If you're considering a new semi-detached home near Beloeil, the real question may be less about the house than about the setting: are you better off living in Sainte-Julie or Beloeil? The two towns are neighbours: from Beloeil city hall to Geoffrion Street, it's about 10 km, or about 13 minutes without traffic.

Rather than crown a winner, this article sets side by side what brings them together and what sets them apart, using public sources: Statistics Canada's 2021 Census, the websites of both towns and of the Vilamo neighbourhood, and Centris statistics.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Beloeil: what stays the same?

The two towns share a history. According to the Town of Beloeil, the old seigneury of Beloeil covered land that now includes Saint-Mathieu-de-Beloeil, Beloeil, McMasterville and part of Sainte-Julie. They also share several services:

public schools fall under the same Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes, which includes Polybel high school in Beloeil and École secondaire du Grand-Coteau in Sainte-Julie; the school a child attends still depends on the address;
local public transit is free on both sides: in Beloeil, residents can ride at no charge anywhere in town and in McMasterville; in Sainte-Julie, it's free for everyone, at all times, on every route;
Highway 20 links the two towns, from exit 109 or 112 to exit 105.

One administrative nuance: Beloeil belongs to the La Vallée-du-Richelieu RCM, and Sainte-Julie to the Marguerite-D'Youville RCM. The La Vallée-du-Richelieu golf club, BÉAcité's neighbour, is nonetheless in Sainte-Julie: its name says nothing about the RCM.

Two towns, two profiles

The 2021 Census brings out some clear differences:

population: 24,104 in Beloeil, up 7.3% since 2016, versus 30,045 in Sainte-Julie, up 0.5%;
density: 988.8 people per km² in Beloeil, over 24.38 km², versus 619.6 in Sainte-Julie, over 48.49 km²;
median age: 42.0 in Beloeil, 44.4 in Sainte-Julie;
housing: 59.3% single-detached houses and 28.7% apartments in buildings under five storeys in Beloeil, versus 66.8% and 24.4% in Sainte-Julie;
age of housing: 50.8% of dwellings date from 1980 or earlier in Beloeil, versus 35.9% in Sainte-Julie;
homeowners: 71.9% of households in Beloeil, 79.8% in Sainte-Julie.

Beloeil also has more children aged 14 and under (19.0%) and more seniors aged 65 and over (21.0%) than the Quebec average. If several generations of your family want to live closer together, read our article on the multigenerational home near Beloeil.

The Beloeil side: the river and Old Beloeil

Beloeil lives to the rhythm of the Richelieu. Right at the municipal wharf, the Town has set up an open-water swimming pool, a 25 m by 16.5 m basin in the river, free for Beloeil residents and open daily from midday to 8 p.m. during the season. Old Beloeil is best explored on foot: the Town's "parcours coloré" walking route takes about 30 minutes and runs along Rue Richelieu, Rue Saint-Jean-Baptiste and Rue Laurier, among others. The 2022 tourist brochure listed 19 restaurants and 16 shops there. Heritage is never far: the current Saint-Matthieu church was built in 1896, and the Town notes that in the early 20th century, Rue Richelieu was home to a well-off middle class that already worked in Montreal.

The town has more than 40 parks, a municipal library that's free for residents and the Maison de la culture Villebon, which hosts shows all year round. Across the Jordi-Bonet bridge, Mont Saint-Hilaire is home to McGill University's Gault Nature Reserve: according to The Canadian Encyclopedia, UNESCO recognized the estate and its surroundings in 1978 as Canada's first biosphere reserve, and more than 25 km of trails are open to the public year-round.

The Sainte-Julie side: the Vilamo neighbourhood

BÉAcité is part of Vilamo, which the City of Sainte-Julie describes as a 33.5-hectare sector around the golf course, planned for roughly 400 to 500 units, with 15% of its area set aside for community and recreational space. According to vilamo.ca, the neighbourhood brings together 600,000 sq ft of green space, a promenade for walkers, cyclists and electric transport, dense landscaping and architectural standards that guide how the homes look; every residence there is less than 300 m from a bus stop.

Within walking distance, a commercial strip gathers medical services, a public market, restaurants, a Caisse Desjardins and a pharmacy. Sainte-Julie also offers more than 40 km of bike paths and, since October 5, 2026, a BIXI station in Parc Arthur-Gauthier. The beacite.com website mentions three years of free membership at Espace Tonik Nature, a community sugar bush reserved for its members. For outdoor time, Mont Saint-Bruno becomes the mountain next door: Ski Saint-Bruno is about 9 km from Geoffrion Street. Among nearby destinations, vilamo.ca also lists the Promenades St-Bruno shopping centre, Quartier DIX30 and IKEA.

Getting around: Montreal closer, Mont Saint-Hilaire farther

If you're torn between living in Sainte-Julie or Beloeil, transportation often weighs heavily. Without traffic, Geoffrion Street is about 31.5 km from Central Station, compared with about 35.4 km from Old Beloeil, and about 22.4 km from the Radisson terminus, compared with about 30.2 km. The Gault Nature Reserve, on the other hand, goes from about 7 km to about 17 km away. Between the two towns, the T34 taxibus runs on weekdays, but no route links them on weekends. For route details, read our article on getting from Beloeil to Sainte-Julie.

The housing market, with caution

According to Centris, in the third quarter of 2026 the median price of single-family homes sold was $637,500 in Beloeil, up 3% year over year, and $690,000 in Sainte-Julie, up 15%. These figures cover resales of every kind of single-family home: they tell you neither the price of a new semi-detached home nor which market fits your budget. Semi-detached houses remain a minority in both towns, for that matter: 4.0% of dwellings in Beloeil and 5.8% in Sainte-Julie, according to the census.

Conclusion

Living in Sainte-Julie or Beloeil means choosing between two neighbours that share a history, a school service centre and free local transit. Beloeil offers the river, Old Beloeil and Mont Saint-Hilaire close by; Sainte-Julie offers Vilamo's green spaces, the golf course, Mont Saint-Bruno and a shorter trip to Montreal. Your daily life is the best judge: list your trips and your habits, then compare on site.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Beloeil: a point-by-point comparison