Cost of living comparison

compared to
Boston vs. Montreal Cost of Living Summary

Boston is 86.2% more expensive than Montreal.

Restaurants
pay 39.1% more in Boston
Groceries
pay 37.9% more in Boston
Transportation
pay 11.0% more in Boston
Housing
pay 2.4 times more in Boston
Childcare
pay 4.1 times more in Boston
Entertainment and Sports
pay 57.6% more in Boston
Clothing
pay 13.8% more in Boston

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, and clothing in Boston are more expensive than in Montreal. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Boston.

Boston vs. Montreal Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Boston instead of Montreal, you would:

pay 39.1% more for restaurants

 
Montreal
Boston
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.96
CA$25.95
$22.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.78
CA$15.57
$12.55
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.09
CA$3.03
$3.14
 

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pay 37.9% more for groceries

 
Montreal
Boston
Bread
1 loaf
$3.25
CA$4.70
$4.39
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.59
CA$10.97
$9.48
 
Milk (1 gallon) $8.62
CA$12.45
$4.97
 

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pay 11.0% more for transportation

 
Montreal
Boston
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.61
CA$6.66
$3.64
 
Monthly public transit pass $71.85
CA$103.80
$90.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $24,412.64
CA$35,270.16
$32,000.00
 

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pay 2.4 times more for housing

 
Montreal
Boston
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$43.57
CA$62.95
$70.88
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,195.88
CA$1,727.75
$3,280.96
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $957.38
CA$1,383.17
$2,453.85
 

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pay 4.1 times more for childcare

 
Montreal
Boston
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $650.63
CA$939.99
$2,428.57
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $5,648.39
CA$8,160.51
$25,000.00
 

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pay 57.6% more for entertainment and sports

 
Montreal
Boston
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.47
CA$9.34
$8.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.61
CA$5.21
$5.79
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$11.85
CA$17.13
$13.83
 

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pay 13.8% more for clothing

 
Montreal
Boston
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$63.65
CA$91.96
$64.32
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$44.65
CA$64.51
$43.83
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$89.18
CA$128.84
$98.17
 

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: January 2025
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