The Cheapest Cities to Live in Canada

Do you want to move to Canada but are concerned about whether or not you will be able to afford it? The decision to move to Canada is already a challenging choice as it is but factoring in the question of whether you’ll be able to live sustainably once you’ve immigrated adds more anxiety to the process. As a means to ease these legitimate concerns, we have compiled a list of the cheapest cities to live in should you decide to move to Canada.

Why Would you Want to Live in a Canadian City?

Canada is a highly urbanized country. Its cities teem with economic wealth and opportunity. This statistic has caused its cities to become focal nodes where the bulk of new immigrants to the country are inevitably funneled.

This has augmented the populations of these cities to such a degree that they are constantly in a state of change and development, materially and culturally.

The landscape of the built environment is in a state of flux as well, with alterations being made in the form of new buildings to meet the growing demand for housing, office space, recreational, economic and commercial needs.

These factors have made Canadian cities veritable attractions for all sorts of immigrants regardless of whether they’re immigrating for economic, cultural, lifestyle and educational opportunities. In Canadian cities, all of these needs are met.

However, the cost of this robust growth in urban development and booming population has resulted into a high cost of living. Therefore taking into account the high likelihood that most immigrants will immigrate to one of Canada’s cities but wanting to mitigate the problem of affordability once they do, a comparative compilation of the cheapest cities to live in while in Canada becomes .

List of the Cheapest Cities to Live in Canada?

Moncton

Moncton has a reputation as being one of the most polite and genial Canadian cities, with a population that values harmony and places emphasis on an easygoing lifestyle. This ease of conducting socio-cultural affairs has extended itself to the economic life of the city.

Moncton is notorious for having some of the cheapest prime real estate among major Canadian cities. The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) stipulates that the average price as of December 2022 for a single family home within the Greater Moncton area is 313,400 C$. This is a comparatively affordable price compared to other cities which place a premium on land as the primary determinant for the valuation of their real estate.

The following is a simplified breakdown of the costs of living in Moncton, New Brunswick.

  • A family of four estimated monthly costs will usually round up to around 4,731.8 C$. without rent.
  • If you're single, your estimated monthly costs will usually round up to around 1,320.9 C$ without rent.
  • For a relative comparison of costs, Moncton is 19.4% less expensive than Toronto (without rent, see our cost of living index).
  • With regards to standards of living, you would need only 6,118.3 C$ to maintain the same quality of life that in Toronto which requires 7,500 C$ to maintain. Here’s a more expanded statistical breakdown of the living costs in Moncton.

Lacombe, Alberta

Lacombe has a history of having one of the most satisfied populace among Canadian Cities. With a booming economy driven by the oil and gas industry, Lacombe is a mid-sized town of roughly 20,000 people.

As the relatively sparsely populated central node of a burgeoning energy economy, Lacombe’s distinguished achievement which warrants its inclusion on this list of cheapest Canadian cities is that it has one of the lowest energy costs in Canada.

Gas costs average around 110 C$, a figure that has kept a lid on transportation costs to around 25 to 45 C$ on average per month. This cheap transportation service is very valuable to the working class population who either work in the oil and gas industry or one of its affiliated industries.

To people looking for an urban small town atmosphere and have experience or would not mind working in the energy industry, we highly recommend Lacombe as an affordable destination.

Stratford, Ontario

Stratford is located in the most populated Canadian province, Ontario. However, unlike its most densely populated neighboring cities like Toronto and London, Stratford, though still a largely populated urban area, still retains a socio-cultural atmosphere of a small town. This has allowed it to avoid the inflated pricing pressures that are almost inherent in large urban agglomerations.

The average house price in Stratford ranges between 250,000 to 300,000 C$ with the median price being set at around 275,000 C$. As a relatively youthful town with a significant student population, Stratford caters a lot to the single room apartment market in which the majority of the clientele are young people. The following is a breakdown of single and shared (more than one bedroom) apartment rent prices per month in Stratford, Ontario.

Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre845.00 C$
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of City Centre1,598.75C$
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre3049.50 C$
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of City Centre3,881.67 C$

If you’re a student or just a young person looking to travel and work in Canada, we recommend considering Stratford is a place to rent or possibly permanently settle.

Brandon, Manitoba

Brandon is a town in the province of Manitoba. It has a trail system within the city itself, a network of community gardens, and free activities at Brandon University’s Healthy Living Centre, making Brandon one of the more cost-effective cities in Canada.

The cost of living in Brandon when it comes to the affordability of rent is also very cheap relative to other urban populations of the same size. The following list is a breakdown of the average rent costs for an apartment in Brandon ( for singles and families).

  • Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre                                                                      845.00 C$
  • Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of City Centre                                                       1,598.75C$
  • Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre C$                                                            3049.50 C$
  • Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of City Centre                                                   3,881.67 C$

Here is a more thorough breakdown of the costs of living in Brandon.

Halifax, Nova Scotia

If a small town feel is not appealing to you, Halifax should top your list. A relatively large city, Halifax is unique in that unlike other large urban agglomerations in Canada with a population of more than 100,000 people, its costs of living are comparatively the same as one of Canada’s smaller cities and towns.

Here is a breakdown of the cost of living costs with regards to rental prices.

  • Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 1,663.29 C$
  • Apartment (1 bedroom) outside of the City Centre 1,323.44 C$
  • Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 2,627.05 C$
  • Apartment (3 bedrooms) outside of the City Centre 2,043.00 C$

For a more comprehensive breakdown of the relative monthly living costs in Halifax, Nova Scotia, here is the outline.

How can we Help you to Move to a Canadian City?

The pressure of moving to Canada is compounded by the rigorous application process through which immigrants have to go through. With over 100 application streams, it is almost impossible for most applicants to keep track and have a thorough understanding of each immigration program offered by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

In this case of confusion, using a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) or affiliated immigration consultancy company like CanadianVisa would be very helpful in assisting applicants navigating this process.

CanadianVisa will assist an applicant by making sure that you’re eligible to apply through facilitating an evaluative process based on the personal demographic of the applicant. Should the applicant pass this evaluative test and be eligible to apply, CanadianVisa will assist the applicant draw up the proper requisite documentation, liaise and submit documents with the IRCC.

If the applicant meets the qualifying criteria, CanadianVisa, along with a qualified RCIC agent will submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) on your behalf to a Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). Should the PNP express interest and issue an Invitation to Apply (ITA). CanadianVisa will assist the applicant with the process of accepting that invitation and make sure that they meet the acceptance deadline.

FAQs

Which Canadian Cities are the Most Expensive?

In general the most expensive Canadian cities are the largest. As a rule of thumb, should you wish to avoid high expenses then Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa are the places that you can avoid settling in.

Are you Able to Experience a High Standard of Living in one of the Cheapest Canadian Cities?

If you choose to live in a cheap Canadian city the only thing you sacrifice is the richer socio-cultural experience of the larger, more expensive cities. Besides this significance, the general standard of living in Canada is largely the same and sometimes is even higher in Canada’s cheaper cities.

What is the General Standard of Living in Canada?

Canada has one of the highest human development index (HDI)- the metric by which quality of life is measured- in the world, which at 0.936 puts Canada comfortably high on the list of countries with a very good standard of living.