Montreal on a Budget: What C$70, C$150 and C$350 a Day Actually Get You
A concrete, three-tier look at daily costs in Montreal — lodging, food, getting around and activities — so you can plan a realistic budget instead of guessing.
How Montreal costs actually break down
Montreal is one of the more affordable major North American cities, especially against the US dollar. Your daily spend is driven mostly by lodging and whether you’re dining out or shopping the markets, since transit is cheap and a huge amount — the mountain, the murals, most festival shows — is free. The tiers below are per person per day, excluding flights, and assume the taxes and tipping habits described above are already folded in.
≈ C$70 / day — lean
A hostel or shared budget rental, market and casual eats (bagels, poutine, food-hall meals), the STM day pass and mostly free sights (the mountain, murals, markets, free festival shows). Very doable, especially outside the June–July festival peak.
- Sleep: hostel / budget rental share — roughly C$40–60.
- Food: markets + casual eats — roughly C$25–40.
- Transport + activities: STM day pass + free sights — roughly C$10–15.
≈ C$150 / day — comfortable
A mid-range hotel or a Plateau rental, one proper restaurant meal plus casual eating, an STM weekly-style pass or the odd rideshare, and a paid tour or festival ticket most days. The tier most couples travel at.
- Sleep: mid-range hotel / Plateau or Mile End rental — roughly C$90–150.
- Food: one restaurant meal + casual — roughly C$45–75.
- Transport + activities: transit + a tour or ticketed festival show — roughly C$25–50.
≈ C$350+ / day — generous
A boutique Old Montreal hotel or a premium rental, restaurant meals without watching the bill, taxis or rideshare instead of transit, and premium tours or day trips (a private Mont-Tremblant excursion, headline festival tickets). At this tier the constraint is your schedule, not the city’s prices.
- Sleep: boutique Old Montreal hotel / premium rental — roughly C$300–550.
- Food: restaurant meals + drinks — roughly C$100–180.
- Transport + experiences: taxis/rideshare + premium tours or day trips — roughly C$60–120.
Where the free value is
Mount Royal, the Mile End murals, wandering the markets, most outdoor summer festival stages, and the Underground City in winter all cost nothing. Spend where it counts — a Plateau rental, a smoked-meat dinner at Schwartz’s, a headline show — and let the walking and the mountain be free.
Next guide: First-timer mistakes to avoid