Please complete your profile to unlock commenting and other important features.

Please select your date of birth for special perks on your birthday. Your username will be your unique profile link and will be publicly used in comments.
Narcity Pro

This is a Pro feature.

Time to level up your local game with Narcity Pro.

Pro

$5/month

$40/year

  • Everything in the Free plan
  • Ad-free reading and browsing
  • Unlimited access to all content including AI summaries
  • Directly support our local and national reporting and become a Patron
  • Cancel anytime.
For Pro members only Pro
Summary

Someone Asked 'What's Weird In The US But Normal In Canada' & It Got Wonderfully Snarky

"Manners." 💀

A Canadian flag.

A Canadian flag.

Senior Writer

While it's perhaps not fair to bring an entire country down to a handful of stereotypes, the people of Reddit recently did just that on a thread.

On the popular forum r/AskReddit, someone asked, "What's weird in the U.S. but normal in Canada?" and some of the answers definitely have a healthy dose of sarcasm.

According to one user, "manners" are considered to be something weird in the United States but totally normal north of the border.

As well, someone touched on our universal health care system and the further implications it can have.

"Not ruining your financial life when you have a medical emergency," they shared.

Of course, some of the answers you'd expect to see also cropped up, like buying milk in a bag, poutine and ketchup chips.

One person mentioned that there's an interesting difference in how the word "sorry" is used between the two countries.

"In America, sorry is seemingly rather sparse even in how I expect Americans to use it and is only used to confer genuine apology for something, or said because they know they're supposed to," they explained.

"Sorry in Canada has that meaning and is also used to convey knowledge of someone's presence if you're interrupting them or getting in their way."

Other things that users found to be weird in the U.S. but normal in Canada include French branding on products, having the British monarchy on our currency, as well as "being Canadian," which is fair enough.

That being said, one Redditor had an interesting take on what's normal for Canucks.

"Nothing is normal in Canada eh!"

It seems normalcy depends on your perspective!

On the same forum, someone recently asked how you can tell someone is Canadian without asking them, and the answers were similarly a bit of a mixed bag.

One person suggested you lick someone's forehead to see if they taste like maple syrup, but perhaps there are easier ways to answer the question!

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

Explore this list   👀

    • Senior Writer

      Sarah Rohoman (she/her) was a Senior Writer with Narcity Media. She has worked at BuzzFeed Canada, Yahoo Canada, and CBC Radio in news, lifestyle, ecommerce, and social media. She has an MA in Journalism from Western University and a BA from McGill. She loves libraries, alpacas, and all things witchy.

    I lived in the US for years — Here are the biggest differences between Canada and the States

    They may have Trader Joe's, but we have those maple candies at duty free.

    I recently travelled from Canada to the US — Here are the 6 differences I noticed immediately

    A lot changes when you drive across the border. 🇨🇦 🇺🇸

    Popular foods are being recalled in Canada including from Loblaws, Zehrs & Co-op brands

    The latest recalls include products linked to over 100 salmonella cases. 🫣

    CSIS is hiring for jobs across Canada and the pay goes up to $129,000 a year

    Some of these high-paying jobs don't require a university degree!

    Canada was ranked the best country in the world to move to and the US got left in the dust

    It was voted the top "dream destination" worldwide for quality of life, jobs & more. 🇨🇦