Cost of living comparison
compared to
Costa Mesa vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary
Costa Mesa is 30.6% more expensive than Ottawa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 32.0% more in Costa Mesa
- Groceries
-
pay 18.2% more in Costa Mesa
- Transportation
-
pay 13.8% more in Costa Mesa
- Housing
-
pay 75.0% more in Costa Mesa
- Childcare
-
pay 53.0% more in Costa Mesa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.0% more in Costa Mesa
- Clothing
-
pay 1.4% more in Costa Mesa
The cost of housing, childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, and transportation in Costa Mesa are more expensive than in Ottawa.
Costa Mesa vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Costa Mesa instead of Ottawa, you would:
pay 32.0% more for restaurants
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.99
CA$25.16
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.01
CA$15.40
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CA$2.80
|
$3.33
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.56
CA$2.18
|
$2.20
|
|
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of restaurants
pay 18.2% more for groceries
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
CA$3.82
|
$3.76
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
CA$8.18
|
$5.32
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.65
CA$12.10
|
$4.28
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
CA$4.92
|
$4.99
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.74
CA$8.03
|
$4.74
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.91
CA$2.67
|
$2.00
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.60
CA$0.84
|
$0.87
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
CA$2.28
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.67
CA$2.33
|
$2.56
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.11
CA$1.55
|
$2.00
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.46
CA$2.04
|
$1.32
|
|
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of groceries
pay 13.8% more for transportation
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.05
CA$5.66
|
$4.74
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$97.12
CA$135.85
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,444.83
CA$34,192.21
|
$26,999.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.82
CA$20.73
|
?? | |
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of transportation
pay 75.0% more for housing
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.93
CA$69.84
|
$62.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,452.55
CA$2,031.76
|
$2,798.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,228.71
CA$1,718.66
|
$2,466.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.93
CA$166.35
|
$216.33
|
|
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of housing
pay 53.0% more for childcare
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$788.18
CA$1,102.46
|
$1,206.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,753.32
CA$22,034.96
|
?? | |
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of childcare
pay 21.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.76
CA$8.05
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.74
CA$5.24
|
$5.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.95
CA$18.11
|
$11.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.60
CA$62.39
|
$40.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.79
CA$15.09
|
$16.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.4% more for clothing
|
Ottawa
|
Costa Mesa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.82
CA$73.89
|
$54.27
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.91
CA$54.43
|
$34.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.10
CA$121.83
|
$90.25
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.91
CA$129.96
|
$102.25
|
|
Ottawa vs. Costa Mesa - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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