What drives the cost of living in Canada
Housing comes first. Statistics Canada’s Market Basket Measure, which it uses to measure poverty, prices a modest basic standard of living for two adults and two children. In its 2025 thresholds, shelter is the largest item in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary, and the second largest in Montreal after food.
The same basket also counts food, clothing, transportation, communication services such as phone and internet, and other expenses. Health insurance is mostly provincial, so check your province’s rules on when coverage starts before you arrive.
Prices move every month. In the Consumer Price Index for September 2026, released October 19, 2026, prices rose 3.1% over 12 months. Rent rose 2.8%, shelter overall 1.8%, food bought in stores 1.7%, transportation 8.4% and gasoline 27.8%.
Average rent in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal
CMHC publishes average rents every year from its rental survey. The figures below come from the 2025 Rental Market Report. The first column is what all tenants in purpose-built rental apartments paid on average for two bedrooms. The second is the average rent of units that changed tenants, measured for October 2025, which is closer to what a newcomer signing a new lease may face.
Toronto figures cover the Greater Toronto Area and Montreal figures cover Greater Montreal. Rented condominiums cost more on average: $2,904 for a two-bedroom in the GTA, $2,900 in Vancouver, $2,030 in Calgary and $1,826 in Montreal.
| City | Average 2-bedroom rent, all tenants | Average 2-bedroom rent, new tenants (Oct. 2025) | Vacancy rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | $2,363 | $2,696 | 3.7% |
| Greater Toronto Area | $2,034 | $2,547 | 3.0% |
| Calgary | $1,914 | $1,836 | 5.0% |
| Montreal | $1,346 | $1,644 | 2.9% |
A basic family budget by city (Market Basket Measure)
The Market Basket Measure is the cost of a specific basket of goods and services for a reference family of two adults and two children. These are 2025 thresholds, 2023 base, in current dollars, from Statistics Canada table 11-10-0066-01. The monthly figure is the yearly threshold divided by 12. It is a modest, basic standard, not an average of what families spend.
| City | Total per year | About per month | Shelter per year | Food per year | Transportation per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | $64,351 | $5,363 | $28,147 | $16,690 | $5,282 |
| Toronto | $62,880 | $5,240 | $26,791 | $14,988 | $7,469 |
| Calgary | $59,153 | $4,929 | $21,643 | $17,407 | $6,114 |
| Montreal | $50,287 | $4,191 | $14,193 | $16,382 | $4,922 |
IRCC settlement funds for Express Entry
If you apply under the Federal Skilled Worker Program or the Federal Skilled Trades Program, you must show you have enough money to settle. Canadian Experience Class applicants, and applicants who are authorized to work in Canada and have a valid job offer, do not need to show these funds. IRCC updates the amounts every year, based on 50% of the low income cut-off totals; the table shown in October 2026 is dated July 7, 2025.
Count yourself, your spouse or common-law partner and all dependent children, even if they are not coming with you. The money must be yours, available when you apply and when your visa is issued, and you cannot borrow it or count home equity.
| Family members | Minimum funds |
|---|---|
| 1 | $15,263 |
| 2 | $19,001 |
| 3 | $23,360 |
| 4 | $28,362 |
| 5 | $32,168 |
| 6 | $36,280 |
| 7 | $40,392 |
| Each additional member | $4,112 |
IRCC cost-of-living amount for a study permit
Students outside Quebec must show they can pay a year of living costs on top of tuition and travel. For applications received on or after September 1, 2026, IRCC sets this at $23,448 for one person, $29,192 for two, $35,888 for three, $43,572 for four, $49,419 for five, $55,736 for six and $62,054 for seven, plus $6,318 for each additional member above seven. Applications from January 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026 used $22,895 for one person.
If your program lasts longer than a year, IRCC also asks how you will pay for the rest of it. Students going to Quebec need a Quebec Acceptance Certificate (CAQ) and must meet the amounts set by Quebec’s immigration ministry instead.
Worked example: a family of four moving to Toronto
This example only puts official numbers side by side. A Federal Skilled Worker applicant with a spouse and two children must show at least $28,362 (IRCC, July 7, 2025). Statistics Canada’s 2025 Market Basket Measure for Toronto is $62,880 a year for two adults and two children, or about $5,240 a month.
At that basic level, the minimum funds would cover just over five months of living costs. That is before one-time costs such as furniture, and before any gap until the first paycheque. The shelter part of the Toronto basket is $26,791 a year, or about $2,233 a month, while CMHC’s October 2025 average for a two-bedroom unit that changed tenants in the GTA was $2,547. If you rent a new place, your rent may be higher than the basket assumes.
How to plan your first months
Use the official numbers as a floor, not a target, and update them before you leave.
- Pick your city first. Rent and the basic budget differ by thousands of dollars a year between Montreal and Vancouver.
- Check the current IRCC table for your program on the day you prepare your file, since IRCC updates the amounts every year.
- Budget rent from the CMHC new-tenant figure for your city, since you will be signing a new lease.
- Add one-time costs and keep a cushion for the months before your first full paycheque.
- Check when your provincial health coverage starts and whether you need private insurance until then.
Common mistakes
Most budgeting problems come from using the wrong number or an old one.
We don't provide legal opinions; for advice on your file, contact an RCIC-verified consultant or a lawyer.
- Treating the IRCC minimum as a full budget. It is the amount you must show, not what life will cost.
- Comparing rents across cities with figures from different years or sources.
- Using the average rent paid by all tenants when you will sign a new lease.
- Forgetting that study permit amounts exclude tuition and travel.
- Using study permit figures for Quebec, which sets its own amounts.