Houston vs. Toronto Cost of Living Summary

Houston is 6.9% more expensive than Toronto.

Restaurants
pay 11.8% more in Houston
Groceries
pay 1.2% more in Houston
Transportation
pay 9.6% less in Houston
Housing
pay 12.5% more in Houston
Childcare
pay 58.7% more in Houston
Entertainment and Sports
pay 6.7% more in Houston
Clothing
pay 1.2% less in Houston

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

Houston vs. Toronto Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Houston instead of Toronto, you would:

pay 11.8% more for restaurants

 
Toronto
Houston
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.53
CA$24.51
$20.38
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.52
CA$14.70
$10.14
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.08
CA$2.90
$2.70
 

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pay 1.2% more for groceries

 
Toronto
Houston
Bread
1 loaf
$2.74
CA$3.83
$3.33
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $4.56
CA$6.38
$5.66
 
Milk (1 gallon) $9.44
CA$13.20
$3.25
 

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pay 9.6% less for transportation

 
Toronto
Houston
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.68
CA$6.53
$3.53
 
Monthly public transit pass $109.41
CA$152.92
$75.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $27,760.48
CA$38,799.43
$36,232.00
 

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pay 12.5% more for housing

 
Toronto
Houston
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$47.87
CA$66.90
$74.61
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,584.56
CA$2,214.66
$1,678.93
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,416.89
CA$1,980.31
$1,381.10
 

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pay 58.7% more for childcare

 
Toronto
Houston
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $824.14
CA$1,151.86
$2,193.79
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $23,500.21
CA$32,845.07
$22,233.33
 

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pay 6.7% more for entertainment and sports

 
Toronto
Houston
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.31
CA$8.82
$6.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.97
CA$5.55
$5.27
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$14.03
CA$19.61
$9.73
 

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pay 1.2% less for clothing

 
Toronto
Houston
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$51.64
CA$72.18
$49.91
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$39.51
CA$55.22
$47.00
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$98.10
CA$137.10
$104.92
 

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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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