Comparing two towns before choosing a new semi-detached home near Varennes means asking what you would keep and what would change day to day. Living in Sainte-Julie or Varennes is about more than a postal code: these are two South Shore neighbours, linked by Route 229, each with its own character.

First, the obvious: people in Varennes are attached to their town. In a Léger survey of 842 residents conducted in March 2025, 98% gave their quality of life a favourable rating, just as many saw Varennes as a good place to raise a family, and 97% said they were proud of it. So this article isn't trying to talk anyone into leaving; it helps you weigh the pros and cons of living in Sainte-Julie or Varennes when your circumstances change.

Two neighbours in the Marguerite-D'Youville RCM

Varennes and Sainte-Julie belong to the same regional county municipality (RCM), named after Marguerite d'Youville, who was born in Varennes in 1701. It brings together six municipalities: Calixa-Lavallée, Contrecœur, Saint-Amable, Sainte-Julie, Varennes and Verchères. According to the 2023 population table published by the RCM, Sainte-Julie is the most populous (31,030 residents, 37.5%), ahead of Varennes (21,584 residents, 26%). Nearly 80% of the RCM's population lives in Saint-Amable, Sainte-Julie or Varennes, while about 80% of its territory is permanently zoned agricultural.

Both towns are also part of the Montreal Metropolitan Community. In practical terms, they share exo's paratransit service, offered in all six municipalities of the RCM, and their mayors, together with the other four, signed a joint request for reinvestment in public transit.

Two populations up close

The 2021 Census and the Institut de la statistique du Québec (ISQ) describe two towns that are closer than you might think:

population: 21,198 residents in Varennes, 30,045 in Sainte-Julie (2021);
land area: 94.80 km² in Varennes, nearly double Sainte-Julie's 48.49 km²;
median age: 42.4 in Varennes, 44.4 in Sainte-Julie (2021);
ages 0 to 19: 23.4% in Varennes and 21.9% in Sainte-Julie as of July 1, 2025 (ISQ);
65 and over: 19.4% in Varennes and 21.3% in Sainte-Julie on the same date;
median household income in 2020: $103,000 in Varennes, $107,000 in Sainte-Julie;
homeowner households: 79.2% in Varennes, 79.8% in Sainte-Julie.

According to a profile published in 2022 based on ISQ projections, Varennes' population should remain stable through 2041, with the town staying the second most populous in the RCM.

The river on one side, the golf course on the other

It's the setting that sets the two towns apart the most.

In Varennes: the St. Lawrence and more than 350 years of history

Lining the river, Varennes was founded in 1672 by René Gaultier. The Vieux-Varennes district, which grew up around the Sainte-Anne basilica, is described by the town as one of the most remarkable heritage ensembles in Montérégie. Parc de la Commune offers a boardwalk on piles, a bike path, an urban beach and a boat launch; the library is the first public building in Quebec with net-zero energy consumption; and Parc du Pré-Vert combines trails, an outdoor pool and the Polydôme. From May to October, a river shuttle even links Varennes to Montreal's Old Port in 50 minutes.

In Sainte-Julie: Vilamo, around the golf course

The Vilamo neighbourhood covers 33.5 ha around the Vallée-du-Richelieu golf club, which BÉAcité backs onto. According to the City of Sainte-Julie, community and recreational spaces amount to 15% of the site; the developer announces 600,000 sq ft of green space and a promenade for pedestrians, bikes and electric mobility. Sainte-Julie also has more than 40 km of bike and pedestrian paths, a BIXI station opened at Parc Arthur-Gauthier on October 5, 2026, and Mont-Saint-Bruno National Park a few minutes away. BÉAcité also advertises a free three-year membership to Espace Tonik Nature.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Varennes: everyday services

Varennes has six elementary schools and two high schools, an aquatic centre, a gourmet public market and a downtown under revitalization: new commercial space, a future public square and a pedestrian link to Parc de la Commune. To reach Montreal, route 532 runs from the Jules-Phaneuf park-and-ride to Radisson metro station; free while major work disrupts the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel, it remains a temporary measure.

On the Vilamo side, the commercial strip within walking distance brings together medical services, a public market, restaurants, a pharmacy and a Caisse Desjardins, and the Elna medical complex is about 900 m from Geoffrion Street. Above all, Sainte-Julie's local bus is free for everyone, at all hours and on every route, and every home in Vilamo is less than 300 m from a stop.

Between the two, allow about 22 minutes without traffic via Route 229; our article on the drive from Varennes to Sainte-Julie has the details, from your starting point to the sales office.

Housing: what the numbers say

The two housing stocks did not grow at the same pace. In Varennes, 51.1% of dwellings date from 1981 to 2000, compared with 43.2% in Sainte-Julie; from 2016 to 2021, 3.2% of Varennes' dwellings were built, against 5.5% in Sainte-Julie. Semi-detached houses are more common in Varennes (8.4% of dwellings) than in Sainte-Julie (5.8%).

On price, Sainte-Julie is not the cheaper option. According to Centris, the median single-family resale price was $643,750 in Varennes and $690,000 in Sainte-Julie in the third quarter of 2026. These are resales of every kind, not the price of a new semi-detached home; for the price of a BÉAcité home, ask the sales director, Eddy Guessous.

What would you keep if you moved?

Changing towns within the same RCM means keeping a lot: Route 229 to come back, the same paratransit service, and Varennes' regular events — the Veillées du Jeudi, the beer festival, Dimanche, c'est classique! — roughly twenty minutes away.

What would change: a setting of golf greens and promenades rather than river and heritage, a new home rather than an established one, and an all-inclusive maintenance program that frees up your weekends.

And if your plans bring two generations together, you and your parents or your adult children, read our article on the multigenerational home near Varennes.

Conclusion

Living in Sainte-Julie or Varennes means choosing between two neighbours in the same RCM, with comparable populations and different settings: the river and heritage on one side, Vilamo and its green spaces along the golf course on the other. Neither is better than the other; it all depends on what you are looking for at this stage of your life. The simplest step is to go and see: the sales office at 435 Geoffrion Street is about 22 minutes from Varennes city hall, without traffic.

Living in Sainte-Julie or Varennes: two towns, one RCM