Cost of Living in Canada

Are you restless Canadian thinking about switching cities for better career prospects? Do you currently live overseas and wonder how much it will cost you to live if you move? Whether you’re looking for a temporary change of scenery, wanting to expand your career horizons, or seeking an affordable place to retire, it’s important to understand the cost of living in Canada and determine its compatibility with your current financial circumstances.

Before we begin, be aware that the average cost of living in Canada varies from one city or region to the next. This article outlines how much it will cost you to live in 10 major Canadian cities after reviewing factors like rental costs, house prices, grocery costs, internet service rates, and the price of dining out. All prices are in Canadian dollars, but you can convert them to any other currency here. Remember too that these costs are only averages: Depending on where you live or shop, you may pay more or less for the same goods and services.

Vancouver

Vancouver is one of the most iconic cities in Canada. In 2016, over 70,000 readers of the UK newspaper The Telegraph voted it the second best city on Earth due to its strong economy, ocean surroundings, and friendly, ethnically diverse population. It’s also really expensive: Buying a home is costly, with the average price for townhouses recently reaching a new high of $966,221.

In April 2018, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, First Call: B.C. Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition and the Living Wage for Families Campaign published a report indicating that for a two-parent household with two children, each parent needed to earn $38,056 per year. This conclusion pointed to a 25% increase from the date of the first living wage study in 2008.

Below are the median costs for food, housing, and entertainment in the city. (Source: Numbeo)

• Downtown one-bedroom apartment: $1916
• Monthly broadband internet: $76
• Monthly transit pass: $95
• Dinner for two in a quality restaurant: $75
• Litre of milk: $2.37
• Loaf of bread: $3.19
• Bottle of wine: $19

Calgary

In 2017, The Economist ranked Calgary the fifth most livable city in the world. The rating was based on factors that included job stability, infrastructure, healthcare, education, and culture. Cost of living was not expressly identified, although it was likely taken into consideration too.

While it isn’t Vancouver or Toronto, Calgary does have a higher cost of living than many  Canadian cities. House prices average $479,352, and according to this article, you would need to gross at least $34,000 annually just to get by. This figure doesn’t include things like travel, savings, and emergency expenses.

Below are the median costs for food, housing, and entertainment in the city known as the ‘#YYC’. (Source: Numbeo)

• Downtown one-bedroom apartment: $1213
• Monthly broadband internet: $75
• Monthly transit pass: $103
• Dinner for two in a quality restaurant: $80
• Litre of milk: $2.05
• Loaf of bread: $2.93
• Bottle of wine: $16

Regina

Until recently, Regina didn’t draw a lot of attention to itself. In 2014, MoneySense named it the ninth best place to live in Canada, but the following year it dropped to the 44th position, as if shrinking away from the limelight.

Now, thanks to major investment in several important sectors, Regina has created a lot of new jobs, making it an attractive destination for those seeking employment in the following fields:

• Steel and Manufacturing
• Agriculture and agribusiness
• Energy and environment
• Information technology

Regina is also becoming a popular site for film and video production, thanks to weekly TV shows like Corner Gas.

Property prices are presently attractive to buyers: from January to mid-April 17, 2018, 104 condos in Regina were sold for a median price of $230,000. Below are the median costs for food, other forms of housing, and entertainment in Regina. (Source: Numbeo)

• Downtown one-bedroom apartment: $1042
• Monthly broadband internet: $68
• Monthly transit pass: $92
• Dinner for two in a quality restaurant: $55
• Litre of milk: $1.91
• Loaf of bread: $2.63
• Bottle of wine: $18

Winnipeg

Winnipeg receives consistently high scores in the affordability department, which may be why MoneySense ranked it higher than Toronto and Vancouver in its list of best places to live in Canada. In its 2016 Competitive Alternatives report, KPMG ranked Winnipeg as the most cost-effective city for business in the entire Western Canadian / Midwest U.S. region.

Just as those aforementioned cities don’t really answer the question of “What is the cost of living in Canada?” due to their expensive standards, Winnipeg’s living costs are much less than the national average, especially where housing is concerned. While it can be a challenge to find a home for sale, when you do, the average asking price is $327,959.

If you want to call Winnipeg home, below are the median costs for food, other forms of housing, and entertainment. (Source: Numbeo)

• Downtown one-bedroom apartment: $939
• Monthly broadband internet: $72
• Monthly transit pass: $100
• Dinner for two in a quality restaurant: $60
• Litre of milk: $1.78
• Loaf of bread: $2.08
• Bottle of wine: $16

Toronto

With a population of nearly three million, Toronto is the largest city in Canada and one of the biggest in North America. The GTA, or Greater Toronto Area, includes nearly six million more people, many of them immigrants who contribute to the city’s enviable multicultural reputation. With its sustainable job market, clean streets, diverse neighbourhoods, and vibrant festival traditions, the city enjoys a reputation as a great place to call home.

The downside is the sky-high real estate prices. At present, the average house price in Toronto is $772,400, and that’s after a brief decline. Many young people feel priced out of the real estate market and opt to start their families in apartments or townhouses instead. The average cost of living is no better or worse than most big cities, but property prices put Toronto beyond the reach of a lot of people unless they’re prepared to rent.

If you want to live in Toronto, below are the median costs for food, other forms of housing, and entertainment. (Source: Numbeo)

• Downtown one-bedroom apartment: $1820
• Monthly broadband internet: $66
• Monthly transit pass: $146
• Dinner for two in a quality restaurant: $75
• Litre of milk: $2.50
• Loaf of bread: $3.08
• Bottle of wine: $16

In Conclusion

So, the question remains: What is the average cost of living in Canada? According to Numbeo, it is 6.79% lower than in the U.S., with rent being significantly cheaper at 23.83%. We hope that these figures will both inspire and inform your decision to move to a particular Canadian city and that once you’ve established yourself in the right place for your economic circumstances, you’ll congratulate yourself on having made the right call.

Images attribution: Wikipedia.org