Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Calgary and Alexandria, Jamaica

For one person, living is cheaper in Alexandria: $1,010 a month against $2,297 in Calgary, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Calgary
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Calgary Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Alexandria
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Alexandria Living Index

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Calgary

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,297

/mo nomad

Alexandria

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,010

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Calgary and in Alexandria

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Calgary and in Alexandria actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,297 in Calgary versus $1,010 in Alexandria.

Calgary $2,297
Alexandria $1,010

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,378 in Calgary versus $1,672 in Alexandria.

Calgary $3,378
Alexandria $1,672

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,459 in Calgary versus $2,335 in Alexandria.

Calgary $4,459
Alexandria $2,335

Living in Calgary is roughly 127% more expensive than in Alexandria, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Calgary is 70% above, Alexandria is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 CA$25.23

$13.68 JMD 2,159

31.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.9 CA$96.9

$75.6 JMD 11.9K

-8.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.94 CA$15.38

$8.15 JMD 1,285

34.23%

Cappuccino

$3.70 CA$5.21

$5.23 JMD 825

-29.25%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 CA$2.91

$1.20 JMD 189

72.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 CA$2.87

$0.71 JMD 112

187.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 CA$8.08

$2.24 JMD 354

156.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 CA$8.02

$3.10 JMD 490

83.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.98 CA$2.78

$4.26 JMD 672

-53.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.65 CA$3.72

$3.83 JMD 605

-30.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.84 CA$8.21

$1.64 JMD 260

256.10%

Eggs

$3.81 CA$5.36

$3.58 JMD 565

6.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.81 CA$15.20

$11.47 JMD 1,810

-5.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.02 CA$15.50

$6.36 JMD 1,004

73.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.87 CA$25.14

$10.36 JMD 1,635

72.49%

Apples (1kg)

$4.88 CA$6.87

$5.90 JMD 931

-17.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 CA$2.04

$3.93 JMD 621

-63.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.15 CA$5.84

$7.54 JMD 1,190

-44.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 CA$5.61

$3.08 JMD 486

29.55%

Potato (1kg)

$2.93 CA$4.12

$3.32 JMD 524

-11.75%

Onion (1kg)

$3.02 CA$4.25

$2.71 JMD 428

11.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.67 CA$3.75

$3.11 JMD 490

-14.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 CA$2.21

$1.43 JMD 226

9.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.11 CA$19.84

$9.44 JMD 1,489

49.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.45 CA$21.73

$11.12 JMD 1,754

38.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 CA$3.52

$2.84 JMD 449

-11.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 CA$4.47

$4.08 JMD 643

-22.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.85 CA$4.00

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.2 CA$127

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 CA$4.45

$1.30 JMD 205

143.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.41 CA$1.98

$3.10 JMD 489

-54.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.46 CA$38.62

$6.13 JMD 967

347.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 CA$1.66

$1.45 JMD 228

-18.62%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.9K CA$39.2K

$44.8K JMD 7.1M

-37.80%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.1K CA$29.6K

$33.0K JMD 5.2M

-36.16%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$182 CA$256

$171 JMD 26.9K

6.62%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$36.01 CA$50.7

$29.42 JMD 4,643

22.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.80 CA$68.6

$52.5 JMD 8,282

-7.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.78 CA$68.6

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.15 CA$25.53

Cinema Ticket

$14.52 CA$20.42

$13.21 JMD 2,084

9.92%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$542 CA$762

$364 JMD 57.4K

48.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.2K CA$29.8K

$8,081 JMD 1.3M

161.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 CA$83.1

$23.82 JMD 3,759

147.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.34 CA$59.5

$31.00 JMD 4,892

36.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.2 CA$132

$79.0 JMD 12.5K

19.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 CA$153

$101 JMD 15.9K

7.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,214 CA$1,707

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 CA$1,457

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,045 CA$2,876

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,655 CA$2,327

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,653 CA$5,137

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,183 CA$4,476

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,219 CA$4,526

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.43

9.45

-53.12%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Calgary: November 2, 2026

Last update for Alexandria: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Calgary

$1K 45.1%

Alexandria

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Calgary

$390 17%

Alexandria

$387 38.4% 0.6% $2.4

Eating Out

Calgary

$277 12.1%

Alexandria

$222 21.9% 20.1% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Calgary

$267 11.6%

Alexandria

$252 25% 5.3% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Calgary

$137 6%

Alexandria

$106 10.5% 22.8% $31

Getting Around

Calgary

$112 4.9%

Alexandria

$17 * 1.7% 85% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Calgary

$78 3.4%

Alexandria

$26 * 2.6% 66.1% $51

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $69 in Calgary vs $76 in Alexandria. Groceries flip the comparison at $390 vs $387, with Alexandria cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Calgary

🇯🇲 Alexandria

🕒 Local time

15:11 3:11 PM

16:11 4:11 PM

1 h ahead of Calgary

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,267,344

1,927

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.711 USD

1 CAD = 0.636 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.711 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.636 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.67 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Calgary Alexandria 4,860 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Calgary
Alexandria

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Calgary vs Alexandria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,297 in Calgary and $1,010 in Alexandria, so Alexandria is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,445 in Calgary and $1,516 in Alexandria to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $542 in Calgary versus $364 in Alexandria. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,297 per month in Calgary versus $1,010 in Alexandria – Alexandria is about 56% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,010 in Alexandria versus $2,297 in Calgary, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Alexandria but tight or insufficient in Calgary. The gap between the two cities makes Alexandria the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.