These are the most expensive provinces in Canada to live in
Canadians across the country are grappling with the cost-of-living crisis, but some regions are feeling it more than most, according to a new Statistics Canada report that reveals which provinces are the most expensive to live in.
The study, titled “Purchasing Power Parities for Consumption and Household Income Across the Canadian Provinces and Territories,” is the first of its kind in Canada and shares new evidence on the differences in purchasing power between provinces and territories.
“The standard of living from earning $75,000 in one province or territory is not the same as earning that amount in another province or territory if the cost of living differs in each location,” explained StatCan in a news release on Thursday.
The findings, which are based on data from 2021, show which provinces had the highest cost of living, the lowest household disposable income, and the value of “social transfers,” or public services.
The most expensive provinces in Canada
According to the report, B.C., Ontario, and Alberta experienced the highest costs of living in 2021.
“$1 spent in British Columbia purchased the equivalent amount of goods and services as $0.82 spent in New Brunswick,” it reads.
Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick were the least expensive places to live.
When it comes to territories, Nunavut was the most expensive, and both Nunavut and the Northwest Territories were more expensive than any province.
“In 2021, a person in Nunavut would have needed to spend $1.10 to purchase the equivalent amount of goods and services as $1 could purchase in British Columbia, the most expensive province,” reads the report.
Provinces’ household disposable income
Statistics Canada
Household disposable income per capita is one of the two factors StatCan uses to measure income.
In 2021, despite high prices in Alberta, the province was still in the top half of the distribution of household disposable income after adjusting income for prices. It sits behind the Northwest Territories, Yukon, and Newfoundland and Labrador.
This shows that while it was expensive to live in Alberta, residents’ high disposable incomes compensated for the high prices.
StatCan says that, on the other hand, Ontario and B.C.’s rankings were heavily affected by price adjustment. They dropped from fourth and fifth, respectively, to eighth and ninth in terms of household disposable income.
Manitoba and Nunavut had the lowest disposable income among provinces and territories, which the agency says was also true before price adjustment.
Value of “social transfers”
StatCan looked at household disposable income plus the value of “social transfers” as the second measure of income. “Social transfers” are public services like health care.
“After adding the value of social transfers in kind, Ontario and British Columbia fared worse, with the second lowest (Ontario) and lowest (British Columbia) price-adjusted income among all provinces and territories,” reads the report.
Nunavut performed better, with price-adjusted income that was above most provinces and the other two territories.
StatCan concluded that price adjustment and the value of public services both play a key role in understanding differences in economic well-being between regions.