Canada vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Canada United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1980
$2498
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4423
$5861
🏠 One person rent
$1179
$1595
🏘️ Family rent
$1939
$2818
🍽️ Food expenses
$550
$638
🚐 Transport expenses
$124
$100
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2816
$4485
💸 GDP per capita
$53431
$82769
😃 Human freedom index
8.74
8.64
❤️ Life expectancy
81.3
77.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
75
65
🌐 English speaking %
82.1%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
99
100
😀 Quality of life
87
86
🏙️ Population
37M
340M

The average cost of living in Canada ($1980) is 21% less expensive than in the United States ($2498). Canada ranked 15th vs 7th 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 17th and 21st 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
$15.9
$19.4
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$65.6
$77.2
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.3
$11
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.32
$6.27
 Cappuccino
$3.71
$5.22
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$1.96
$2.59
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1170
$1640
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1009
$1347
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2026
$2923
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1688
$2471
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$84.9
$124
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$131
$190
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$52.7
$66.2
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.39%
6.52%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5833
$4583
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4502
$3784
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.49
$2.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$81.3
$68.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$16.2
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.12
$0.96
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.17
$1.1
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.46
$3.59
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.16
$4.49
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.37
$4.15
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.1
$13.1
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.5
$11.9
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.5
$16.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.82
$5.15
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.34
$1.78
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.58
$4.54
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.81
$4.63
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.38
$2.84
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.42
$2.86
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.12
$1.48
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.07
$2.64
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$13
$14.6
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.69
$2.21
🚬 Cigarette pack
$12.7
$10.6
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.1
$9.47
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.54
$5.83
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.86
$4.44
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.28
$2.13
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39
$48.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$11.1
$14.2
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$74.4
$125
💇 Haircut, simple
$17
$21.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$53.8
$53.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$86.3
$90
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$774
$1451
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$12417
$21164

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
$2453
2.79M
Montreal
$1857
1.8M
Calgary
$2077
1.31M
Ottawa
$2055
1.02M
Edmonton
$1769
1.01M
Mississauga
$2370
718K
Vancouver
$2488
662K
Winnipeg
$1777
750K
Brampton
$1946
656K
Hamilton
$2017
569K
Surrey
$2280
568K
Quebec City
$1644
549K
Halifax
$2086
440K
London
$1936
422K
Markham
$2291
339K
Laval
$1900
438K
Vaughan
$2267
323K
Gatineau
$1768
291K
Burnaby
$2495
249K
Kitchener
$2056
257K
Longueuil
$1835
254K
Burlington
$2185
187K
Saskatoon
$1786
266K
Windsor
$1694
230K
Richmond
$2093
210K
Oakville
$2142
214K
Richmond Hill
$2447
202K
Regina
$1540
226K
Oshawa
$1554
175K
Sherbrooke
$1395
175K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4441
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3196
3.9M
Chicago
$2678
2.75M
Houston
$2265
2.3M
San Diego
$3428
1.39M
Phoenix
$2395
1.61M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
San Francisco
$3905
874K
Dallas
$2471
1.3M
San Jose
$3810
1.01M
San Antonio
$2033
1.43M
Austin
$2455
962K
Seattle
$3015
737K
Indianapolis
$2189
888K
Washington
$3149
690K
Fort Worth
$2289
919K
Hempstead
$2664
793K
Charlotte
$2528
875K
Boston
$3547
676K
Jacksonville
$2364
950K
Denver
$2717
716K
Columbus
$2145
906K
Portland
$2629
653K
Nashville
$2508
689K
Atlanta
$2570
499K
Las Vegas
$2271
642K
Oklahoma City
$1832
681K
Baltimore
$2287
586K
Oakland
$2968
441K
Sacramento
$2813
525K