Cost of living comparison

compared to

Amherst vs. Vancouver Cost of Living Summary

Amherst is 4.1% more expensive than Vancouver.

Restaurants
pay 4.9% more in Amherst
Groceries
pay 7.6% more in Amherst
Transportation
pay 27.7% less in Amherst
Housing
pay 14.5% more in Amherst
Childcare
pay 7.7% more in Amherst
Entertainment and Sports
pay 25.3% more in Amherst
Clothing
pay 1.0% more in Amherst

The cost of entertainment and sports, housing, childcare, groceries, restaurants, and clothing in Amherst are more expensive than in Vancouver.

Amherst vs. Vancouver Cost Breakdown

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

pay 4.9% more for restaurants

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.53
CA$24.51
$20.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.52
CA$14.70
$9.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.11
CA$2.94
$2.65
 

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pay 7.6% more for groceries

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Bread
1 loaf
$2.55
CA$3.56
$3.27
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.94
CA$8.31
$8.27
 
Milk (1 gallon) $8.30
CA$11.60
$3.94
 

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pay 27.7% less for transportation

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Gasoline (1 gallon) $5.30
CA$7.41
$3.64
 
Monthly public transit pass $82.13
CA$114.79
$28.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $27,760.48
CA$38,799.43
$36,344.34
 

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pay 14.5% more for housing

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$51.61
CA$72.14
$89.37
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,758.64
CA$2,457.96
$1,825.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,510.76
CA$2,111.52
$1,333.33
 

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pay 7.7% more for childcare

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,089.37
CA$1,522.56
$1,493.75
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $20,096.19
CA$28,087.44
$17,000.00
 

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pay 25.3% more for entertainment and sports

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.61
CA$7.84
$6.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.95
CA$5.52
$4.75
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$15.43
CA$21.57
$10.50
 

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pay 1.0% more for clothing

 
Vancouver
Amherst
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$57.28
CA$80.05
$45.00
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$32.87
CA$45.94
$39.77
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$93.98
CA$131.36
$90.00
 

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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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