Mercer's Cost of Living Survey for 2023 was released in June, and the ranking includes 227 cities in countries across the world, including in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.
Five Canadian cities — Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Ottawa — were on the list.
To figure out where these places rank, the costs of more than 200 items in each location were measured, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, entertainment and more.
While all of the places in Canada that made the ranking this year ended up dropping lower in the ranking, that's actually good news.
In fact, Canadian cities have become more affordable — even if just "slightly" so — when compared to other places around the world in 2023, according to Mercer!
So, here's everything you need to know about which Canadian cities made this cost of living ranking, where cities around the world rank and how the cost of living in Canadian cities compares around the world.
Which Canadian cities have the highest cost of living?
This year's cost of living survey revealed that Canadian cities are at the "cheaper end of the ranking" compared to other big cities in North America.
Toronto's cost of living has been ranked as the highest in Canada for the second year in a row, according to Mercer. It's the most expensive city in Canada for 2023, coming in at the 90th spot overall.
After that, Vancouver remains the second most expensive city in Canada when it comes to the cost of living and has been ranked 116th in the world.
That's followed by Montreal in the 135th spot and Ottawa in the 137th spot overall.
Calgary has been ranked as the least expensive of the five Canadian cities ranked, taking the 145th spot.
All five of these Canadian cities have dropped since last year's ranking, which means they are each more affordable compared to the other cities than they were in 2022.
Toronto went down one spot from last year's ranking, while Vancouver slid down eight places.
Montreal had the biggest drop in Mercer's Cost of Living Survey for 2023 when compared to last year. The city is now ranked 10 spots lower than it was in 2022.
Then, Ottawa moved down five spots and Calgary dropped four spots.
This year's Cost of Living Survey included a breakdown of how the cost of living compares to the quality of living.
Vancouver and Toronto are among the 13 cities around the world that have been ranked as having the lowest cost of living and highest quality of living.
Mercer noted that while this ranking shows the overall quality of living being affected by inflation, Canada is "an attractive destination" for people working remote jobs.
What are the most expensive cities in the world?
Hong Kong ranked as the most expensive city in 2023 for another year, with Singapore in second place.
Then, Zurich, Geneva and Basel — all of which are located in Switzerland — take the third, fourth and fifth spots respectively.
The other cities that are in the top 10:
- New York City, USA — 6th
- Bern, Switzerland — 7th
- Tel Aviv, Israel — 8th
- Copenhagen, Denmark — 9th
- Nassau, Bahamas — 10th
After that, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Beijing, San Francisco, Honolulu, Seoul, London, Dubai, Tokyo and Shenzhen round out the top 20.
On the other end of the ranking, the 10 least expensive cities Mercer ranked are:
- Tashkent, Uzbekistan — 218th
- Tunis, Tunisia — 219th
- Durban, South Africa — 220th
- Ankara, Turkey — 221st
- Windhoek, Namibia — 222nd
- Dushanbe, Tajikistan — 223rd
- Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan — 224th
- Havana, Cuba — 225th
- Karachi, Pakistan — 226th
- Islamabad, Pakistan — 227th
If you're wondering where cities around the world are in relation to the Canadian cities on the ranking, here's a breakdown.
Toronto's cost of living is similar to Chengdu, China (89th) and Leipzig, Germany (91st).
Yokohama, Japan (115th) and Lisbon, Portugal (117th) are just above and just below Vancouver in the ranking.
The cost of living in Montreal and Ottawa is similar to Lome, Togo (134th), Guatemala City, Guatemala (136th) and Kaohsiung, Taiwan (138th).
Then, Cotonou, Benin (144th) and Zagreb, Croatia (146th) are on either side of Calgary in Mercer's ranking for 2023.
How does Canada's cost of living compare to other countries?
While Mercer's Cost of Living Survey for 2023 didn't attach a dollar figure to the cost of living, Numbeo has data on what the monthly costs are for families of four and single people before rent.
Described as the world's largest cost-of-living database, it provides information about the cost of groceries, restaurants, transportation, utilities, child care and other expenses in cities across the world.
So, here is the cost of living — excluding rent — in the top five most expensive cities on Mercer's ranking for this year, according to Numbeo.
The monthly cost of living in Hong Kong is CA$5,198 for a family of four and CA$1,457 for a single person.
Singapore has a cost of living of CA$5,419 per month for a family of four and CA$1,506 per month for a single person.
In Zurich, the monthly cost of living is CA$9,325 each month for a family of four and CA$2,555 each month for a person living on their own.
The estimated monthly cost of living in Geneva is CA$7,987 and CA$2,176 for a family of four and a single person, respectively.
The cost of living in Basel works out to CA$9,229 a month for a family of four and CA$2,495 a month for a person living by themselves.
When it comes to the Canadian cities that are on the cost of living ranking, the monthly costs can be quite similar for single people, but there are some big differences for families!
According to Numbeo, the cost of living in Toronto is $5,290 a month for a family of four and $1,463 a month for a single person.
The estimated monthly cost of living in Vancouver works out to $5,247 for a family of four and $1,437 for a single person each month.
Montreal's cost of living is $4,615 and $1,254 a month for a family of four and a single person, respectively.
Also, the cost of living in Ottawa is an estimated $5,250 for a family of four and $1,465 for a single person.
Then, Calgary's cost of living works out to $5,241 each month for a family of four and $1,494 each month for a single person.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
