If the idea of a new semi-detached home near Boucherville appeals to you, another question follows right away: what changes when you cross the line between the two cities? When it comes to living in Sainte-Julie or Boucherville, the differences have less to do with distance than with who lives there, how old the houses are and certain services.

This comparison draws on Statistics Canada's 2021 Census, Institut de la statistique du Québec estimates, the two cities' websites and Centris statistics. It doesn't try to crown a winner: each city has its strengths, and the right choice depends on what you want to keep.

Two cities that share a border

Boucherville and Sainte-Julie are next-door neighbours: their territories meet, and Highway 20 runs through both. They don't answer to the same regional bodies, though: Boucherville is part of the Longueuil agglomeration, while Sainte-Julie belongs to the Marguerite-D'Youville regional county municipality (MRC).

For health care, on the other hand, they share the same local services network, Pierre-Boucher, according to the Montérégie public health department. In other words, changing cities doesn't mean changing networks.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Boucherville: population and households

The two cities have similar profiles, with a few clear differences. According to the 2021 Census:

population: 41,743 residents in Boucherville, 30,045 in Sainte-Julie; as of July 1, 2025, the ISQ's preliminary estimates are 41,910 and 30,981;
growth from 2016 to 2021: +0.2% in Boucherville, +0.5% in Sainte-Julie, compared with +4.1% for Quebec;
land area: 71.02 km² versus 48.49 km²;
median age: 48.0 in Boucherville, 44.4 in Sainte-Julie;
households: couples with children make up 33.3% of households in Sainte-Julie, compared with 28.6% in Boucherville, where couples without children are more common (32.1% versus 29.3%);
homeowners: 84.0% of households in Boucherville, 79.8% in Sainte-Julie.

Sainte-Julie therefore has slightly more couples with children; Boucherville, a slightly older population. These averages say nothing about any particular street, but they help you picture the neighbourhood.

The housing stock: age and types of homes

Housing is where the two cities differ most:

dwellings built in 1980 or earlier: 49.0% in Boucherville, 35.9% in Sainte-Julie;
built between 1981 and 2000: 28.7% versus 43.2%;
single-detached houses: 59.1% versus 66.8%;
semi-detached houses: 7.8% versus 5.8%;
condominium dwellings: 21.9% versus 11.5%.

In Sainte-Julie, the 1981–2000 period is the most represented; in Boucherville, it's 1961–1980 (39.4%). The Vilamo neighbourhood, where Maisons Pépin is building BÉAcité, is now adding new homes to Sainte-Julie: according to the city, some 400 to 500 units on 33.5 hectares around the Vallée du Richelieu golf course.

Work, commuting and languages

Commuting habits differ as well. In the 2021 Census, 36.7% of Boucherville commuters worked in their own city, compared with 27.4% in Sainte-Julie; 7.4% took public transit to work, versus 3.8%. Keep in mind that the data was collected in May 2021, in the middle of the pandemic, when working from home was widespread: habits may have shifted since then.

As for languages, 61.8% of Boucherville residents know both French and English, compared with 52.0% in Sainte-Julie. French clearly dominates in both cities; in Boucherville, the city reports that 92.5% of the population has French as its mother tongue.

What Sainte-Julie offers day to day

Free local transit: local public transit is free for everyone, at all times, on every route; express buses and taxibuses still charge a fare.
Cycling: the city has a bike network of more than 40 km.
Green space: in Vilamo, 15% of the neighbourhood is set aside for community and recreational space, with a promenade for pedestrians, cyclists and electric mobility.
Local services: a pharmacy, a public market, restaurants, a Caisse Desjardins and medical services are within walking distance of Vilamo.
Espace Tonik Nature: according to beacite.com, three years of free membership are offered.

If your move is mainly about easing the upkeep of a large house, our article on finding a maintenance-free home near Boucherville looks at that option in detail.

What you keep from Boucherville

Settling in Sainte-Julie doesn't cut you off from Boucherville. From Geoffrion Street, Old Boucherville is 20.0 km away, about 19 minutes without traffic via Highway 20. There you'll still find:

Îles-de-Boucherville National Park: created in 1984, it covers 8.14 km² and brings together five islands laced with channels, with walking, cycling and paddling trails and 75 campsites; according to a Quebec government document, it draws more than 415,000 visitors a year;
Old Boucherville (Vieux-Boucherville), a designated heritage site, with the Sainte-Famille church, built in 1801–1802 and classified as a historic monument in 1964, the house known as Maison Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine, open to visitors, and the Centre Mgr-Poissant, a former presbytery the city acquired in 1985;
river shuttles to Montreal and to the national park, offered in summer according to the city.

Founded by Pierre Boucher in 1667 on the seigneury of Îles-Percées, Boucherville received its city charter in 1957: its history stays within easy driving distance. To plan your trips back and forth, our article on the drive from Boucherville to Sainte-Julie covers the routes, public transit and the model home visit.

Why read resale prices with care?

According to Centris, the median price of single-family houses sold in the third quarter of 2026 was $838,750 in Boucherville and $690,000 in Sainte-Julie. These medians cover resales of every age and size, over three months only, and Centris notes that its statistics do not reflect each individual property. Above all, they say nothing about the price of a new BÉAcité semi-detached home, which you can ask the sales representative.

The census offers another, longer-lasting benchmark: 4.8% of Boucherville's dwellings need major repairs, compared with 2.9% in Sainte-Julie. For any question about value or financing, talk to a real estate broker or your financial institution.

Conclusion

Living in Sainte-Julie or Boucherville means choosing between two neighbouring cities that share a highway and a health network. Sainte-Julie stands out for its newer housing, more couples with children and free local transit; Boucherville keeps its heritage, its island national park and an older population. At BÉAcité, you live in the first while staying about twenty minutes from the second.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Boucherville: two neighbouring cities compared