Canada has long been known as America’s friendly northern neighbor, and more and more American retirees are taking advantage of the country’s kind reputation — and low costs — to enjoy a happy retirement.
To find which Canadian cities American retirees could live comfortably on with a $5,000 monthly budget, GOBankingRates analyzed data regarding cost of living and quality of life from cities across the country. Data was sourced from the Numbeo Cost-of-Living Index and the Numbeo Quality-of-Life Index. The quality-of-life index was given a weighting of 1.5, while the cost-of-living with rent index and the total monthly cost with rent were weighted at 1.25 and 0.75, respectively.
Here are the top 10 Canadian cities from the survey, ranked in reverse order.
10. Saskatoon
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,093.33
Saskatoon has one of the lowest costs of living of any city in Canada, with a $5,000 budget allowing a retiree to live in relative luxury. The only reason the city didn’t score higher in the survey — although it still cracked the top 10 — is that its quality-of-life index is relatively modest, at 154.53.
9. St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,038.41
St. John’s is the capital of the Newfoundland and Labrador province. It’s a great place to retire on the cheap, with a quality-of-living index of 168.79 and monthly average apartment rent below $1,000.
8. Mississauga
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,981.08
Mississauga’s total cost-of-living is a bit higher than other cities in the top 10, but that’s countered by its quality-of-life index of 161.13. The city traces its history back to 1806 and is the home of the country’s busiest airport, Toronto Pearson International, offering easy access for retirees looking to travel.
7. Kitchener
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,623.92
Kitchener sports a well-above-average quality-of-life index of 165.71, and it’s quite affordable as well. This may be surprising given the city has the second-highest density of startup businesses in the world, behind only Silicon Valley. Still, the monthly cost-of-living for a single person, excluding rent, is just $972.30 per month in Kitchener. Overall, the city’s cost-of-living index, including rent, is just 50.1.
6. Windsor
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,287.43
Windsor’s quality-of-life index doesn’t top the charts at 155.36, but it’s costs more than make up for it, at least in terms of the survey’s ranking. The city’s cost-of-living (with rent) index is just 45.9, while its rent index is a staggeringly low 28.1.
5. Markham
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $3,037.23
Markham is a bit pricier than other cities on this list, but it makes up for that with its off-the-chart quality-of-life index of 182.05, highest of any Canadian city surveyed. Still, even with average apartment rents of $2,008.93, Markham’s cost-of-living index comes in at just 54.8.
4. Burnaby
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $3,157.95
Burnaby has the highest monthly cost of living of any city in the top 10, due in large part to its average apartment rent of $2,188.05 per month. Burnaby residents still have a relatively low overall cost of living, however, and most are likely happy to up a bit to enjoy the city’s exemplary quality-of-life index of 178.68, second-highest among any city in Canada.
3. Fredericton
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,105.38
Fredericton boasts an impressive combination of low costs and excellent livability. Its 171.70 quality-of-life index is among the best in Canada, and its average apartment rent of $1,117.28 is also quite low. Overall, Fredericton has a cost-of-living index, including rent, of just 46.1.
2. Kingston
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $2,568.54
Kingston’s overall costs are slightly more than #3 Fredericton’s, but it also boasts a higher quality-of-life index, at 173.31. This puts Kingston’s livability among the very best across all of Canada. Only relatively high monthly apartment rents of $1,580.34 keep Kingston out of the top spot.
1. Regina
- Monthly Cost of Living for One Person With Rent: $1,919.89
Regina takes the cake when it comes to desirable, affordable places to retire in Canada. While its quality-of-life index isn’t bad at 155.81, Regina’s extremely low cost of living is the primary reason the city tops the charts. Its average apartment rent of just $989.69 per month is the lowest of every Canadian city surveyed, and its overall cost-of-living index (including rent) is just 42.0.
Methodology: To find the best Canadian cities to retire on a budget of over $5k a month, GOBankingRates analyzed cities across Canada over a variety of factors to determine the best overall cities to retire in. The cities were analyzed for their cost of living indexes across numerous expenditure categories including; market prices, food prices, transportation prices, utilities prices, clothing, average salary, apartment rental prices, and other typical costs sourced from Numbeo Cost of Living Index. This compares the costs across these expenditure categories with the prices in New York city to give an average cost within each expenditure category for each cost of living index. For each city with all the data available the quality of life indexes were sourced from Numbeo Quality of Life Index. The cost of living with rent index was scored and weighted at 1.25, the quality of life index was scored and weighted at 1.5, and the total monthly cost with rent was scored and weighted at 0.75. All scores were combined for a final score, sorted, to show the best Canadian cities to retire on a budget of over $5k a month. All data was collected and is up-to-date as-of September 22nd, 2023.