Cost of living comparison
compared to
Fairfax vs. Vancouver Cost of Living Summary
Fairfax is 30.6% more expensive than Vancouver.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.7% more in Fairfax
- Groceries
-
pay 50.4% more in Fairfax
- Transportation
-
pay 1.3% less in Fairfax
- Housing
-
pay 19.4% more in Fairfax
- Childcare
-
pay 83.8% more in Fairfax
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.3% more in Fairfax
- Clothing
-
pay 41.1% more in Fairfax
The cost of childcare, groceries, clothing, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Fairfax are more expensive than in Vancouver. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Fairfax.
Fairfax vs. Vancouver Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Fairfax instead of Vancouver, you would:
pay 7.7% more for restaurants
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.50
|
$21.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.51
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.89
|
$2.40
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of restaurants
pay 50.4% more for groceries
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.19
|
$4.00
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.62
|
$8.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.20
|
$3.58
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.88
|
$4.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.58
|
$6.49
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.63
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.25
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.18
|
$3.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.94
|
$1.35
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$1.64
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of groceries
pay 1.3% less for transportation
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.35
|
$3.17
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$90.00
|
$69.57
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,656.56
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.47
|
$15.43
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of transportation
pay 19.4% more for housing
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.00
|
$69.41
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,651.50
|
$2,125.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,483.86
|
$1,770.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$111.07
|
$138.22
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of housing
pay 83.8% more for childcare
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,400.00
|
$1,833.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,000.00
|
$30,776.00
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of childcare
pay 13.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.42
|
$5.60
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.50
|
$10.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$45.00
|
$76.80
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$16.75
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 41.1% more for clothing
|
Vancouver
|
Fairfax
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$41.00
|
$63.33
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.00
|
$48.40
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.50
|
$83.75
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$85.00
|
$130.00
|
|
Vancouver vs. Fairfax - 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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