Canada's Cheapest Provinces With The Best Quality Of Life Were Ranked & Here's Where To Go

It's not new information that the cost of living in Canada is on the rise. With the prices of everything from food to housing increasing, Canadians looking to make a move may be wondering where in the country their money will go the furthest.

MovingWaldo, which provides moving services for Canadians, has compiled a list of the cheapest provinces in Canada where you can spend less without having to sacrifice your quality of life.

The company classified 10 provinces in Canada from least to most expensive, based on their average cost of living.

Using data from sources like the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Canadian Real Estate Association, RateHub and Numbeo, the list ranked provinces based on their average monthly costs for a non-family household, including things like groceries, utilities and car insurance.

According to MovingWaldo, Newfoundland and Labrador is the province with the cheapest cost of living and best quality of life right now.

Excluding house prices, the average monthly cost for someone living in the province is $1,324. Residents can expect to pay around $70, on average, for a cell phone plan that includes unlimited talk, text and data, and $100 for water and electricity each month.

While grocery prices are on the high side here compared to other regions, at an average of $248.88 per month, the province makes up for this with inexpensive housing, with the average house and monthly rent prices at $299,950 and $783, respectively.

As for what life is like here, Maclean’s magazine has called Newfoundland and Labrador one of the top 10 friendliest cultures in the world, per MovingWaldo.

"Even if Canada has the reputation of being welcoming and friendly, it is particularly true for Newfoundland and Labrador," says MovingWaldo.

Following Newfoundland is New Brunswick, where, while average house and grocery prices are slightly cheaper, the monthly cost of living is a bit higher at $1,755.15.

The province was also praised for having "several cities brimming with opportunities."

"Nurses, physicians and delivery and courier drivers are the most in demand jobs in New Brunswick," notes MovingWaldo.

It looks like Canadians felt the draw, with New Brunswick registering the largest net gain of people of any province in 2022, according to the U-Haul Growth Index.

The prairie province of Saskatchewan, which also has "great opportunities" for nurses and physicians, rounds out the top three, where average monthly costs total $1,706.72.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, B.C. was found to have the highest average monthly costs, with a total of $2,887.33.

The figure doesn't include the price of housing, which sits at an average of $904,020.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Ontario ranked just behind B.C. for the most expensive province on the list, with average house prices of $829,934, and monthly costs at $2,826.92.