Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Calgary and Cambridge, Canada

For one person, living is cheaper in Calgary: $2,303 a month against $2,527 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cambridge outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Calgary, Canada
Cambridge, Canada
Calgary
🇨🇦 Canada
$2,303
/mo nomad
Cambridge
🇨🇦 Canada
$2,527
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Calgary and in Cambridge

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 Cambridge actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,303 in Calgary versus $2,527 in Cambridge.

  • Calgary $2,303
  • Cambridge $2,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,366 in Calgary versus $3,443 in Cambridge.

  • Calgary $3,366
  • Cambridge $3,443

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,428 in Calgary versus $4,359 in Cambridge.

  • Calgary $4,428
  • Cambridge $4,359

Living in Calgary costs roughly 9% less than in Cambridge, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Calgary 69% above, Cambridge 86% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.55 CA$24.52
$17.69 CA$24.71
-0.79%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$70.4 CA$98.3
$56.7 CA$79.2
24.15%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.69 CA$14.93
$10.55 CA$14.74
1.33%
Cappuccino
$3.89 CA$5.43
$3.56 CA$4.97
9.27%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.04 CA$2.85
$1.99 CA$2.77
2.51%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.88 CA$2.62
$1.22 CA$1.71
54.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.90 CA$6.84
$5.19 CA$7.26
-5.59%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.78 CA$8.08
$6.26 CA$8.74
-7.67%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.96 CA$2.74
$1.99 CA$2.79
-1.51%
White Bread (500g)
$2.74 CA$3.83
$2.41 CA$3.37
13.69%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$5.46 CA$7.63
$3.19 CA$4.46
71.16%
Eggs
$3.69 CA$5.15
$3.32 CA$4.64
11.14%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.24 CA$15.71
$11.24 CA$15.70
-
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.54 CA$16.12
$11.38 CA$15.90
1.41%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$18.38 CA$25.67
$14.43 CA$20.16
27.37%
Apples (1kg)
$4.90 CA$6.85
$4.07 CA$5.68
20.39%
Banana (1kg)
$1.42 CA$1.99
$1.33 CA$1.86
6.77%
Oranges (1kg)
$4.21 CA$5.88
$4.05 CA$5.65
3.95%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.02 CA$5.62
$3.74 CA$5.22
7.49%
Potato (1kg)
$2.69 CA$3.77
$2.76 CA$3.85
-2.54%
Onion (1kg)
$2.66 CA$3.72
$1.94 CA$2.71
37.11%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.61 CA$3.65
$2.00 CA$2.80
30.50%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.60 CA$2.23
$1.29 CA$1.81
24.03%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$14.00 CA$19.56
$12.93 CA$18.07
8.28%
Wine (Bottle)
$15.40 CA$21.51
$12.40 CA$17.33
24.19%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.50 CA$3.49
$2.63 CA$3.67
-4.94%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.09 CA$4.32
$4.04 CA$5.64
-23.51%
🚌 Getting Around
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.93 CA$4.09
$2.80 CA$3.92
4.64%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$89.3 CA$125
$69.4 CA$97.0
28.57%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.27 CA$4.57
$2.56 CA$3.58
27.73%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.35 CA$1.89
$1.80 CA$2.51
-25.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$27.39 CA$38.26
$23.32 CA$32.59
17.45%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.17 CA$1.64
$1.22 CA$1.71
-4.10%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.9K CA$39.0K
$26.5K CA$37.0K
5.44%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$21.0K CA$29.4K
$20.7K CA$28.9K
1.72%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$167 CA$233
$152 CA$213
9.42%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$38.27 CA$53.5
$42.51 CA$59.4
-9.97%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$50.9 CA$71.2
$50.5 CA$70.6
0.81%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.0 CA$71.2
$28.64 CA$40.02
77.90%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.17 CA$25.39
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$14.44 CA$20.18
$10.74 CA$15.00
34.45%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$545 CA$762
$497 CA$695
9.67%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.2K CA$22.6K
$15.8K CA$22.1K
2.34%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$58.9 CA$82.3
$63.5 CA$88.7
-7.20%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.75 CA$55.5
$33.07 CA$46.20
20.20%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$93.4 CA$130
$82.3 CA$115
13.48%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$110 CA$154
$106 CA$148
4.17%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,254 CA$1,752
$1,529 CA$2,136
-17.98%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,056 CA$1,476
$1,395 CA$1,949
-24.25%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,022 CA$2,825
$2,057 CA$2,874
-1.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,629 CA$2,275
$1,870 CA$2,613
-12.93%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,600 CA$5,030
$4,450 CA$6,218
-19.10%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,243 CA$4,530
$3,682 CA$5,145
-11.94%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Calgary
Cambridge
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,115 CA$4,352
$3,028 CA$4,231
2.87%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.51
5.22
-13.60%

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

Last update for Calgary: October 26, 2026

Last update for Cambridge: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Calgary
$1.1K
Cambridge
$1.4K 32% $338
Groceries & Markets
Calgary
$393
Cambridge
$349 11.1% $44
Eating Out
Calgary
$271
Cambridge
$267 1.4% $3.7
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Calgary
$256
Cambridge
$245 4.1% $11
Clothing & Footwear
Calgary
$136
Cambridge
$128 5.8% $7.9
Getting Around
Calgary
$111
Cambridge
$92 16.9% $19
Sport & Entertainment
Calgary
$80
Cambridge
$50 37.2% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,254 in Calgary and $1,529 in Cambridge. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Calgary pays 3% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $70 in Calgary vs $57 in Cambridge for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $393 vs $349 per month, with Cambridge cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇨🇦 Calgary
🇨🇦 Cambridge
🕒 Local time
21:30 9:30 PM
22:30 10:30 PM
1 h ahead of Calgary
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,267,344
138,479
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Calgary Cambridge 2,660 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Calgary
  • Cambridge

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 Cambridge: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Calgary cheaper than Cambridge?
Calgary is about 9% cheaper overall, especially in utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You’d need roughly $3,454 in Calgary and $3,790 in Cambridge 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.
What is the rent difference between Calgary and Cambridge?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,254 in Calgary versus $1,529 in Cambridge. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Is eating out cheaper in Calgary or in Cambridge?
Dining out is cheaper in Cambridge – a meal for two runs $57 versus $70 in Calgary. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
What are total monthly expenses in Calgary and in Cambridge?
All in, you’ll spend $2,303 per month in Calgary versus $2,527 in Cambridge – Calgary is about 9% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Calgary vs other spots: cost of living compared

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