Student Housing Near UdeM and UQAM: The 2026 Guide
Most English-language Montreal housing guides stop at McGill and Concordia — which leaves out the two largest universities in the city. Université de Montréal has roughly 67,000 students; UQAM has around 40,000. If you study at either, your housing map looks completely different from an anglophone student's. Here is the guide for UdeM and UQAM specifically, with September timing advice you'll want to act on now.
Arriving for the fall and still without a room? Furnished all-inclusive rooms from C$160/week at Coliville — flexible terms, no Canadian credit needed, bookable from abroad.
UdeM: The Mountain Campus
Université de Montréal sits on the north slope of Mount Royal, with the HEC and Polytechnique schools alongside it. It's a campus with a real neighborhood attached, which changes everything about where you live.
UdeM residences
About 1,200 rooms across several buildings — nowhere near enough for 67,000 students. Roughly $500–$800/month, which is excellent value, but demand vastly exceeds supply and priority goes to first-years and international students. Apply months ahead or don't count on it.
Côte-des-Neiges — the UdeM neighborhood
Directly below the campus, and the natural answer for most UdeM students.
- Room cost: $600–$750 — among the best value in the city
- Commute: 10–20 min walk or one metro stop (blue line: Université-de-Montréal, Côte-des-Neiges)
- The vibe: genuinely multicultural, superb inexpensive food, dense student population
Outremont and Mile End
North and east of campus, prettier and pricier.
- Room cost: $750–$950
- Commute: 15–25 min
UQAM: The Downtown Campus
UQAM is embedded in the Quartier Latin — no campus boundary, just university buildings woven into downtown east. Berri-UQAM is the busiest metro interchange in the city, which means almost anywhere on the metro network works.
UQAM residences
Around 500 rooms in the Quartier Latin, roughly $600–$900/month. Same story: far too few for demand.
Quartier Latin / Village
Right at the campus, lively, festival-heavy in summer.
- Room cost: $800–$950
- Commute: walking distance
Plateau and Villeray
The classic student choice for UQAM — a short metro ride, much more neighborhood character.
- Room cost: $650–$950 (Villeray at the low end, Plateau at the high end)
- Commute: 10–20 min on the orange line
Rosemont
Underrated, francophone, good value, direct metro.
- Room cost: $650–$800
- Commute: 15–20 min
Where Coliville Fits
- The Sherwin — C$160/week (~$693/month), NDG corridor. Roughly 20–25 min to UdeM via the 165/blue line; 25–30 min to UQAM. The value option.
- The Gramercy — C$205/week (~$888/month), downtown core. 10–15 min to UQAM on the metro; ~25 min to UdeM. The convenience option for UQAM students.
Both are all-inclusive (WiFi, hydro, heating, cleaning), flexible-term, and require no Canadian credit history — which matters because UdeM and UQAM together host a very large international student population, especially from France, North Africa, and Latin America.
Commute Comparison
| Neighborhood | To UdeM | To UQAM | Room cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Côte-des-Neiges | 10–20 min | 25 min | $600–$750 |
| NDG (The Sherwin) | 20–25 min | 25–30 min | C$160/wk (~$693) |
| Downtown (The Gramercy) | ~25 min | 10–15 min | C$205/wk (~$888) |
| Plateau | 20 min | 10–15 min | $800–$950 |
| Villeray | 20 min | 15 min | $650–$800 |
| Rosemont | 25 min | 15–20 min | $650–$800 |
| Outremont | 15 min | 20 min | $750–$950 |
Neighborhood profiles in our best neighborhoods guide.
A Note on French
UdeM and UQAM are francophone institutions — courses, administration, and student life all run in French. For housing this cuts both ways:
- Advantage: you'll be looking in neighborhoods (Villeray, Rosemont, Côte-des-Neiges) where francophone landlords are the norm and anglophone competition is thinner. Prices are better.
- Practical: listings in these areas are often posted in French only. Search "chambre à louer" rather than "room for rent" and you'll surface inventory most anglophone students never see.
Both Coliville properties support service in French and English.
September Timing — Act This Week
It is now mid-August. For a September start:
- Residences: closed or waitlisted at both universities
- Conventional leases: the good ones went in May–June
- Realistic now: furnished flexible rooms, sublets, and late-listed shares
This is the compressed window. If you're arriving for the fall semester, book housing this week rather than after you land. Our student housing guide has the full calendar; the short version is that August arrivals should not wait.
FAQ
Is UdeM residence hard to get? Yes — roughly 1,200 rooms for 67,000 students. Apply very early or plan on off-campus from the start.
What's the cheapest area near UdeM? Côte-des-Neiges, at $600–$750 for a room, and it's directly below campus.
Can international students at UQAM rent without Canadian credit? Private landlords usually require credit or a guarantor. Coliville does not — see our no-credit guide.
Do I need French to find housing near these campuses? It genuinely helps — searching in French surfaces listings anglophone students miss. But you can rent in English throughout.
The Bottom Line
UdeM students should look hard at Côte-des-Neiges — the value and the proximity are both unmatched. UQAM students have the easiest commute problem in Montreal thanks to Berri-UQAM, so choose on neighborhood character and price rather than distance. And if you're arriving for September without a room, act now: this is the tight month.
Fall semester starting? Apply at Coliville — The Sherwin from C$160/week, The Gramercy from C$205/week, flexible terms, no Canadian credit required.