Montreal Was Named One Of The Best Cities In The World For Students

And yet we're still not #1 in Canada…

People walking toward McGill University campus in Montreal, Quebec during the fall.

People walking toward McGill University campus in Montreal, Quebec during the fall.

Assistant Editor

A new ranking of the best student cities in the world dropped and Montreal managed to secure a top 20 spot. Despite Montreal's high rank, we still failed to land first when it comes to the best Canadian city for students — losing to Toronto by 1.2 points.

QS Quacquarelli Symonds, the world’s leading provider of services, analytics, and insight to the global higher education sector, released its 2024 ranking — showcasing the best urban destinations for international students, based on a diverse range of indicators grouped into six key categories. The six key categories include: university rankings, student mix, desirability, employer activity, affordability and student voice.

Montreal ranked 13th out of 160 with an overall score of 90.9. Toronto led by two spots, landing in 11th with an overall score of 92.1. Only three other Canadian cities appeared on the list.

Vancouver was ranked 18th with an overall score of 88.7 while Ottawa landed in the 57th spot with a score of 74. Quebec City was the last and final Canadian destination to appear on the QS ranking – landing 111th with an overall score of 57.5.

London (100), Tokyo (98) and Seoul (97.6) all made up the top three.

Wondering which cities across the globe took the lead? Here's the complete top 20 of the best student cities in 2024:
  1. London, United Kingdom (100)
  2. Tokyo, Japan (98)
  3. Seoul, Korea (97.6)
  4. Melbourne, Australia (97.3)
  5. Munich, Germany (97.1)
  6. Paris, France (96.3)
  7. Sydney, Australia (96.2)
  8. Berlin, Germany (95)
  9. Zurich, Switzerland (95)
  10. Boston, United States (92.3)
  11. Toronto, Canada (92.1)
  12. Vienna, Austria (91.1)
  13. Montreal, Canada (90.9)
  14. Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe, Japan (90.8)
  15. Singapore, Singapore (90.7)
  16. Edinburgh, United Kingdom (90.2)
  17. New York, United States (89.6)
  18. Vancouver, Canada (88.7)
  19. Lausanne, Switzerland (87.5)
  20. San Francisco, United States (87.4)

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

  • Mike Chaar
  • Assistant Editor

    Mike Chaar was an assistant editor & writer for MTL Blog. You might recognize him from bylines in Men's Health, FanSided, Contiki, and ScreenRant, to name a few. Mike's work has also appeared on the 'Real Housewives' and 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' When Mike isn't typing away, you can find him at his fave sushi spot, listening to one of Mariah Carey's 19 number-one hits or creating content.

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