Montréal or Saint-Laurent: comparison for buyers
Choose two or three cities from my guides. The figures come from the same sources as the guides.
Median prices
| Montréal | Saint-Laurent |
|---|
| Single-family home |
$812,0001,002 sales · +2% year over year
|
$880,00061 sales · +3% year over year
|
|---|
| Condo |
$477,0001,728 sales · stable year over year
|
$463,500100 sales · -2% year over year
|
|---|
| Plex (2 to 5 units) |
$902,500614 sales · +3% year over year
|
last 4 quarters$889,87580 sales · -1% year over year
|
|---|
Median price = half of the properties sold for less, the other half for more. The price of a specific property varies.
Source: Centris, Q3 2026 (July to September).
Montréal: Island of Montréal. Median prices and change compared with the same quarter of 2025. (Centris – Island of Montréal statistics)
Saint-Laurent: Borough of Saint-Laurent, Q3 2026 (July to September), change compared with the same quarter of 2025. For plexes, Centris does not publish a quarterly price due to too few transactions (16 sales): the figures cover the last four quarters. (Centris – Saint-Laurent statistics)
At a glance
Montréal
- Population (2021 census)
- 1,762,949 residents
- Renter households (Island of Montréal)
- About 60%
- Boroughs
- 19
Saint-Laurent
- Population (2021 census)
- 102,104 residents (+3% since 2016)
- Area
- 43 km², about 70% of it industrial or commercial
- Jobs in the borough
- About 108,000 (Ville de Montréal)
Transit
MontréalThe metro has 4 lines and 68 stations. The REM serves the South Shore (since 2023), Deux-Montagnes (since November 2025) and the West Island (since May 2026); the airport branch is planned by the end of 2027. Five exo train lines connect Montréal to the suburbs (Vaudreuil–Hudson, Saint-Jérôme, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Candiac and Mascouche).
Saint-LaurentThe metro’s orange line serves the Du Collège and Côte-Vertu stations; Côte-Vertu is also a major bus terminus. Since November 17, 2025, the REM has stopped at the Côte-de-Liesse, Montpellier, Du Ruisseau and Bois-Franc stations; according to the REM, the trip from Bois-Franc to Gare Centrale takes about 16 minutes. Bois-Franc (about 740 spaces) and Du Ruisseau (more than 1,000 spaces) have park-and-ride lots. Since January 12, 2026, the exo 15 Mascouche line has ended at Côte-de-Liesse station, with a connection to the REM. According to the REM, the airport branch is scheduled to open in 2027; it will add Marie-Curie station.
Education
MontréalMcGill University, Université de Montréal, UQAM, Concordia University, HEC Montréal, Polytechnique Montréal, ÉTS.
Saint-LaurentCentre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys for French-language education and English Montreal School Board (EMSB) for English-language education. Two cégeps in the borough: Cégep de Saint-Laurent and Vanier College.
Health
MontréalCHUM, McGill University Health Centre, CHU Sainte-Justine, Jewish General Hospital, Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur, Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont.
Saint-LaurentCLSC de Saint-Laurent (CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal). The nearest hospital is Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur-de-Montréal, in the neighbouring borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville.
Welcome tax
MontréalMontréal applies additional brackets for properties over $1.1M, up to 4% above $3,113,000.
Saint-LaurentSaint-Laurent is part of the City of Montréal, so Montréal’s rates apply. In 2026: 0.5% up to $62,900, 1% up to $315,000, 1.5% up to $552,300, 2% up to $1,104,700, then 2.5%, 3.5% and 4% above $3,113,000 (rates as of October 2026, for information only). For a house at the median price of $880,000, that comes to about $12,949. Ville de Montréal programs, such as RénoPlex, also apply.
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