✦ Compare
Lugano vs
Montreal
Cost-of-living comparison and salary equivalence. Enter your current salary to see what you'd need to earn to live equally well.
Lugano, CH vs Montreal, CA at a glance — Montreal, CA is 33% cheaper than Lugano, CH overall. Median 1-bed rent runs about $1,150/mo versus $1,800/mo. Top income tax: 33% vs 40%.
To keep the same standard of living in Montreal, CA, you'd need
$50,346 / year
Montreal, CA is 33% cheaper overall
Category breakdown (Montreal, CA vs Lugano, CH)
- Housing-36%
- Food & groceries-29%
- Transport-30%
- Utilities-20%
- Healthcare-43%
- Goods & services-32%
◎ How Lugano, CH and Montreal, CA compare
Index vs the US average — the line marks 100. Lower is cheaper.
▤ Full comparison
| Lugano, CH | Montreal, CA | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | ||
| Overall cost index | 147 | 99 |
| Housing | 160 | 102 |
| Food | 150 | 106 |
| Transport | 115 | 80 |
| Utilities | 122 | 98 |
| Healthcare | 140 | 80 |
| Goods & services | 155 | 105 |
| Housing | ||
| Rent, 1-bed centre | $1,800/mo | $1,150/mo |
| Rent, 1-bed outside | — | $900/mo |
| Rent, 3-bed centre | — | $2,200/mo |
| Buy price / m² centre | — | $5,500 |
| Money & purchasing power | ||
| $1,000 goes as far as | $679 | $1,011 |
| Inexpensive meal | — | $18 |
| Monthly transit pass | — | $70 |
| Taxes | ||
| Income tax (top rate) | 40% | 33% |
| VAT / sales tax | 8.1% | 5% |
| Corporate tax | 15% | 26.5% |
| Capital gains | 0% | — |
| Economy & salaries | ||
| Avg net salary | $6,000/mo | $3,300/mo |
| Avg annual wage (OECD, PPP) | — | $67,901✓ |
| Minimum wage | — | $1,900/mo |
| GDP per capita | $114,769✓ | $55,698✓ |
| Inflation (annual) | 0.2%✓ | 2.1%✓ |
| Work & digital nomad | ||
| Digital-nomad visa | No | Yes |
| English proficiency | — | High |
| Coworking spaces | — | 50 |
| Time zone | — | UTC-5 |
| Quality of life | ||
| Quality of life (overall) | — | 71 |
| Safety index | — | 72 |
| Healthcare index | — | 78 |
| Pollution index | — | 35 |
| Internet speed | — | 180 Mbps |
| Walkability | — | 78 |
| Public transport | — | 78 |
| Family-friendly | — | 74 |
| Tap water | — | Safe to drink |
| Life expectancy | 84 yr✓ | 82 yr✓ |
| LGBTQ+ acceptance | High | High |
| Climate | ||
| January avg | — | -9 °C |
| July avg | — | +21 °C |
| Sunny days / year | — | 160 |
| Rainfall / year | — | 1,000 mm |
| Connectivity | ||
| Flight to nearest hub | — | 2 h |
Taxes & Economy & salaries: Switzerland vs Canada. Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.
✓ = official statistics (OECD (PPP), World Bank 2025, World Bank 2024). Unmarked figures are CostTrek estimates. How we calculate these figures →
Cost of living: Lugano vs Montreal — in your currency
Converted from USD at approximate rates (2026-09).
Good to know before you move to Lugano
- Currency
- Swiss franc (Fr. CHF)
- Languages
- German, French, Italian
- Power
- J · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
Good to know before you move to Montreal
A bilingual, European-flavoured metropolis and the most affordable of Canada's big cities — rents well below Toronto or Vancouver, a huge festival and food culture, and cheap universities. The catch is the long, brutally cold winter and Quebec's French-first bureaucracy.
- Currency
- Canadian dollar ($ CAD)
- Languages
- English, French
- Time zone
- UTC-5
- Internet
- 180 Mbps
- English
- Widely spoken
- Safety
- 72/100
- Climate
- ❄ -9°C · ☀ 21°C · 160 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- A/B · 120V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Plateau-Mont-Royal · Mile End · Griffintown · Rosemont
Plan your move to Lugano
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalDiscoverCars
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
Sponsored
Plan your move to Montreal
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsAviasales
- FlightsCheapOAir
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalDiscoverCars
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Parking & carWay.com
Sponsored
? Frequently asked questions
Moving from Lugano to Montreal: cheaper or more expensive?
Moving from Lugano to Montreal, your cost of living will be roughly 33% cheaper. Montreal’s cost-of-living index is 99 versus 147 for Lugano (US = 100). Use the salary tool above to see the income you’d need to keep the same lifestyle.
Is Lugano cheaper than Montreal?
Montreal is about 33% cheaper than Lugano overall — its cost-of-living index is 99 versus 147 for Lugano.
Which is more expensive, Lugano or Montreal?
Lugano is more expensive than Montreal. Its cost-of-living index is 147 vs 99 (US = 100) — about 48% higher.
Is rent cheaper in Lugano or Montreal?
Rent is cheaper in Montreal — about $1,150/month for a one-bedroom in the city centre, vs $1,800 in Lugano.
How much do you need to earn in Montreal to live like in Lugano?
To keep the same standard of living, a $75,000 salary in Lugano is worth about $50,346 in Montreal. Enter your own figure in the calculator above.
Which has lower taxes, Lugano or Montreal?
Canada has the lower top income-tax rate — 33% versus 40% in Switzerland.
◷ More comparisons from Lugano
How we calculate these figures →
Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.