Canada vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Canada United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2002
$2516
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4452
$5730
🏠 One person rent
$1187
$1598
🏘️ Family rent
$1933
$2655
🍽️ Food expenses
$560
$651
🚐 Transport expenses
$125
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2879
$4539
💸 GDP per capita
$54283
$85810
😃 Human freedom index
8.74
8.64
❤️ Life expectancy
81.6
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
75
65
🌐 English speaking %
82.1%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
99
100
😀 Quality of life
90
87
🏙️ Population
41.3M
340M

The average cost of living in Canada ($2002) is 20% less expensive than in the United States ($2516). Canada ranked 18th 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 1.4 months in Canada compared to 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 15th 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
$19.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$65.2
$76.5
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.6
$11.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.5
$6.31
 Cappuccino
$3.8
$5.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.97
$2.65
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1181
$1659
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1016
$1336
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2057
$3048
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1720
$2458
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$84.1
$125
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$129
$193
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$53.3
$67.5
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
5.53%
6.41%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5843
$4491
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4510
$3675
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.56
$2.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$82.9
$69.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$16.1
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.09
$0.92
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.22
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.45
$3.57
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.27
$4.43
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.41
$4.7
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.9
$13.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.9
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.8
$16.8
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.91
$5.12
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$1.85
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.64
$4.48
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.79
$4.77
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.43
$2.83
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.41
$2.9
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.11
$1.48
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.15
$2.74
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$13.2
$14.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.71
$2.41
🚬 Cigarette pack
$13
$10.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.46
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.62
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.93
$4.53
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.3
$2.2
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.8
$52.3
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$11.4
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$78.3
$124
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.2
$21.6
👖 Brand Jeans
$54.1
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$87.5
$92.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$761
$1428
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$11850
$20562

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
$2464
2.79M
Montreal
$1903
1.8M
Calgary
$2079
1.31M
Ottawa
$2096
1.02M
Edmonton
$1823
1.01M
Mississauga
$2326
718K
Vancouver
$2457
662K
Winnipeg
$1817
750K
Brampton
$2033
656K
Hamilton
$2103
569K
Surrey
$2297
568K
Quebec City
$1632
549K
Markham
$2242
339K
London
$1931
422K
Halifax
$2088
440K
Laval
$1930
438K
Vaughan
$2241
323K
Burnaby
$2412
249K
Gatineau
$1802
291K
Burlington
$2193
187K
Kitchener
$2071
257K
Richmond
$2172
210K
Saskatoon
$1817
266K
Longueuil
$1842
254K
Windsor
$1961
230K
Oakville
$2379
214K
Richmond Hill
$2463
202K
Regina
$1675
226K
Oshawa
$1564
175K
Guelph
$1998
144K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4203
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3361
3.9M
Chicago
$2799
2.75M
Houston
$2240
2.3M
San Diego
$3469
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2584
1.6M
Phoenix
$2340
1.61M
Dallas
$2447
1.3M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
San Jose
$3952
1.01M
San Antonio
$2023
1.43M
Seattle
$3162
737K
Austin
$2416
962K
Washington
$3328
690K
Boston
$3652
676K
Indianapolis
$2382
888K
Hempstead
$2655
793K
Fort Worth
$2217
919K
Jacksonville
$2222
950K
Charlotte
$2423
875K
Columbus
$2181
906K
Denver
$2775
716K
Portland
$2684
653K
Nashville
$2524
689K
Las Vegas
$2414
642K
Oklahoma City
$1872
681K
Atlanta
$2641
499K
Oakland
$3254
441K
Baltimore
$2323
586K
Sacramento
$2825
525K