Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and San Rafael

For one person, living is cheaper in San Rafael: $1,318 a month against $2,530 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $14,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
Learn more

Toronto Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in San Rafael
Learn more

San Rafael Living Index

Jump to prices

Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,530

/mo nomad

San Rafael

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,318

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto and in San Rafael

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

A single person spends $2,530 per month in Toronto vs $1,318 in San Rafael, rent included.

Toronto $2,530
San Rafael $1,318

A couple spends around $3,646 per month in Toronto vs $2,096 in San Rafael, rent included.

Toronto $3,646
San Rafael $2,096

A family of three spends $4,761 per month in Toronto vs $2,875 in San Rafael, rent included.

Toronto $4,761
San Rafael $2,875

Toronto costs about 92% more than San Rafael, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Toronto sits 89% above the global median, while San Rafael is 2% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.67 CA$25.19

$11.20 ARS 17.0K

57.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.4 CA$110

$49.65 ARS 75.3K

55.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.47 CA$14.93

$14.69 ARS 22.3K

-28.73%

Cappuccino

$4.08 CA$5.81

$4.34 ARS 6,580

-5.99%

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

$2.12 CA$3.02

$2.42 ARS 3,663

-12.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 CA$2.51

$1.98 ARS 3,006

-11.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.17 CA$8.80

$3.94 ARS 5,969

56.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.89 CA$9.82

$4.42 ARS 6,701

55.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$1.35 ARS 2,046

80.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 CA$3.92

$2.27 ARS 3,435

21.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 CA$3.18

$2.67 ARS 4,052

-16.48%

Eggs

$3.45 CA$4.91

$3.18 ARS 4,820

8.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.93 CA$12.73

$14.56 ARS 22.1K

-38.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.44 CA$16.31

$6.21 ARS 9,418

84.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.61 CA$20.83

$11.16 ARS 16.9K

30.91%

Apples (1kg)

$3.75 CA$5.34

$2.38 ARS 3,604

57.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 CA$1.64

$2.21 ARS 3,347

-47.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 CA$5.06

$1.35 ARS 2,048

162.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 CA$6.10

$3.30 ARS 5,012

29.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 CA$2.63

$2.01 ARS 3,055

-7.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 CA$2.38

$1.45 ARS 2,203

15.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.22 CA$3.16

$1.94 ARS 2,935

14.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$2.46 ARS 3,725

-50.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.88 CA$19.78

$2.82 ARS 4,279

392.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.25 CA$20.31

$5.05 ARS 7,656

182.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.13

$1.73 ARS 2,625

27.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 CA$3.45

$3.05 ARS 4,619

-20.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.42 CA$3.44

$1.00 ARS 1,513

142.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$158

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.90 CA$4.13

$1.96 ARS 2,966

47.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 CA$1.80

$1.02 ARS 1,540

23.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.03 CA$31.40

$4.89 ARS 7,412

350.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 CA$1.74

$1.27 ARS 1,929

-3.94%

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

$27.6K CA$39.4K

$26.6K ARS 40.4M

3.69%

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

$19.8K CA$28.3K

$32.6K ARS 49.4M

-39.17%

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

$122 CA$174

$135 ARS 205.3K

-9.96%

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

$32.03 CA$45.66

$17.43 ARS 26.4K

83.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.92 CA$68.3

$23.44 ARS 35.6K

104.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.90 CA$55.5

$31.21 ARS 47.3K

24.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.24 CA$33.12

Cinema Ticket

$12.61 CA$17.97

$6.91 ARS 10.5K

82.49%

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

$834 CA$1,189

$177 ARS 268.1K

371.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K CA$33.3K

$4,090 ARS 6.2M

470.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 CA$75.0

$116 ARS 175.9K

-54.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.26 CA$57.4

$125 ARS 188.9K

-67.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.2 CA$137

$136 ARS 206.8K

-29.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 CA$175

$125 ARS 189.8K

-1.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 CA$2,278

$489 ARS 740.9K

227.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,435 CA$2,045

$318 ARS 482.7K

350.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,657 CA$3,787

$937 ARS 1.4M

183.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 CA$2,988

$725 ARS 1.1M

189.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,033 CA$11.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,557 CA$9,347

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,743 CA$5,335

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

-92.42%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 4, 2026

Last update for San Rafael: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.4%

San Rafael

$318 24.6% 77.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.1%

San Rafael

$286 22.1% 16% $54

Eating Out

Toronto

$282 10.9%

San Rafael

$232 17.9% 17.7% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$202 7.8%

San Rafael

$176 13.6% 12.7% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$140 5.4%

San Rafael

$226 17.5% 60.9% $86

Getting Around

Toronto

$130 5%

San Rafael

$11 * 0.9% 91.5% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$64 2.5%

San Rafael

$45 3.5% 29.8% $19

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,598 in Toronto versus $489 in San Rafael. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $77.0 in Toronto versus $50.0 in San Rafael. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $340 vs $286 – making San Rafael the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇦🇷 San Rafael

🕒 Local time

04:40 4:40 AM

05:40 5:40 AM

1 h ahead of Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

118,850

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,701 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Toronto San Rafael 8,770 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
San Rafael

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

Toronto vs San Rafael: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Toronto costs about 92% more than San Rafael, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,795 per month in Toronto and $1,978 in San Rafael. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Rafael, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,530 in Toronto and $1,318 in San Rafael. That's a gap of about 92%.

Kindergarten costs $834 per month in Toronto and $177 in San Rafael. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in San Rafael, where all-in costs run around $1,318, than in Toronto at $2,530. In San Rafael it covers expenses comfortably, while in Toronto it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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