

$3.13 ₡1,404

0.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 CA$4.54

$2.53 ₡1,136

26.88%

Eggs

$3.52 CA$4.97

$3.41 ₡1,527

3.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.81 CA$18.11

$10.73 ₡4,813

19.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.46 CA$16.20

$10.50 ₡4,710

9.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.39 CA$18.92

$14.04 ₡6,296

-4.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 CA$4.43

$5.10 ₡2,289

-38.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 CA$2.03

$1.63 ₡730

-11.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.91

$4.68 ₡2,099

-25.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 CA$4.34

$3.89 ₡1,746

-21.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.69

$3.93 ₡1,763

-51.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 CA$2.50

$3.60 ₡1,613

-50.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CA$3.31

$1.12 ₡504

108.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.19

$3.10 ₡1,389

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.38 CA$16.09

$6.02 ₡2,698

89.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 CA$15.03

$20.15 ₡9,035

-47.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$2.84 ₡1,275

-20.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$3.53 ₡1,582

-20.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 CA$3.76

$1.33 ₡599

100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.3 CA$109

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.20 CA$4.53

$2.37 ₡1,064

35.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.09

$1.63 ₡732

-9.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 CA$46.48

$8.59 ₡3,851

282.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 CA$1.90

$1.49 ₡666

-10.07%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

29.21%

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

$19.6K CA$27.8K

$34.9K ₡15.6M

-43.68%

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

$76.0 CA$107

$94.7 ₡42.5K

-19.80%

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

$33.95 CA$48.00

$35.71 ₡16.0K

-4.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.31 CA$59.8

$58.9 ₡26.4K

-28.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.76 CA$42.07

$73.7 ₡33.1K

-59.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.28 CA$28.67

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 CA$15.77

$7.77 ₡3,484

43.50%

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

$507 CA$717

$975 ₡437.1K

-47.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.7K

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-7.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 CA$81.4

$70.6 ₡31.6K

-18.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.58 CA$53.1

$55.3 ₡24.8K

-32.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 CA$130

$131 ₡58.7K

-29.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 CA$155

$133 ₡59.7K

-17.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 CA$1,782

$791 ₡354.5K

59.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 CA$1,340

$625 ₡280.3K

51.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,137 CA$3,021

$1,884 ₡844.7K

13.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 CA$2,281

$1,262 ₡566.1K

27.83%

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

$980 ₡439.5K

188.49%

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 Tibas: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montreal

$948 47%

Tibas

$625 36.5% 34% $323

Groceries & Markets

Montreal

$346 17.2%

Tibas

$401 23.4% 15.7% $55

Eating Out

Montreal

$288 14.3%

Tibas

$216 12.6% 24.8% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montreal

$152 7.5%

Tibas

$189 11.1% 24.4% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Montreal

$133 6.6%

Tibas

$175 10.2% 31.4% $42

Getting Around

Montreal

$99 4.9%

Tibas

$16 * 0.9% 83.9% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Montreal

$52 2.6%

Tibas

$89 5.2% 71.4% $37

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 $791 in Tibas. 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 188% 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 $34.00 in Tibas. Groceries tell a different story – $346 in Montreal vs $401 in Tibas – so Montreal wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Montreal

🇨🇷 Tibas

🕒 Local time

10:30 10:30 AM

08:30 8:30 AM

2 h behind Montreal

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,762,949

64,842

💱 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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Between locations

Montreal Tibas 4,060 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Montreal
Tibas

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 Tibas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Montreal costs about 18% more than Tibas, 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 $2,568 in Tibas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tibas, 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 $34.00 in Tibas. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 16% cheaper in Montreal – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Tibas, where all-in costs run around $1,712, than in Montreal at $2,018. In Tibas it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montreal it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Tibas costs $1,712 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 Tibas. 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.