Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and Vancouver

For one person, living is cheaper in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador: $2,128 a month against $2,725 in Vancouver, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Vancouver outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

102

Cost of Living Index in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
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St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Living Index
130

Cost of Living Index in Vancouver
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Vancouver Living Index

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St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,128

/mo nomad

Vancouver

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,725

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and in Vancouver

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,128 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $2,725 in Vancouver.

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador $2,128
Vancouver $2,725

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,149 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $4,039 in Vancouver.

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador $3,149
Vancouver $4,039

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,170 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $5,352 in Vancouver.

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador $4,170
Vancouver $5,352

Living in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador costs roughly 22% less than in Vancouver, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador 56% above, Vancouver 100% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.60 CA$24.70

$17.65 CA$24.77

-0.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.0 CA$101

$72.4 CA$102

-0.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.73 CA$16.46

$10.84 CA$15.21

8.21%

Cappuccino

$4.03 CA$5.66

$3.91 CA$5.49

3.07%

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

$2.59 CA$3.63

$2.10 CA$2.95

23.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.09

$1.64 CA$2.30

34.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.87 CA$6.84

$5.74 CA$8.06

-15.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.43 CA$7.62

$6.36 CA$8.93

-14.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.77 CA$3.89

$2.21 CA$3.10

25.34%

White Bread (500g)

$3.07 CA$4.31

$2.64 CA$3.71

16.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.28 CA$6.01

$4.68 CA$6.56

-8.55%

Eggs

$3.87 CA$5.44

$4.24 CA$5.95

-8.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.53 CA$16.18

$11.92 CA$16.73

-3.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.32 CA$18.70

$13.12 CA$18.42

1.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.81 CA$16.58

$20.40 CA$28.63

-42.11%

Apples (1kg)

$4.85 CA$6.81

$4.10 CA$5.76

18.29%

Banana (1kg)

$3.09 CA$4.34

$1.38 CA$1.93

123.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 CA$6.73

$3.83 CA$5.37

25.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.08 CA$4.32

$3.92 CA$5.50

-21.43%

Potato (1kg)

$2.65 CA$3.71

$2.77 CA$3.89

-4.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.31 CA$3.24

$2.84 CA$3.98

-18.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.86 CA$4.01

$2.60 CA$3.65

10.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.02 CA$2.83

$1.59 CA$2.24

27.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.80 CA$19.37

$15.87 CA$22.27

-13.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.10 CA$22.59

$14.00 CA$19.64

15.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.19 CA$5.89

$2.57 CA$3.61

63.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 CA$6.08

$3.01 CA$4.23

43.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.83 CA$2.57

$2.55 CA$3.59

-28.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.7 CA$78.1

$84.1 CA$118

-33.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 CA$4.52

$2.67 CA$3.74

20.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.75 CA$2.45

$1.58 CA$2.22

10.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.39 CA$39.84

$32.19 CA$45.17

-11.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 CA$1.95

$1.45 CA$2.04

-4.14%

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

$28.6K CA$40.2K

$27.5K CA$38.6K

4.22%

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

$23.8K CA$33.5K

$21.3K CA$29.9K

11.84%

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

$182 CA$256

$82.5 CA$116

120.82%

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

$41.72 CA$58.6

$37.46 CA$52.6

11.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$76.6 CA$107

$51.7 CA$72.5

48.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.1 CA$95.6

$40.52 CA$56.9

68.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.14 CA$26.86

$12.69 CA$17.81

50.83%

Cinema Ticket

$10.63 CA$14.92

$12.66 CA$17.77

-16.03%

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

$535 CA$751

$1,080 CA$1,515

-50.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,862 CA$13.8K

$20.1K CA$28.3K

-51.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.9 CA$93.9

$58.5 CA$82.0

14.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.5 CA$72.2

$34.10 CA$47.85

50.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.7 CA$115

$96.9 CA$136

-15.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.2 CA$135

$97.4 CA$137

-1.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 CA$1,462

$1,813 CA$2,545

-42.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 CA$1,173

$1,576 CA$2,211

-46.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,540 CA$2,161

$3,217 CA$4,514

-52.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,322 CA$1,855

$2,651 CA$3,721

-50.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,435 CA$3,417

$8,590 CA$12.1K

-71.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,776 CA$2,492

$6,649 CA$9,331

-73.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,823 CA$3,962

$3,733 CA$5,239

-24.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.57

4.28

6.78%

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

Last update for St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador: October 24, 2026

Last update for Vancouver: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$836 39.3%

Vancouver

$1.6K 57.8% 88.5% $740

Groceries & Markets

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$415 19.5%

Vancouver

$401 14.7% 3.4% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$300 14.1%

Vancouver

$172 6.3% 42.9% $129

Eating Out

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$279 13.1%

Vancouver

$277 10.2% 0.6% $1.8

Clothing & Footwear

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$133 6.3%

Vancouver

$129 4.7% 3.2% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$89 4.2%

Vancouver

$66 2.4% 26.4% $24

Getting Around

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

$75 3.5%

Vancouver

$105 3.9% 40% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,041 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador and $1,813 in Vancouver. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vancouver pays 32% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $72 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador vs $72 in Vancouver. Groceries flip the comparison at $415 vs $401, with Vancouver cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

🇨🇦 Vancouver

🕒 Local time

17:48 5:48 PM

13:18 1:18 PM

4 h 30 min behind St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

110,525

631,486

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.64 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Vancouver 5,010 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Vancouver

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

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador vs Vancouver: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador is about 22% cheaper overall, especially in transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 24% lower in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,041 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $1,813 in Vancouver. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $535 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $1,080 in Vancouver. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador runs roughly 34% less than in Vancouver. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $2,128 in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador versus $2,725 in Vancouver, a $2,500 budget is realistic in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador but tight or insufficient in Vancouver. The gap between the two cities makes St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Vancouver, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

It comes down to priorities – St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador wins on affordability, Vancouver on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.