The provincial capital of Quebec, Montréal is the second largest city in Canada and the largest city in Quebec. It is also one of the largest French-speaking metropolitan areas in the world. Montréal is ranked as the 8th largest metropolitan area in North America and 77th in the world. In 2006, Montréal ranked as the 6th best city in the world in terms of living conditions, beating out a favourite competitor, Toronto, for the first time ever. Montréal also ranked as the 25th richest city in the world and as the 37th most expensive city to live in on the planet - the second most expensive in Canada.