Canada vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Canada United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2005
$2522
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4479
$5757
🏠 One person rent
$1185
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$1937
$2642
🍽️ Food expenses
$565
$656
🚐 Transport expenses
$124
$103
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3044
$4550
💸 GDP per capita
$54340
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
8.74
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
81.6
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
75
64
🌐 English speaking %
82.1%
95.9%
🎓 Higher education
99
100
😀 Quality of life
91
88
🏙️ Population
41.3M
340M

The average cost of living in Canada ($2005) is 20% less expensive than in the United States ($2522). Canada ranked 21st vs 9th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.5 months in Canada compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 17th and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in Canada vs the United States

We calculate prices for Canada and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 153 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Canada United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$16.6
$19.8
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$66.2
$77
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.7
$11.7
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.63
$6.39
 Cappuccino
$3.87
$5.44
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.04
$2.76
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1176
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1014
$1337
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2056
$2997
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1715
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$87.5
$130
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$134
$200
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$53.2
$68.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
4.68%
6.16%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5101
$4871
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4393
$3394
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.59
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$82.6
$71.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$15.7
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.15
$1.02
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.24
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.51
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.11
$4.47
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.5
$4.73
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12
$13.2
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.3
$17.3
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.85
$5.06
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$1.82
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.72
$4.57
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.8
$4.83
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.44
$2.88
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.33
$2.97
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.08
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.17
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$13.2
$15
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.71
$2.45
🚬 Cigarette pack
$13.6
$11.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.55
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.64
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.93
$4.59
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.33
$2.24
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.2
$52.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$11.7
$14.7
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$75.3
$127
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.3
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$55.7
$55.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$90.2
$94.7
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$759
$1520
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$14602
$20019

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Canada vs the United States

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Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Canada

City Cost of living Population
Toronto
$2415
2.79M
Montreal
$1901
1.9M
Calgary
$2095
1.31M
Ottawa
$2122
1.02M
Edmonton
$1835
1.01M
Vancouver
$2505
662K
Mississauga
$2308
718K
Winnipeg
$1842
750K
Brampton
$2102
656K
Surrey
$2091
568K
Hamilton
$2006
569K
Quebec City
$1648
574K
London
$1930
422K
Halifax
$2133
440K
Laval
$2058
451K
Markham
$2172
339K
Vaughan
$2233
323K
Burnaby
$2411
249K
Gatineau
$1839
298K
Kitchener
$2109
257K
Saskatoon
$1781
266K
Longueuil
$1874
262K
Windsor
$1927
230K
Oakville
$2318
214K
Richmond
$2247
210K
Burlington
$2214
187K
Richmond Hill
$2483
202K
Regina
$1739
226K
Oshawa
$1581
175K
Sherbrooke
$1421
181K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4202
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3420
3.9M
Chicago
$2851
2.75M
Houston
$2261
2.3M
San Diego
$3486
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
Phoenix
$2423
1.61M
Dallas
$2472
1.3M
San Jose
$3957
1.01M
San Antonio
$2071
1.43M
Washington
$3350
690K
Seattle
$3183
737K
Austin
$2475
962K
Boston
$3680
676K
Fort Worth
$2259
919K
Hempstead
$2710
793K
Indianapolis
$2405
888K
Charlotte
$2470
875K
Jacksonville
$2192
950K
Columbus
$2140
906K
Denver
$2848
716K
Portland
$2785
653K
Nashville
$2451
689K
Atlanta
$2628
499K
Oklahoma City
$1931
681K
Baltimore
$2224
586K
Las Vegas
$2294
642K
Sacramento
$2682
525K
Memphis
$1917
633K