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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Cost of living in St. John's, Canada (2026): cost index 94 (-12 vs national avg), rent $1,200/mo, median income $65,500/yr. Rent takes 22% of gross income. Full breakdown vs Newfoundland and Labrador peers below.
Cost of living in St. John's, Canada (2026): cost index 94 (-12 vs national avg), rent $1,200/mo, median income $65,500/yr. Rent takes 22% of gross income. Full breakdown vs Newfoundland and Labrador peers below.
St. John's: cost index 94 (-12 vs national avg 106), rent $1,200/month.
Newfoundland and Labrador region average cost index: 106. St. John's is -12 vs region peers.
Quality of life: 63/100 — safety 66, healthcare 62, walkability 55.
Safety score: 66/100 (crime rate 55.3/1k). National average: 63/100.
Strip away assumptions, and something unexpected emerges. St. John's has a cost index of 94 — 12 points below the Canada national average of 106. Median income is $65,500 with rent at $1,200/month, putting the rent-to-income ratio at 22%. This combination is rare — and valuable.
Pair that with the housing data, and the pattern sharpens. looking at Newfoundland and Labrador as a whole, the spread across all 21 cities is 40 points on the cost index. Vancouver sits at the other end with index 134 and rent of $2,850/mo. This stands out as genuinely impressive.
On quality of life, St. John's scores a composite score of 63/100 — reflecting its safety (66), healthcare (62), and walkability (55) metrics. But here's the flip side: affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and Canada is a good example of that tension.
| # | City | Cost Index | Rent/mo | Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. John's | 94 | $1,200 | $65,500 |
| 2 | Saint John | 90 | $1,210 | $59,000 |
| 3 | Fredericton | 92 | $1,260 | $61,000 |
| 4 | Winnipeg | 93 | $1,420 | $67,500 |
| 5 | Charlottetown | 93 | $1,340 | $59,500 |
| 6 | Regina | 94 | $1,370 | $70,000 |
| 7 | Quebec City | 96 | $1,350 | $63,500 |
| 8 | Saskatoon | 96 | $1,480 | $72,000 |
| 9 | Halifax | 100 | $1,720 | $66,000 |
| 10 | London | 101 | $1,660 | $68,500 |
| 11 | Laval | 101 | $1,500 | $67,500 |
| 12 | Montreal | 104 | $1,700 | $66,000 |
| 13 | Edmonton | 108 | $1,800 | $82,000 |
| 14 | Hamilton | 110 | $1,880 | $76,000 |
| 15 | Ottawa | 113 | $2,100 | $86,000 |
| 16 | Calgary | 114 | $2,050 | $86,500 |
| 17 | Mississauga | 118 | $2,450 | $80,000 |
| 18 | Victoria | 120 | $2,300 | $76,000 |
| 19 | Surrey | 124 | $2,420 | $74,000 |
| 20 | Toronto | 126 | $2,750 | $82,000 |
St. John's — cost index 94, rent $1,200/mo, income $65,500, QoL 63/100.
Saint John — cost index 90, rent $1,210/mo, income $59,000, QoL 62/100.
Fredericton — cost index 92, rent $1,260/mo, income $61,000, QoL 67/100.
Winnipeg — cost index 93, rent $1,420/mo, income $67,500, QoL 58/100.
Charlottetown — cost index 93, rent $1,340/mo, income $59,500, QoL 68/100.
St. John's has a cost index of 94 (national avg: 106). Median rent is $1,200/month, median income $65,500/year, giving a rent-to-income ratio of 22%.
The Newfoundland and Labrador region of average QoL score is 61/100. St. John's leads with 63/100, reflecting safety, healthcare access, walkability, and green space.
Our index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Sub-categories cover housing, food, transport, utilities, and healthcare. Data sources include Statistics Canada, CMHC, CRA.
St. John's: cost index 94, rent $1,200/mo, income $65,500/yr, QoL 63/100. Saint John: cost index 90, rent $1,210/mo, income $59,000/yr, QoL 62/100.
This analysis uses data from Statistics Canada, CMHC, CRA to rank cities in Canada. The cost of living index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Quality of life scores combine safety, healthcare, walkability, air quality, green space, and transit metrics. Salary ranges use national occupation data adjusted for local cost differences. Data is updated regularly to reflect current market conditions.