Vancouver or Toronto, which one is more expensive? which one is better to live in? Vancouver or Toronto for studying? Which one is better for vacation?
According to WorldAtlas, Canada is one of the best countries to live in.
Three Canadian cities are also among the top 10 cities for quality of living including Vancouver and Toronto.
Many people around the world like to live in one of these cities, but they’re so good and similar that it’s hard to choose one.
In this article, we will compare the weather, job market, living expenses and, education.
Weather
Canada is famous for its harsh snowy winters which is true about most parts except south western coast province, British Columbia.
Vancouver is the biggest city in this province while Victoria is its capital.
Winter
Vancouver has a very mild winter compared to Toronto.
It only snows for about a week during winter but you can’t go like, “This one is the best!”, Actually, despite its heavy snow, Toronto gets more sunshine throughout the winter, confusing, right?
It snows for like 2 days and then they have 5 sunny days while snow is still sitting in the city and then it snows again. On the other hand, Vancouver is raining for more than 9 months during the year (I live in Vancouver, it’s first hand information) and winters are way too grey and depressing. sun comes up at 7 AM and disappears at 4 PM. by “Sun” i mean only the definition of daylight, not the sunshine itself!
In Vancouver, you almost never have to wear thick layers as you do in Toronto (every other part of Canada).
Job Market
To be honest, Toronto is much better than Vancouver if you are planning to find any kind of job.
It has a thriving economy with tons of opportunities and room for growth.
Vancouver has a much smaller economy and because of rich immigrants who choose to live in Vancouver, the prices go up too fast each year and there’s not much job openings compared to Toronto.
Vancouver is famous for its Hollywood-related companies and they even call it “Hollywood north” but it’s been about two years that companies shoot more movies in Toronto compared to Vancouver.
In Vancouver’s job market, almost everyone knows everyone! I came across people identifying their colleagues a dozen times.
Toronto is different tho, It’s a real big economy!
Living expenses
Cost of living in Toronto is slightly more than Vancouver
Vancouver used to have a significant higher housing prices a few years back but thanks to rich immigrants, Toronto’s prices skyrocketed too and now Vancouver is only %2 higher in prices.
For example, a 1 bedroom apartment in downtown is about $2100 and $1700 outside of downtown in both cities.
It’s much harder to find a place to rent in Vancouver tho! There are 9 available homes to rent for every 10 renters which results to more choices for the landlords. in more popular areas, you may have to fill out an application form, mentioning a lot of details about yourself even for the basements.
Education
Both cities have great universities and colleges like UBC in Vancouver and University of Toronto in Toronto.
Transportation is good in both cities and have discount for students.
Both cities are diverse, (Especially Vancouver) and racism is rare in them.
The only difference is that are better job opportunities both for internship and after graduation in Toronto.
Do you have any experience in one of these cities? have any questions?
Leave them in the comment below.
I’m from Toronto, so on team Toronto all the way! B.C is beautiful too! Nice descriptive post!
I love them both.
Great!
Thanks for sharing your opinion with us!
I love them both!! This is hard. I live in Toronto right now but I travel to Vancouver whenever I need a break from Toronto. I’d say 50/50 for me for both pros and cons.
Right! It’s not easy to say which one is better! Lol!
Thank you for your comment! 😊
I live in Vancouver. My friends live in Toronto. If we total things out, Toronto is convenient but I can’t give up the weather Vancouver has.
I hear you! I have the exact Same issue!
I live in Vancouver and know that there are more opportunities in Toronto, but even thinking of the Toronto winters scares me! Lol
Thank you for your comment!
Yeah 😀
I’ve lived in and enjoyed them both. For scenic beauty and outdoor nature/recreational activities, Vancouver is the place to be. Toronto has a great urban culture with wonderfully diverse neighbourhoods.
Couldn’t have summerized it up better!
Thank you very much for your comment!
Vancouver, of course… 🙂
May I know why you chose Vancouver?
Thanks for sharing your opinion with us.
If you can afford , Vancouver is the best 😊..at least we can escape from this harsh winter 🥶 days..!!
Right!
Thank you for your comment! 😊
I went to Expo ’86 in Vancouver. I was too young (9) for the city to really make any kind of lasting impression on me. Your description of the weather sounds exactly why I have politely declined in the past when friends from the parts of the US close to Vancouver have encouraged me to move near them. I need more sun than that. I’d like to go back someday, but I haven’t been very motivated to take long trips at this point in my life. Maybe someday when I’m retired. Hopefully sooner.
Well, as a Vancouverite, I don’t recommend living in such a weather like ours! It’s too depressing! We got nice summers but that’s only 2 months!
Vancouver, but that’s because we’re from Calgary. The west has to stick together 🙂
Lol!
Viva Calgary!
I have yet to visit the amazing country of Canada! But these both sound like great places to visit for sure! Great info!
I hope you have a trip to Canada soon! It’s an amazing country!
Thank you for your comment!
I can only imagine right now! But I agree! 🙂 Welcome!
Well, It’s not fun to travel to Canada right now! Believe me! There’s still a lot of complication and confusion out there!
Oh I can only imagine!! We aren’t planning on going anywhere right this moment!
Vancouver
Thank you for sharing your opinion with us 😊
I have been in Vancouver Three Times in my life , this is one of my favorite piace in The planet
Glad to hear that! 😊
It is a great city! Our only challenge is the housing market! Other than that, it’s heaven on earth!
An excellent article.
Thank you for your comment 😊
welcome
welcome to my site.
Vancouver, the fifth most densely populated city in North America, has about 5,500 inhabitants/km² (2,500 inhabitants/km² in the metropolitan zone) compared to over 9,000 inhabitants/km² in Bucharest, Romania.
That’s interesting! I live in Vancouver and didn’t know that! 😅
Thanks for sharing!
I traveled to Vancouver in May 2019. A wonderful area.
Glad you liked it ☺👍🏼
Thanks for your comment!
I vote for Vancouver, eventhough the job market sucks and most of us normal people can’t have any savings!
Montreal. 🙂
Toronto is a great city. I worked there couple of months and found good public transport, affordable food and great parks to go to in mississauga and port credit areas. Nice Post!
Thanks, Gina, I agree. It’s a very nice city.
I lived in Vancouver for 4 years but had to leave because the cost of rent got too high.
I hear you, Christopher. Renting price is making it almost impossible for a lot of people to continue living in Vancouver.