Here's how much it costs to live in Vancouver right now

Vancouver view of False Creek (Hannamariah/Shutterstock)

Ahead of the 2017 BC election, Daily Hive has produced a range of guides, interviews, and opinions on the key issues affecting young voters. To find our full BC Election coverage, click here: Battleground BC.

It’s no secret that Vancouver is a costly place to live. It’s not just skyrocketing housing prices that make the city expensive –it is also the day-to-day costs that add up.

Of course, affordability is a key issue in this upcoming election, and each party is promising different strategies to make life less costly.

Before you head to the polls, we wanted to break down just how expensive it is to live and work in Vancouver, as a single, young person.

Obviously, this person lives with a roommate (because, let’s face it, living alone is too expensive) and they rely on transit to get around.

Note that some of these monthly costs are split between both roommates. And, while we tried to be as accurate as possible, this is just an estimate of a cost breakdown.

Here’s what we came up with:

Rent: $900 – The total rent cost ($1800) is split between both roommates

Utilities: $80

Phone Bill: $80

Internet: $50

Groceries: $325 – This total cost ($650) is split between both roommates

Going out to eat (including nights out at bars/ clubs): $120

Monthly transit pass (2-zone): $124

Taxi costs: $40

Personal items (clothing/makeup/hygiene): $100

Leisure (gym pass/ movies/ events) $50

Total cost: $1,869/month

This Vancouverite is paying $1,869 per month to live in the city–without even taking into account car payments or student loan payments.

To cover that amount working on minimum wage, you would need to work for just over 172 hours, or 21 days of eight-hour shifts.

All figures are an average of what readers told us about their lives and expenditure every month. Do you think we came close? What’s your number?

To find more guides to all the issues, interviews with the BC party leaders, and plenty of opinions, check out our full BC Election coverage here: Battleground BC.

Total cost: $1,869/month

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