Canada vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Canada United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2076
$2454
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4665
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$1239
$1565
🏘️ Family rent
$2059
$2755
🍽️ Food expenses
$573
$624
🚐 Transport expenses
$130
$102
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2944
$4635
💸 GDP per capita
$53372
$81695
😃 Human freedom index
8.55
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
81.3
77.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
76
69
🌐 English speaking %
82.1%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
99
100
😀 Quality of life
88
87
🏙️ Population
37M
332M

The average cost of living in Canada ($2076) is 15% less expensive than in the United States ($2454). Canada ranked 15th vs 10th 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 1.4 months in Canada compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 19th and 20th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Canada vs United States infographic

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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
$16.2
$18.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$69.9
$75
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.6
$10.8
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.73
$6.19
 Cappuccino
$3.92
$5.13
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.02
$2.57
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1222
$1641
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1060
$1330
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2160
$2946
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1790
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$91.3
$123
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$140
$189
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$54.9
$66.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.55%
6.53%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6407
$4710
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4825
$3231
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.6
$2.37
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$85.5
$70
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$16.9
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.18
$0.98
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.21
$1.08
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.55
$3.5
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.31
$4.35
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.46
$3.81
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.9
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.2
$11.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.8
$15.9
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.9
$5.03
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$1.76
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.67
$4.51
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.85
$4.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.43
$2.81
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.5
$2.88
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.19
$1.42
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.16
$2.6
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$13.5
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.8
$2.17
🚬 Cigarette pack
$12.9
$10.3
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.75
$9.41
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.84
$6.07
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.81
$4.4
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.36
$2.13
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$41.2
$51.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$11.7
$14.1
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$76
$122
💇 Haircut, simple
$19.9
$20.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$56.8
$52.8
👟 Brand Sneakers
$90.9
$89.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$832
$1400
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$13109
$20224

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Canada vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Canada

City Cost of living Population
Toronto
$2575
2.79M
Montreal
$1954
1.76M
Calgary
$2149
1.31M
Ottawa
$2236
1.02M
Edmonton
$1785
1.01M
Mississauga
$2472
718K
Vancouver
$2650
662K
Winnipeg
$1754
750K
Brampton
$2127
656K
Hamilton
$2154
569K
Surrey
$2417
568K
Quebec City
$1791
549K
London
$2040
422K
Markham
$2398
339K
Halifax
$2196
440K
Burnaby
$2589
249K
Laval
$1996
438K
Vaughan
$2332
323K
Kitchener
$2144
257K
Gatineau
$1542
291K
Burlington
$2297
187K
Longueuil
$1896
254K
Saskatoon
$1793
266K
Windsor
$1793
230K
Richmond
$2220
210K
Oakville
$2266
214K
Oshawa
$1635
175K
Richmond Hill
$2618
202K
Regina
$1678
226K
Waterloo
$2095
121K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4051
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3187
3.9M
Chicago
$2667
2.75M
Houston
$2248
2.3M
San Diego
$3346
1.39M
Phoenix
$2369
1.61M
San Jose
$3674
1.01M
Dallas
$2550
1.3M
San Francisco
$3781
874K
Philadelphia
$2541
1.6M
San Antonio
$2194
1.43M
Austin
$2473
962K
Seattle
$2908
737K
Indianapolis
$2187
888K
Hempstead
$2702
793K
Charlotte
$2615
875K
Washington
$3139
690K
Boston
$3467
676K
Fort Worth
$2195
919K
Jacksonville
$2386
950K
Columbus
$2252
906K
Denver
$2699
716K
Nashville
$2649
689K
Portland
$2572
653K
Atlanta
$2540
499K
Las Vegas
$2246
642K
Detroit
$2006
639K
Oakland
$3146
441K
El Paso
$1775
679K
Baltimore
$2223
586K