Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well, in 2012 or 2011, Montreal officially became more expenssive than Toronto to live in when you take into concideration the salaries, the cost of living, the bills, the groceries...
Toronto is more walkable than Montreal, well... virtually tie (71 for Toronto and 70 for Montreal) Canadian walkscore
Sceneries... Well, the mountain ok.
Culture : Caribana festival vs just for laugh... As an afro-european, I will go with the Caribana festival.
Montreal is I think in the top ten metro (behind Boston, Nyc, Philly, DC, Miami-dade, Chicago, Toronto, La, San francisco)
food : Smoked meat and ribs, love it. As for Toronto, can not say
Walkability: Walk Score is a good tool but an imperfect measure. If you've walked around both cities, I think you'll find Montreal more pleasant for a pedestrian (at least, most people would). Montreal is more cohesive, while Toronto is more nodal.
Affordability: According to Numbeo, Toronto does have greater purchasing power than Montreal (the average person in each city, that is). HOWEVER, if you can get a similar salary in either city, you'd obviously be better off in Montreal (purely by numbers).
Walkability: Walk Score is a good tool but an imperfect measure. If you've walked around both cities, I think you'll find Montreal more pleasant for a pedestrian (at least, most people would). Montreal is more cohesive, while Toronto is more nodal.
Affordability: According to Numbeo, Toronto does have greater purchasing power than Montreal (the average person in each city, that is). HOWEVER, if you can get a similar salary in either city, you'd obviously be better off in Montreal (purely by numbers).
The thing is, both cities do not have equivalent salaries... you have to take into account the median and average wage in both cities, not just to look at the cheapest... generally speaking, cheapest means less people willing to move in and lower salaries... the key is purchasing power, not just the price... if you make 2000 a month and pay 800$ for rent, do you live better than the man who make 5000 a month with a 1500$ rent...?
I walked in both cities since I live in Montreal, and both are kind of walkable... If you go further than downtown Montreal and cote des neiges, montreal walkscore takes a hit.
interestin that the majority of comments saying montreal is not in toronto's class, yet they're running away with it in the polls
From a cultural perspective I think a Montreal/Quebec City combo trip just really provides a more interesting and unique getaway from the every day American vibe than say a Toronto/Niagara Falls trip would. For a foodie trip, I'd probably pick Toronto due to its renowned multi cultural element.
I do prefer Montreal's location. I think it has a step up in topography with nearby mountains (Laurentians, Adirondacks, Greens), Quebec has lots of lakes and nice recreation options, and Montreal has pretty good access to NYC via I-87 and a reasonable drive to Boston, with northern New England very close by. Montreal also has Quebec City and Ottawa within a few hours range.
I find Montreal to be more interesting since it's not exactly like the rest of English North America, but I feel like Toronto would be a better fit economically and I don't know French either. The French language laws were a big hindrance to growth there and across Quebec not that long ago and I'd imagine still are outside of Montreal, Quebec City, and Gatineau.
The thing is, both cities do not have equivalent salaries... you have to take into account the median and average wage in both cities, not just to look at the cheapest... generally speaking, cheapest means less people willing to move in and lower salaries... the key is purchasing power, not just the price... if you make 2000 a month and pay 800$ for rent, do you live better than the man who make 5000 a month with a 1500$ rent...?
.
As I mentioned previously, average family income is basically the same in Montreal and Toronto: about 70K CAD. (I made a mistake in my earlier post and wrote 60k). Vancouver is also at 70k CAD.
I find Montreal to be more interesting since it's not exactly like the rest of English North America, but I feel like Toronto would be a better fit economically and I don't know French either. The French language laws were a big hindrance to growth there and across Quebec not that long ago and I'd imagine still are outside of Montreal, Quebec City, and Gatineau.
I don't get this last point. The laws are the same anywhere in Quebec and are in effect in all three of those cities just like they are in any small town or city.
Toronto to live - way better job market as it is the corporate center of Canada, much easier life for English speakers, bigger metro with a little more of everything, slightly better weather as winters aren't as harsh
Montreal to visit - better restaurants & nightlife, more history, and more distinctive culture (i.e. French-Canadian) compared to Toronto, less corporate/concrete
Last edited by johnathanc; 01-28-2016 at 08:32 AM..
that in itself makes Toronto the clear winner here...I can understand people in Toronto...not in Montreal without a translator.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
