Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Eau Claire, WI and Hamilton

For one person, living is cheaper in Eau Claire, WI: $2,182 a month against $2,306 in Hamilton, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Hamilton outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

105

Cost of Living Index in Eau Claire, WI
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Eau Claire, WI Living Index
111

Cost of Living Index in Hamilton
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Hamilton Living Index

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Eau Claire, WI

🇺🇸 United States

$2,182

/mo nomad

Hamilton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,306

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Eau Claire, WI and in Hamilton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,182 in Eau Claire, WI versus $2,306 in Hamilton.

Eau Claire, WI $2,182
Hamilton $2,306

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,118 in Eau Claire, WI versus $3,384 in Hamilton.

Eau Claire, WI $3,118
Hamilton $3,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,054 in Eau Claire, WI versus $4,461 in Hamilton.

Eau Claire, WI $4,054
Hamilton $4,461

Living in Eau Claire, WI costs roughly 5% less than in Hamilton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Eau Claire, WI 61% above, Hamilton 70% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.86 $18.86

$17.71 CA$25.03

6.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.4 $66.4

$66.7 CA$94.3

-0.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.85 $9.85

$12.15 CA$17.18

-18.93%

Cappuccino

$5.19 $5.19

$3.39 CA$4.79

53.10%

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

$2.73 $2.73

$2.15 CA$3.04

26.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.70 CA$2.40

-13.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.09 $4.09

$5.02 CA$7.09

-18.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.16 $6.16

$6.18 CA$8.74

-0.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.82 $0.82

$1.94 CA$2.74

-57.73%

White Bread (500g)

$3.39 $3.39

$2.04 CA$2.88

66.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.28 $4.28

$3.10 CA$4.38

38.06%

Eggs

$3.65 $3.65

$3.34 CA$4.72

9.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.96 $12.96

$7.91 CA$11.18

63.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.40 $13.40

$11.17 CA$15.79

19.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.63 $14.63

$14.60 CA$20.65

0.21%

Apples (1kg)

$4.63 $4.63

$4.08 CA$5.77

13.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.30 CA$1.84

-6.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.38 $3.38

$3.87 CA$5.47

-12.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.96 $4.96

$3.69 CA$5.22

34.42%

Potato (1kg)

$2.84 $2.84

$2.65 CA$3.75

7.17%

Onion (1kg)

$3.10 $3.10

$2.00 CA$2.82

55.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.99 CA$2.81

-24.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 $2.34

$1.29 CA$1.83

81.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.63 $10.63

$12.49 CA$17.66

-14.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.84 $14.84

$14.40 CA$20.36

3.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.15 $2.15

$2.65 CA$3.74

-18.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 $4.54

$3.97 CA$5.61

14.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.08 $2.08

$2.52 CA$3.56

-17.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.80 $49.80

$87.0 CA$123

-42.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 $3.99

$3.54 CA$5.00

12.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 $2.04

$1.26 CA$1.78

61.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.96 $42.96

$23.47 CA$33.18

83.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 $0.88

$1.17 CA$1.65

-24.79%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$26.4K CA$37.3K

1.55%

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

$25.3K $25.3K

$22.0K CA$31.1K

15.31%

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

$216 $216

$154 CA$217

40.20%

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

$48.81 $48.81

$42.63 CA$60.3

14.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.0 $69.0

$51.1 CA$72.2

35.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 $56.0

$37.84 CA$53.5

47.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.14 $20.14

$17.39 CA$24.59

15.81%

Cinema Ticket

$11.07 $11.07

$10.32 CA$14.59

7.27%

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

$996 $996

$610 CA$862

63.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.2K $23.2K

$16.3K CA$23.0K

42.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.99 $48.99

$48.77 CA$68.9

0.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.26 $30.26

$31.28 CA$44.22

-3.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 $108

$86.6 CA$122

25.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.1 $82.1

$119 CA$169

-31.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,028 $1,028

$1,239 CA$1,752

-17.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$894 $894

$1,157 CA$1,635

-22.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,820 $1,820

$2,032 CA$2,873

-10.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,260 $1,260

$1,882 CA$2,660

-33.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,149 $2,149

$2,708 CA$3,828

-20.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,946 $1,946

$2,733 CA$3,863

-28.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,910 $3,910

$2,989 CA$4,225

30.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.65

4.6

44.57%

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

Last update for Eau Claire, WI: October 19, 2026

Last update for Hamilton: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Eau Claire, WI

$894 41%

Hamilton

$1.2K 50.2% 29.3% $262

Groceries & Markets

Eau Claire, WI

$391 17.9%

Hamilton

$336 14.6% 13.9% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Eau Claire, WI

$333 15.3%

Hamilton

$248 10.7% 25.8% $86

Eating Out

Eau Claire, WI

$292 13.4%

Hamilton

$272 11.8% 7% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Eau Claire, WI

$121 5.6%

Hamilton

$129 5.6% 6% $7.3

Sport & Entertainment

Eau Claire, WI

$78 3.6%

Hamilton

$58 2.5% 25.2% $20

Getting Around

Eau Claire, WI

$72 3.3%

Hamilton

$107 4.6% 47.8% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,028 in Eau Claire, WI and $1,239 in Hamilton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Eau Claire, WI pays 31% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Eau Claire, WI vs $67.0 in Hamilton. Groceries flip the comparison at $391 vs $336, with Hamilton cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Eau Claire, WI

🇨🇦 Hamilton

🕒 Local time

05:38 5:38 AM

06:38 6:38 AM

1 h ahead of Eau Claire, WI

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

68,802

519,949

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

CAD to USD in detail →

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Eau Claire, WI Hamilton 940 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

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Eau Claire, WI
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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

Eau Claire, WI vs Hamilton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Eau Claire, WI is cheaper overall, especially in clothing and transport. The 6% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 31% higher in Eau Claire, WI, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,028 in Eau Claire, WI versus $1,239 in Hamilton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Hamilton pay roughly 16% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Eau Claire, WI – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $67.0 in Hamilton. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,182 in Eau Claire, WI versus $2,306 in Hamilton, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Eau Claire, WI but tight or insufficient in Hamilton. The gap between the two cities makes Eau Claire, WI the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Eau Claire, WI is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Hamilton, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Eau Claire, WI gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Hamilton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.