Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nelson and Edmonton

For one person, living is cheaper in Nelson: $1,865 a month against $2,188 in Edmonton, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

90

Cost of Living Index in Nelson
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Nelson Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Edmonton
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Edmonton Living Index

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Nelson

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,865

/mo nomad

Edmonton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,188

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nelson and in Edmonton

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

A single person spends $1,865 per month in Nelson vs $2,188 in Edmonton, rent included.

Nelson $1,865
Edmonton $2,188

A couple spends around $2,872 per month in Nelson vs $3,196 in Edmonton, rent included.

Nelson $2,872
Edmonton $3,196

A family of three spends $3,879 per month in Nelson vs $4,203 in Edmonton, rent included.

Nelson $3,879
Edmonton $4,203

Nelson is about 15% cheaper than Edmonton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Nelson and Edmonton sit above the global median – Nelson by 37%, Edmonton by 61%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.72 NZ$24.38

$19.92 CA$27.86

-31.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.8 NZ$115

$78.2 CA$109

-17.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.27 NZ$14.70

$10.14 CA$14.18

-18.44%

Cappuccino

$3.19 NZ$5.66

$3.96 CA$5.54

-19.44%

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

$1.82 NZ$3.23

$2.34 CA$3.27

-22.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 NZ$2.93

$2.03 CA$2.83

-18.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.61 NZ$13.51

$5.76 CA$8.05

32.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.84 NZ$10.37

$6.34 CA$8.87

-7.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.93 NZ$3.43

$1.62 CA$2.26

19.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 NZ$3.89

$2.15 CA$3.01

1.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 NZ$3.48

$3.03 CA$4.24

-35.31%

Eggs

$5.85 NZ$10.39

$3.58 CA$5.01

63.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.13 NZ$16.21

$10.77 CA$15.06

-15.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.62 NZ$13.54

$11.31 CA$15.82

-32.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.65 NZ$24.24

$18.80 CA$26.30

-27.39%

Apples (1kg)

$3.15 NZ$5.60

$4.13 CA$5.77

-23.73%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 NZ$3.81

$1.40 CA$1.95

53.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 NZ$5.33

$4.24 CA$5.93

-29.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.63 NZ$10.00

$3.95 CA$5.52

42.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 NZ$3.68

$2.13 CA$2.97

-2.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.23 NZ$2.19

$1.79 CA$2.51

-31.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.02 NZ$3.60

$2.48 CA$3.47

-18.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 NZ$1.92

$1.79 CA$2.50

-39.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$25.87 NZ$45.96

$14.32 CA$20.03

80.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.94 NZ$17.65

$11.58 CA$16.20

-14.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.14 NZ$5.58

$3.45 CA$4.83

-8.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 NZ$5.00

$2.98 CA$4.17

-5.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.20 NZ$3.92

$2.64 CA$3.69

-16.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.9 CA$102

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 NZ$3.25

$2.87 CA$4.01

-36.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.79 NZ$3.18

$1.42 CA$1.99

26.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.80 NZ$60.1

$20.99 CA$29.35

61.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.56 NZ$2.77

$1.18 CA$1.66

32.20%

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

$17.1K NZ$30.3K

$27.5K CA$38.4K

-37.90%

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

$22.4K NZ$39.7K

$20.7K CA$29.0K

7.82%

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

$130 NZ$231

$231 CA$323

-43.57%

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

$32.93 NZ$58.5

$43.33 CA$60.6

-24.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.70 NZ$77.6

$54.8 CA$76.7

-20.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$101 NZ$179

$43.95 CA$61.5

128.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.48 NZ$61.3

$18.43 CA$25.77

87.09%

Cinema Ticket

$11.14 NZ$19.79

$12.60 CA$17.63

-11.59%

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

$458 NZ$814

$626 CA$876

-26.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.1K NZ$23.3K

$9,741 CA$13.6K

34.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.9 NZ$94.0

$44.27 CA$61.9

19.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.57 NZ$50.8

$47.59 CA$66.6

-39.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 NZ$185

$87.9 CA$123

18.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 NZ$253

$97.1 CA$136

46.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 NZ$1,818

$1,088 CA$1,522

-5.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$813 NZ$1,444

$913 CA$1,277

-11.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,755 NZ$3,118

$1,720 CA$2,405

2.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,455 NZ$2,584

$1,382 CA$1,933

5.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,396 NZ$2,481

$2,243 CA$3,137

-37.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$852 NZ$1,513

$1,946 CA$2,723

-56.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,043 NZ$3,630

$3,428 CA$4,795

-40.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

4.32

24.77%

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

Last update for Nelson: October 24, 2026

Last update for Edmonton: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nelson

$813 43.6%

Edmonton

$913 41.7% 12.4% $100

Groceries & Markets

Nelson

$319 17.1%

Edmonton

$363 16.6% 13.9% $44

Eating Out

Nelson

$236 12.7%

Edmonton

$296 13.5% 25.3% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nelson

$207 11.1%

Edmonton

$329 15% 59% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Nelson

$148 7.9%

Edmonton

$125 5.7% 15.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Nelson

$123 6.6%

Edmonton

$69 3.2% 43.7% $54

Getting Around

Nelson

$20 * 1.1%

Edmonton

$93 4.3% 377% $74

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,023 in Nelson versus $1,088 in Edmonton. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 68% higher in Edmonton. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $65 in Nelson versus $78 in Edmonton. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $319 vs $363 – making Nelson the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Nelson

🇨🇦 Edmonton

🕒 Local time

19:13 7:13 PM

00:13 12:13 AM

19 h behind Nelson

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

51,100

1,010,899

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.506 EUR

1 CAD = 0.715 USD

1 CAD = 0.642 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.506 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.715 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.642 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nelson Edmonton 12,640 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Nelson
Edmonton

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

Nelson vs Edmonton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,865 in Nelson, $2,188 in Edmonton – Nelson comes out roughly 15% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,797 per month in Nelson and $3,282 in Edmonton. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,023 in Nelson and $1,088 in Edmonton. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $65 in Nelson and $78 in Edmonton. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 14% more in Edmonton, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Families tend to lean toward Nelson – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Nelson. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Edmonton makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.