Original research • September 2026

2026 Newcomer Housing & Transit Cost Index

A deliberately narrow city-cost benchmark: 2025 CMHC average two-bedroom purpose-built rent plus current regular adult public-transit cost across 19 Canadian markets.

Markets compared19

Lowest baselineQuébec City

Highest baselineVancouver

Annual gap$13,208

Rank	City	2025 avg. 2BR rent	Transit / month	Annual housing + transit
1	Québec City Quebec	$1,277	$102.50	$16,554.00
2	Montréal Quebec	$1,346	$100.00	$17,352.00
3	Regina Saskatchewan	$1,473	$97.00	$18,840.00
4	Gatineau Quebec	$1,460	$116.50	$18,918.00
5	Windsor Ontario	$1,454	$124.00	$18,936.00
6	St. Catharines–Niagara Ontario	$1,527	$100.00	$19,524.00
7	Saskatoon Saskatchewan	$1,548	$91.00	$19,668.00
8	Winnipeg Manitoba	$1,571	$119.35	$20,284.20
9	Edmonton Alberta	$1,603	$102.00	$20,460.00
10	London Ontario	$1,657	$112.00	$21,228.00
11	Hamilton Ontario	$1,656	$125.40	$21,376.80
12	Oshawa Ontario	$1,754	$138.24	$22,706.88
13	Halifax Nova Scotia	$1,826	$90.00	$22,992.00
14	Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo Ontario	$1,832	$104.00	$23,232.00
15	Calgary Alberta	$1,914	$126.00	$24,480.00
16	Ottawa Ontario	$1,926	$138.50	$24,774.00
17	Toronto Ontario	$2,046	$155.10	$26,413.20
18	Victoria British Columbia	$2,120	$85.00	$26,460.00
19	Vancouver British Columbia	$2,363	$117.20	$29,762.40

Headline finding

On this benchmark, Québec City has the lowest annual housing-and-transit baseline at $16,554.00, while Vancouver is highest at $29,762.40. The gap is driven overwhelmingly by rent rather than public-transit pricing.

Methodology

Housing uses CMHC’s 2025 average rent for a two-bedroom purpose-built rental apartment in the relevant census metropolitan area. This is an average paid rent measure, not a promise that a newly listed apartment will be available at that price. Transit uses the regular adult monthly pass, monthly fare cap or closest comparable monthly product published by the local transit authority as of September 12, 2026.

The annual benchmark is simply (monthly 2-bedroom rent × 12) + (monthly transit baseline × 12). We intentionally do not add groceries, utilities, childcare, taxes or entertainment because consistent city-level official data for those categories would require additional assumptions that could obscure the underlying comparison.

Why this is useful for newcomers

Housing is usually the largest recurring cost after arriving in Canada, and transportation can determine whether a cheaper apartment actually saves money. This index is designed as a first filter for city comparison, not a complete relocation budget. A household considering several cities can see the scale of the rent difference, then use our first-year calculator or a city-specific moving-budget page with its own food, utilities and setup assumptions.

Important limitations

A two-bedroom apartment is not the right unit type for every household. Transit needs also differ: remote workers may spend less, while cross-zone commuters can spend more than the baseline used here. Rent varies materially by neighbourhood, building age and whether the unit is newly leased. The index therefore measures one consistent benchmark rather than “the cost of living” in a universal sense.