Montreal vs Vancouver: which is better for Airbnb investment? (2026)

Bottom line

Vancouver edges ahead of Montreal on higher occupancy (36.2% vs 34%), stronger RevPAR (£55 vs £34).

Head-to-head metrics

	Montreal	Vancouver
Median occupancy	34%	36.2%
Median daily rate	£116	£175
Median RevPAR	£34	£55
Active listings	7,186	4,491
YoY occupancy	-5.5 pts	-13.1 pts
YoY daily rate	+45.9%	+55.2%
Regulation risk	—	—
Annual night cap	None	None
License required	No	No

Full analysis: Montreal vs Vancouver

On the money side of this comparison — what a listing actually earns against the nights it has available — Vancouver finishes narrowly ahead of Montreal. Revenue per available night — rate and occupancy combined, the figure that actually reaches an owner — is 63.4% higher in Vancouver: £55 against £34. Vancouver commands 50.6% more per night, £175 against £116. The margin is thin enough that a single strong year in Montreal would close it, so treat the ordering as a lean rather than a verdict.

Vancouver takes both halves of the yield equation, which is less common than it sounds. It charges more per night — £175 against £116 — and still fills more of the year, 36.2% against 34%. A market that leads on price and utilisation at once is normally one where demand has outrun supply, rather than one where hosts are discounting to keep the calendar busy. RevPAR reflects the double advantage at £55 against £34.

That verdict needs a caveat, because Montreal is not simply the weaker market of the two. The twelve-month direction favours Montreal too: occupancy there moved −5.5 points while Vancouver moved −13.1 points. Montreal is the deeper market at 7,186 active listings against 4,491, which usually means better comparables going in and a wider buyer pool coming out. If your model leans on that dimension, the ordering above can reasonably flip.

Neither Montreal nor Vancouver currently has a verified short-term rental regulation record in our register, so the comparison above is a yield comparison only. Regulation is the single largest source of downside in this asset class — an unverified market is an unpriced risk, not an absent one.

The two calendars also behave differently. Montreal peaks in September at 62.4% and bottoms in February at 28.9%; Vancouver runs from 66.9% in September down to 40.1% in November. Vancouver is the steadier of the two at 26.8 points peak-to-trough against 33.5 — easier to underwrite against a mortgage — while Montreal concentrates its return into a shorter window and rewards operators who price the peak aggressively instead of holding a flat rate all year.

Who each suits, then. Montreal suits buyers who want a conventional, lightly regulated entry. Vancouver answers to the same regulatory profile, so the split between them is operational rather than legal. It is the contrarian side: buying it means buying a market that has cooled. Every figure above comes from the same Inside Airbnb snapshot pipeline on both sides, dated 2026-09, filtered to listings with at least one booking in the last twelve months. Occupancy medians are drawn from 7,186 active Montreal listings and 4,491 in Vancouver.

Frequently asked questions

Is Montreal or Vancouver better for Airbnb investment?

Vancouver, on the data we track. It leads on stronger RevPAR (£55 vs £34), a higher nightly rate (£175 vs £116), and higher median annual revenue (£20,073 vs £12,277). Montreal is not the weak side of this pair, though — it wins on the better occupancy trend (−5.5 points vs −13.1 points year over year).

Which has higher occupancy, Montreal or Vancouver?

Vancouver, at 36.2% median occupancy against 34% in Montreal — a gap of 2.2 points. That is a real but modest edge; a well-run listing in Montreal can close most of it. Over the last twelve months Montreal shed 5.5 points and Vancouver shed 13.1 points, so the gap is closing.

Which has higher nightly rates, Montreal or Vancouver?

Vancouver, at £175 a night against £116 in Montreal — roughly 50.6% more. Revenue per available night agrees rather than contradicts: £55 in Vancouver against £34, so the rate premium survives contact with the occupancy figures.

Which has stronger year-over-year growth, Montreal or Vancouver?

Neither is growing on occupancy — both cooled over the last year. Montreal gave up 5.5 points and Vancouver 13.1, so Montreal is the shallower decline rather than the winner. Nightly rates rose 45.9% in Montreal and rose 55.2% in Vancouver over the same window.

Which is the bigger Airbnb market, Montreal or Vancouver?

Montreal, with 7,186 active listings against 4,491 in Vancouver. Size cuts both ways: a deep market gives you comparables, contractors and an exit, while a thinner one means fewer near-identical rivals competing for the same search results.

How much can you earn from an Airbnb in Montreal vs Vancouver?

Vancouver earns more: roughly £20,073 a year for a median listing against £12,277 in Montreal. Those are gross booking revenues before cleaning, management, platform fees, furnishing amortisation and tax — budget for a meaningful share of them, and note that a median listing is a median operator, not a good one.

Go deeper on each city

Market guide

Airbnb in Montreal →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

Market guide

Airbnb in Vancouver →

Occupancy, ADR, neighborhoods, regulation

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