✦ Compare
Montreal vs
Seoul
Cost-of-living comparison and salary equivalence. Enter your current salary to see what you'd need to earn to live equally well.
To keep the same standard of living in Seoul, KR, you'd need
$63,764 / year
Seoul, KR is 15% cheaper overall
Category breakdown (Seoul, KR vs Montreal, CA)
- Housing-12%
- Food & groceries-20%
- Transport-31%
- Utilities-18%
- Healthcare-19%
- Goods & services-10%
◎ How Montreal, CA and Seoul, KR compare
Index vs the US average — the line marks 100. Lower is cheaper.
▤ Full comparison
| Montreal, CA | Seoul, KR | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | ||
| Overall cost index | 99 | 84 |
| Housing | 102 | 90 |
| Food | 106 | 85 |
| Transport | 80 | 55 |
| Utilities | 98 | 80 |
| Healthcare | 80 | 65 |
| Goods & services | 105 | 95 |
| Housing | ||
| Rent, 1-bed centre | $1,150/mo | $900/mo |
| Rent, 1-bed outside | $900/mo | $650/mo |
| Rent, 3-bed centre | $2,200/mo | $1,900/mo |
| Buy price / m² centre | $5,500 | $12,000 |
| Money & purchasing power | ||
| $1,000 goes as far as | $1,011 | $1,189 |
| Inexpensive meal | $18 | $8 |
| Monthly transit pass | $70 | $45 |
| Taxes | ||
| Income tax (top rate) | 33% | 45% |
| VAT / sales tax | 5% | 10% |
| Corporate tax | 26.5% | 24% |
| Economy & salaries | ||
| Avg net salary | $3,300/mo | $2,500/mo |
| Minimum wage | $1,900/mo | $1,500/mo |
| GDP per capita | $55,698 | $35,563 |
| Inflation (annual) | 2.1% | 2.3% |
| Work & digital nomad | ||
| Digital-nomad visa | Yes | Yes |
| English proficiency | High | Moderate |
| Coworking spaces | 50 | 40 |
| Time zone | UTC-5 | UTC+9 |
| Quality of life | ||
| Safety index | 72 | 78 |
| Healthcare index | 78 | 82 |
| Pollution index | 35 | 55 |
| Internet speed | 180 Mbps | 220 Mbps |
| Walkability | 78 | 75 |
| Public transport | 78 | 92 |
| Family-friendly | 74 | 68 |
| Tap water | Safe to drink | Safe to drink |
| Life expectancy | 82 yr | 84 yr |
| LGBTQ+ acceptance | High | Low |
| Climate | ||
| January avg | -9 °C | -2 °C |
| July avg | +21 °C | +25 °C |
| Sunny days / year | 160 | 200 |
| Rainfall / year | 1,000 mm | 1,400 mm |
| Connectivity | ||
| Flight to nearest hub | 2 h | 2 h |
Taxes & Economy & salaries: Canada vs South Korea. Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.
Good to know before you move to Montreal
A bilingual, European-flavoured metropolis and the most affordable of Canada's big cities — rents well below Toronto or Vancouver, a huge festival and food culture, and cheap universities. The catch is the long, brutally cold winter and Quebec's French-first bureaucracy.
- Currency
- Canadian dollar ($ 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
Good to know before you move to Seoul
A hyper-modern megacity with the world's best transit and internet, K-culture everywhere and remarkable safety. The costs are Western-tier, the work culture intense and the jeonse deposits huge — but a new workation visa is opening the door to nomads.
- Currency
- South Korean won (₩ KRW)
- Languages
- Korean
- Time zone
- UTC+9
- Internet
- 220 Mbps
- English
- Fairly common
- Safety
- 78/100
- Climate
- ❄ -2°C · ☀ 25°C · 200 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- C/F · 220V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Gangnam · Itaewon · Hongdae · Seongsu
Plan your move to Montreal
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- Car rentalEconomybookings
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Parking & carWay.com
Sponsored
Plan your move to Seoul
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- Car rentalEconomybookings
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
Sponsored
? Frequently asked questions
Moving from Montreal to Seoul: cheaper or more expensive?
Moving from Montreal to Seoul, your cost of living will be roughly 15% cheaper. Seoul’s cost-of-living index is 84 versus 99 for Montreal (US = 100). Use the salary tool above to see the income you’d need to keep the same lifestyle.
Is Montreal cheaper than Seoul?
Seoul is about 15% cheaper than Montreal overall — its cost-of-living index is 84 versus 99 for Montreal.
How much do you need to earn in Seoul to live like in Montreal?
To keep the same standard of living, a $75,000 salary in Montreal is worth about $63,764 in Seoul. Enter your own figure in the calculator above.
Which has lower taxes, Montreal or Seoul?
Canada has the lower top income-tax rate — 33% versus 45% in South Korea.
◷ More comparisons from Montreal
Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.