Cost of living comparison

compared to

Vancouver vs. Rochester Cost of Living Summary

Vancouver is 2.7% more expensive than Rochester.

Restaurants
pay 13.7% less in Vancouver
Groceries
pay 6.1% more in Vancouver
Transportation
pay 31.0% more in Vancouver
Housing
pay 1.3% less in Vancouver
Childcare
pay 16.3% more in Vancouver
Entertainment and Sports
pay 8.5% less in Vancouver
Clothing
pay 9.3% less in Vancouver

The cost of transportation, childcare, and groceries in Vancouver are more expensive than in Rochester. Expenses including restaurants, clothing, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Vancouver.

Vancouver vs. Rochester Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Vancouver instead of Rochester, you would:

pay 13.7% less for restaurants

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $20.00
 
$17.53
CA$24.51
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$11.00
 
$10.52
CA$14.70
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.83
 
$2.11
CA$2.94

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pay 6.1% more for groceries

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Bread
1 loaf
$2.95
 
$2.55
CA$3.56
Local cheese (8 oz) $4.77
 
$5.94
CA$8.31
Milk (1 gallon) $3.38
 
$8.30
CA$11.60

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pay 31.0% more for transportation

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.41
 
$5.30
CA$7.41
Monthly public transit pass $42.00
 
$82.13
CA$114.79
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $35,908.50
 
$27,760.48
CA$38,799.43

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pay 1.3% less for housing

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$44.00
 
$51.61
CA$72.14
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,643.75
 
$1,758.64
CA$2,457.96
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,300.00
 
$1,510.76
CA$2,111.52

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pay 16.3% more for childcare

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,369.17
 
$1,089.37
CA$1,522.56
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $11,812.00
 
$20,096.19
CA$28,087.44

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pay 8.5% less for entertainment and sports

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.00
 
$5.61
CA$7.84
Cappuccino in mid-range area $6.00
 
$3.95
CA$5.52
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$8.89
 
$15.43
CA$21.57

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pay 9.3% less for clothing

 
Rochester
Vancouver
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$63.33
 
$57.28
CA$80.05
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$62.50
 
$32.87
CA$45.94
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$73.33
 
$93.98
CA$131.36

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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