Montpellier at a glance
- Montpellier ranks 6th of 10 priced cities in France on cost: $1,653 a month in essentials, 13% above Nantes, the cheapest.
- The average net salary of $2,820 covers that 1.7×.
- 94.6 men per 100 women aged 20–39, measured at département level.
- PM2.5 averages 6.7 µg/m³ a year, 1× the WHO guideline of 5.
Green is the better side of each figure. Every line is computed from the tables below.
Monthly cost breakdown
Rent outside centre plus utilities, groceries, dining and local transport make up the essentials figure. Not a full lifestyle budget. The middle column is the median across the 10 France cities we track, so every row says whether Montpellier is the cheap side of its own market or the dear one. Green is the better side of each row.
| Essentials, monthlyrent outside centre + bills + food + transit | $1,653 | $1,649 | $4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent, 1-bed outside centremonthly, USD | $762 | $744 | $18 |
| Rent, 1-bed city centremonthly, USD | $929 | $929 | same |
| Groceriesmonthly, one person | $186 | $199 | $13 |
| Dining outmonthly, one person | $381 | $381 | same |
| Utilitiesmonthly: power, water, heating, internet | $243 | $267 | $24 |
| Local transportmonthly pass or fare equivalent | $81 | $66 | $16 |
| Average net salarymonthly, after tax; average, not median | $2,820 | $2,978 | $158 |
| Rent, 3-bed outside centremonthly, USD | $1,211 | $1,284 | $74 |
| Rent, 3-bed city centremonthly, USD | $1,579 | $1,753 | $174 |
Single person, USD. Data updated August 6, 2026.
Everyday prices
What single items cost in Montpellier, in USD. The monthly figures above are built from these. Cheaper side of each row in green.
Eating out
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $18.49 | $18.20 | $0.29 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meal for 2, mid-range, three courses | $69.32 | $77.98 | $8.67 |
| McMeal at McDonald's | $13.86 | $13.86 | same |
| Cappuccino, regular | $3.99 | $4.05 | $0.06 |
| Domestic beer, 0.5 L draught | $5.78 | $8.09 | 1.40× as much |
| Imported beer, 0.33 L bottle | $4.62 | $6.64 | 1.44× as much |
| Coke/Pepsi, 0.33 L | $2.87 | $3.21 | $0.34 |
| Water, 0.33 L bottle | $1.95 | $2.09 | $0.14 |
Groceries
| Milk, 1 L | $1.45 | $1.39 | $0.06 |
|---|---|---|---|
| White bread, 500 g | $2.33 | $2.10 | $0.23 |
| White rice, 1 kg | $2.75 | $2.88 | $0.13 |
| Eggs, 12 | $4.20 | $4.41 | $0.21 |
| Local cheese, 1 kg | $19.06 | $22.77 | $3.71 |
| Chicken fillets, 1 kg | $14.46 | $14.76 | $0.30 |
| Apples, 1 kg | $2.83 | $3.39 | $0.56 |
| Bananas, 1 kg | $2.32 | $2.38 | $0.06 |
| Tomatoes, 1 kg | $3.56 | $3.70 | $0.14 |
| Potatoes, 1 kg | $2.32 | $2.30 | $0.02 |
| Onions, 1 kg | $2.80 | $2.70 | $0.10 |
| Water, 1.5 L bottle | $0.59 | $0.77 | 1.31× as much |
Transport & bills
| One-way ticket, local transport | $2.02 | $2.23 | $0.21 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly transit pass | $2.20 | $64.41 | 29.28× as much |
| Taxi start | $5.20 | $4.33 | $0.87 |
| Taxi, 1 km | $1.73 | $2.17 | 1.26× as much |
| Gasoline, 1 L | $2.08 | $2.17 | $0.09 |
| Basic utilities, 85 m² flat | $207.84 | $232.39 | $24.55 |
| Internet, 60 Mbps+ | $35.02 | $33.37 | $1.65 |
| Mobile plan, monthly | $19.35 | $16.10 | $3.25 |
Leisure
| Gym, monthly | $35.31 | $35.51 | $0.20 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cinema, one seat | $15.02 | $14.44 | $0.58 |
Dating-age sex ratio
Montpellier has 94.6 men per 100 women aged 20–39 (département level). That is the 9th-highest of 10 France cities we track. France's national figure is 100.9, so Montpellier runs 6 below the country as a whole.
A supply figure, 20–39. The dating-pool model is in Pro.
How Montpellier ranks against every city we track
Montpellier sits ahead of 84% of the 898 cities we track on clean air. On women aged 20–39 it is ahead of 80% of 892. Its weakest measure is safety, ahead of only 12% of 562.
Longer is better on every row: bar length is where Montpellier sits among all the cities carrying that measure, which is why the count differs by row.
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Photo: Wolfgang Staudt, CC BY 2.0.
