Top 10 Cheapest Places to Live in Canada

Canada might not be the most affordable country on a global scale, but it’s also not the most expensive.

Whether you’re a Canadian citizen looking for a cheaper place to live in or a foreigner who’s planning on moving to Canada, we found the 10 cheapest places to live in Canada.

Let’s check them out!

The Canadian Cheap List

City	Average Monthly Living Costs
Prince George, British Columbia	$1100
Surrey, British Columbia	$1200
Winnipeg, Manitoba	$1440
London, Ontario	$1450
Quebec City, Quebec	$1500
Saint John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador	$1800
Montréal, Quebec	$1,800
Hamilton, Ontario	$1850
Edmonton, Alberta	$1850
Halifax, Nova Scotia	$1900

 

Top 10 Cheapest Places to Live in Canada

Canada has a lot of beautiful, affordable cities to live in for both individuals and families. Let’s take a closer look at each of them!

1. Prince George, British Columbia

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $1070
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1514

Despite the population of only around 74,000, Prince George’s is one of the most prominent places in the northern parts of BC. The average monthly necessities per person amount to $1100, whereas the rent is generally pretty cheap, making Prince George a great option for anyone looking for the most affordable cities in British Columbia.

When it comes to manufacturing, forestry used to be the primary industrial sector for quite a long time. However, the city’s economy is mainly driven by the service, education and health industries today. Yet, one of the biggest and most well-known landmarks of Prince George is the prominent cancer-treatment center as well as its beautiful nature.

If you love spending time outside, you could head out into Prince Geroge’s open fields and lakesides, where you can enjoy the fresh air and the mesmerizing Canadian nature.

Fun fact: there are around 1,600 lakes and streams within an hour of Prince George.

2. Surrey, British Columbia

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $1488
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $2840

With a population of about 519,467, Surrey is the second most populated city in British Columbia. It’s mainly an urban area, although it houses a decent portion of agricultural and rural areas. Rental prices might be a bit higher than in other cities from this list, but an average person spends about $1200 per month living in Surrey. Not that bad, eh?

Surrey isn’t known only as one of the cheapest metropolises in Canada, but as the fastest-growing city as well. The most common industries in Surrey are accommodation and food services, finance, insurance and real estate, construction, education, science, and retail trade, making it relatively easy to find a job.

It might not be the cheapest city on our list, but with a lower cost of necessities and rental prices being about 20% more affordable than in the biggest cities of Canada, it’s worth considering. Additionally, it’s one of the warmest places in Canada and the warmest city on our list.

3. Winnipeg, Manitoba

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $857
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1577

Winnipeg is the largest and most expensive city in the Manitoba province, yet, it’s still one of the most affordable cities to live in Canada. It houses a population of around 750,534 people and comes with a surprisingly low cost of living for the capital of Manitoba, which totals to around $1440 per month.

The city has a more extended presence of snow during winter and it gets pretty cold, but it also gets quite hot in the summers. So, whether you like beautiful white scenery or are more a sunny-day type of person, Winnipeg is a place that everyone can enjoy.

Many Canadians consider Winnipeg one of Canada’s most important industrial centres, besides just being one of the cheapest places in Manitoba. Its main industrial sectors include bus manufacturing, motor homes, fire engines, semi-trailers, storage tanks for agriculture as well as oil and gas.

The main disadvantage is that when it comes to crime rates, Winnipeg is pretty high up on the list. However, according to many different resources, this rate has been slowly dropping year by year.

4. London, Ontario

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $975
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1380

London is a place that offers affordable housing, excellent education, health care facilities, culture, and beautiful parks to newcomers. It’s also known as the “Forest City” because of the trees and green space that practically surround the urban areas. London, Ontario is also one of the cheapest places to live in Ontario, thus earning its rightful place on our list.

There are over 550,000 residents in the metropolitan area and the best thing is that despite becoming a sizeable city, you can still feel that cozy, small-town feel. With an average monthly cost for necessities of about $1450, this city serves as an excellent option replacement for big metropolises in Ontario, such as Toronto and Ottawa.

London’s industry is more oriented towards IT and healthcare research, a primary economic driving factor in the region.

5. Quebec City, Quebec

• Average one-bedroom apartment/house monthly rent: ~ $607
• Average family-sized apartment/house monthly rent: ~ $1067

 

 

 

Quebec City, the capital of the Quebec province, ranks as the most affordable of the 15 largest cities in Canada, with an estimated average living cost of about $1500 per month.

With a population of around 542,298, the leading industry fields of Quebec City’s manufacturing sector are food production, paper, transportation equipment, primary metals, chemical and pharmaceutical products, as well as refined petroleum and coal products.

Aside from being one of the most affordable cities in Canada, its combination of older European architecture and occasional greenery creates gorgeous scenery. Additionally, its social calendar has many exciting festivals throughout the summer and winter periods, providing fun all around the year.

The only disadvantage of Quebec City, as well as the Quebec province in general, is the fact it’s a significantly Francophone region. Hence, it could be challenging to be in the suburbs and away from the central districts, without a proficient use of the French language.

6. Saint John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $717
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $925

St. John’s is one of the cities with the most affordable rents in Canada. It’s the capital city of the Newfoundland and Labrador province, and houses a population of about 114,548, with an average monthly cost for a living calculated at $1800.

St. John’s was a trading outpost for Europeans in fishing. While the fishery is still essential, the City is the leading service center for the province’s offshore oil and gas industry. Low housing prices and above-average income make this city ideal if you are looking to move around in Canada.

What is more, buying a house in St. John’s is significantly easier compared to other provinces. Add that to the slightly higher average income and it comes as no shock that St, John’s is one of the cheapest cities in Canada.

However, note that you probably need to consider yourself a winter enjoyer to consider making this city your home. Winters are tough and summers are pretty mild, with an average of 20°C.

7. Montréal, Quebec

• Average one-bedroom apartment rent: ~ $702
• Average family-sized apartment rent: ~ $1112

Montréal is one of Canada’s largest, best-known, and most visited cities with a metropolitan population of 4,291,732 people. Regardless of its popularity, it’s also the most affordable metropolis in Canada. Approximately $1,800 per month would suffice for a standard living, which is considerately less compared to some other Canadian cities.

Many Canadians consider Montréal to be a cultural hub in French Canada. What is more, the city has more restaurants per capita than any other place in North America. It’s undoubtedly one of the best places to live in Canada when it comes to a night out with a range of bars, clubs and restaurants.

Manufacturing is the traditional industrial base for Montréal and about one-fifth of the metropolitan workforce is currently employed in manufacturing. Other Montréal industries include aerospace, electronic goods, pharmaceuticals, printed goods, software engineering, telecommunications, tobacco, tourism, and transportation.

8. Hamilton, Ontario

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $1000
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1850

If the price of Toronto puts you off, Hamilton is one of the best places to live in Ontario. It has a diverse population, a growing culinary culture, affordable housing, and world-class health care. The primary sectors of Hamilton’s industry are advanced manufacturing, agribusiness and food processing but it’s also home to some other industries, such as finance, insurance, real estate, IT, life science and tourism.

The city is almost glued to Toronto, with the distance being only 70km by car, but still offers significantly cheaper living and excellent rental prices, almost 40% more affordable compared to TO.

The population of Hamilton is around 580,200 and a person in this city spends about $1850 per month on average. It might not look that cheap, but it easily ranks as one of Canada’s more affordable large cities, especially if you want to enjoy nearby places like the 6ix and Niagara Falls.

9. Edmonton, Alberta

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $881
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1485

Despite being the capital of the Alberta province, Edmonton offers better rental rates than most other cities in North America, making it one of the more affordable cities in Canada. It is home to 982,280 residents with the average monthly cost of living being around $1850.

Some of Edmonton’s biggest assets is the generally youthful population, which makes it an ideal city for younger people. While it might not quite have the fun factor of Toronto or Montreal, Edmonton is still a sizable city with almost a million residents.

With the average earnings and strong economy taken into account, Edmonton is worth considering when looking for an inexpensive place to live in Canada, or more precisely, Alberta. And don’t worry about finding a job, Edmonton’s primary industries include just about everything: energy, agriculture, manufacturing, advanced technologies, financial services and tourism.

However, note that Edmonton is the northernmost city in Canada and it’s completely freezing during winter.

10. Halifax, Nova Scotia

• Average one-bedroom apartment monthly rent: ~ $865
• Average family-sized apartment monthly rent: ~ $1455

Halifax is a major economic centre in eastern Canada. It’s the capital city of Nova Scotia and it houses a population of about 431,479, with the average cost of necessities being around $1900 per month. However, Halifax represents an excellent replacement for the more expensive metropolises if you are looking for the cheapest cities in Canada.

A great thing about Halifax is that fining is significantly cheaper compared to Toronto for instance, as are childcare expenses and transportation costs. The case is not the same when it comes to groceries, though. So, eat out, we guess?

Also, It’s worth mentioning that Halifax is home to Dalhousie University, one of the best universities in Canada. When it comes to jobs, the primary industries in Halifax gravitate around agriculture, mining, fishing, and forestry.

Wrapping it all up

Here is where our list of cheapest places to live in Canada ends. Whether you’re looking to save some money or maybe for a more affordable place to raise a family, our list will definitely give you some considerable options.