Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Diego vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary
San Diego is 48.5% more expensive than Ottawa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 41.3% more in San Diego
- Groceries
-
pay 20.4% more in San Diego
- Transportation
-
pay 13.3% more in San Diego
- Housing
-
pay 88.3% more in San Diego
- Childcare
-
pay 2.0 times more in San Diego
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 43.1% more in San Diego
- Clothing
-
pay 30.6% more in San Diego
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, clothing, and groceries in San Diego are more expensive than in Ottawa. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in San Diego.
San Diego vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Diego instead of Ottawa, you would:
pay 41.3% more for restaurants
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.99
CA$25.16
|
$21.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.01
CA$15.40
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CA$2.80
|
$3.03
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.56
CA$2.18
|
$2.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of restaurants
pay 20.4% more for groceries
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
CA$3.82
|
$4.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
CA$8.18
|
$7.36
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.65
CA$12.10
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
CA$4.92
|
$5.84
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.74
CA$8.03
|
$6.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.91
CA$2.67
|
$2.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.60
CA$0.84
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
CA$2.28
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.67
CA$2.33
|
$2.26
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.11
CA$1.55
|
$1.42
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.46
CA$2.04
|
$1.12
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of groceries
pay 13.3% more for transportation
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.05
CA$5.66
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$97.12
CA$135.85
|
$72.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,444.83
CA$34,192.21
|
$31,965.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.82
CA$20.73
|
$19.40
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of transportation
pay 88.3% more for housing
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.93
CA$69.84
|
$82.19
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,452.55
CA$2,031.76
|
$3,033.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,228.71
CA$1,718.66
|
$2,538.64
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.93
CA$166.35
|
$205.84
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of housing
pay 2.0 times more for childcare
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$788.18
CA$1,102.46
|
$1,750.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,753.32
CA$22,034.96
|
$28,750.00
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of childcare
pay 43.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.76
CA$8.05
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.74
CA$5.24
|
$5.90
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.95
CA$18.11
|
$12.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.60
CA$62.39
|
$73.21
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.79
CA$15.09
|
$17.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 30.6% more for clothing
|
Ottawa
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.82
CA$73.89
|
$60.72
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.91
CA$54.43
|
$58.44
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.10
CA$121.83
|
$105.68
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.91
CA$129.96
|
$126.25
|
|
Ottawa vs. San Diego - 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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Canada vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Canada and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about San Diego or Ottawa. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.