Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and Shimla

For one person, living is cheaper in Shimla: $306 a month against $2,561 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $27,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
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Toronto Living Index
15

Cost of Living Index in Shimla
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Shimla Living Index

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Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,561

/mo nomad

Shimla

🇮🇳 India

$306

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Toronto and in Shimla

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

A single person spends $2,561 per month in Toronto vs $306 in Shimla, rent included.

Toronto $2,561
Shimla $306

A couple spends around $3,694 per month in Toronto vs $500 in Shimla, rent included.

Toronto $3,694
Shimla $500

A family of three spends $4,826 per month in Toronto vs $694 in Shimla, rent included.

Toronto $4,826
Shimla $694

Toronto costs about 736% more than Shimla, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Toronto sits 90% above the global median, while Shimla is 77% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.18 CA$24.29

$1.53 ₹145

1022.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.0 CA$107

$10.60 ₹1,006

616.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.89

$3.11 ₹295

238.91%

Cappuccino

$4.02 CA$5.68

$0.90 ₹85.3

346.67%

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

$2.12 CA$3.00

$0.35 ₹33.46

505.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 CA$2.48

$0.11 ₹10.75

1490.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.24 CA$8.83

$1.60 ₹152

290.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.09 CA$10.02

$2.08 ₹197

240.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.44 CA$3.45

$0.64 ₹60.5

281.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 CA$3.78

$0.42 ₹40.15

538.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.17

$0.62 ₹59.2

261.29%

Eggs

$3.56 CA$5.03

$0.85 ₹80.3

318.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 CA$12.85

$4.28 ₹406

112.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.33 CA$16.01

$3.28 ₹311

245.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.53 CA$20.55

Apples (1kg)

$3.62 CA$5.12

$1.80 ₹171

101.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$0.70 ₹66.8

72.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.60 CA$5.09

$0.67 ₹64.0

437.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.21 CA$5.96

$0.48 ₹45.27

777.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 CA$2.53

$0.28 ₹26.57

539.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$0.36 ₹34.28

341.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$0.22 ₹20.91

931.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CA$1.77

$0.27 ₹25.62

362.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.82 CA$19.53

$3.49 ₹331

295.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.27 CA$20.18

$8.35 ₹793

70.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.10

$1.48 ₹140

48.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 CA$3.44

$2.02 ₹192

20.30%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.77 ₹358

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.39 CA$3.38

$0.22 ₹20.92

986.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$157

$7.72 ₹733

1336.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 CA$4.12

$1.08 ₹102

169.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 CA$1.69

$0.30 ₹28.25

300.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.38 CA$30.23

$1.08 ₹102

1879.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.71

$1.07 ₹102

13.08%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$8,473 ₹804.6K

232.53%

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

$20.3K CA$28.6K

$17.4K ₹1.7M

16.08%

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

$120 CA$170

$18.12 ₹1,721

564.18%

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

$32.26 CA$45.60

$3.04 ₹289

961.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.93 CA$67.8

$6.76 ₹642

609.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.48 CA$54.4

$13.89 ₹1,319

177.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.96 CA$32.46

$10.41 ₹988

120.56%

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 CA$17.50

$3.07 ₹291

303.26%

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

$830 CA$1,173

$40.81 ₹3,875

1933.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K CA$32.6K

$2,117 ₹201.1K

990.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 CA$71.7

$25.09 ₹2,383

102.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.02 CA$56.6

$21.45 ₹2,037

86.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.0 CA$139

$38.68 ₹3,674

153.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 CA$171

$25.67 ₹2,438

370.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,592 CA$2,251

$84.2 ₹7,992

1791.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,410 CA$1,994

$53.0 ₹5,037

2559.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,670 CA$3,775

$199 ₹18.9K

1238.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,152 CA$3,042

$127 ₹12.1K

1595.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,945 CA$11.2K

$552 ₹52.4K

1338.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,542 CA$9,249

$553 ₹52.5K

1083.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,727 CA$5,269

$607 ₹57.7K

513.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

8.25

-45.82%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 12, 2026

Last update for Shimla: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.1%

Shimla

$53 17.3% 96.2% $1.4K

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.3%

Shimla

$98 31.9% 71.2% $242

Eating Out

Toronto

$278 10.9%

Shimla

$46 15.1% 83.3% $232

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$201 7.8%

Shimla

$28 9.1% 86.1% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$139 5.4%

Shimla

$50 16.3% 64.1% $89

Getting Around

Toronto

$129 5.1%

Shimla

$11 3.7% 91.4% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$63 2.5%

Shimla

$20 6.5% 68.3% $43

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,592 in Toronto versus $84.2 in Shimla. 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 514% higher in Toronto, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $76.0 in Toronto versus $11.00 in Shimla. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $340 vs $98.0 – making Shimla the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇮🇳 Shimla

🕒 Local time

13:37 1:37 PM

23:07 11:07 PM

9 h 30 min ahead of Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

170,000

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Toronto Shimla 11,370 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
Shimla

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 Shimla: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,561 in Toronto, $306 in Shimla – roughly 736% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,841 per month in Toronto and $459 in Shimla. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $76.0 in Toronto and $11.00 in Shimla. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,561 in Toronto and $306 in Shimla. That's a gap of about 736%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Shimla, where all-in costs run around $306, than in Toronto at $2,561. In Shimla it covers expenses comfortably, while in Toronto it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shimla – 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 Shimla. 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.