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Cost of a basic standard of living, family of four

Area: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 Calendar year 2025

$59,363 a year

In a yearSteady+2.5%, within ±5%
In 5 years Rising+18.7% since 2020

No target expected. This is a context measure. The poverty line itself, a cost of living figure. Governments set targets for how many people live below it, not for what the basics cost. Targets and comparisons

Source: Statistics Canada. We read it on Nov 12, 2026.

Check this numberOpen the agency’s table (agency site)

Over time

Cost of the basket for a family of four (dollars a year)

2025 A year, by year

  • B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 $59,363
  • Vancouver $64,351
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: starts at $50,012 a year (2020), ends at $59,363 a year (2025); highest $59,363 a year (2025), lowest $50,012 a year (2020). Vancouver: starts at $54,224 a year (2020), ends at $64,351 a year (2025); highest $64,351 a year (2025), lowest $54,224 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$25,000$50,000$75,000202520232021Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 20252020: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $50,012 a year; Vancouver: $54,224 a year2021: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $51,069 a year; Vancouver: $55,384 a year2022: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $54,656 a year; Vancouver: $59,262 a year2023: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $56,854 a year; Vancouver: $61,621 a year2024: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $57,943 a year; Vancouver: $62,842 a year2025: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $59,363 a year; Vancouver: $64,351 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: starts at $50,012 a year (2020), ends at $59,363 a year (2025); highest $59,363 a year (2025), lowest $50,012 a year (2020). Vancouver: starts at $54,224 a year (2020), ends at $64,351 a year (2025); highest $64,351 a year (2025), lowest $54,224 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$25,000$50,000$75,000202520232021Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 20252020: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $50,012 a year; Vancouver: $54,224 a year2021: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $51,069 a year; Vancouver: $55,384 a year2022: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $54,656 a year; Vancouver: $59,262 a year2023: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $56,854 a year; Vancouver: $61,621 a year2024: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $57,943 a year; Vancouver: $62,842 a year2025: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $59,363 a year; Vancouver: $64,351 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: starts at $50,012 a year (2020), ends at $59,363 a year (2025); highest $59,363 a year (2025), lowest $50,012 a year (2020). Vancouver: starts at $54,224 a year (2020), ends at $64,351 a year (2025); highest $64,351 a year (2025), lowest $54,224 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$25,000$50,000$75,000202520242023202220212020Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 2025Vancouver$64,351B.C.communitiesof 100,000 to499,999 $59,3632020: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $50,012 a year; Vancouver: $54,224 a year2021: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $51,069 a year; Vancouver: $55,384 a year2022: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $54,656 a year; Vancouver: $59,262 a year2023: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $56,854 a year; Vancouver: $61,621 a year2024: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $57,943 a year; Vancouver: $62,842 a year2025: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $59,363 a year; Vancouver: $64,351 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: starts at $50,012 a year (2020), ends at $59,363 a year (2025); highest $59,363 a year (2025), lowest $50,012 a year (2020). Vancouver: starts at $54,224 a year (2020), ends at $64,351 a year (2025); highest $64,351 a year (2025), lowest $54,224 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$25,000$50,000$75,000202520242023202220212020Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 2025Vancouver $64,351B.C. communities of100,000 to 499,999$59,3632020: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $50,012 a year; Vancouver: $54,224 a year2021: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $51,069 a year; Vancouver: $55,384 a year2022: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $54,656 a year; Vancouver: $59,262 a year2023: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $56,854 a year; Vancouver: $61,621 a year2024: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $57,943 a year; Vancouver: $62,842 a year2025: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999: $59,363 a year; Vancouver: $64,351 a year

Tap or drag on the chart to read any year.

F federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025

About these ticks

More charts (1)

Shelter and food in the basket (dollars a year)

2025 A year, by year

  • Shelter $23,510
  • Food $16,463
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. Shelter: starts at $19,638 a year (2020), ends at $23,510 a year (2025); highest $23,510 a year (2025), lowest $19,638 a year (2020). Food: starts at $12,845 a year (2020), ends at $16,463 a year (2025); highest $16,463 a year (2025), lowest $12,845 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$10,000$20,000$30,000202520232021Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 20252020: Shelter: $19,638 a year; Food: $12,845 a year2021: Shelter: $20,187 a year; Food: $13,141 a year2022: Shelter: $21,582 a year; Food: $14,332 a year2023: Shelter: $22,427 a year; Food: $15,410 a year2024: Shelter: $23,020 a year; Food: $15,854 a year2025: Shelter: $23,510 a year; Food: $16,463 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. Shelter: starts at $19,638 a year (2020), ends at $23,510 a year (2025); highest $23,510 a year (2025), lowest $19,638 a year (2020). Food: starts at $12,845 a year (2020), ends at $16,463 a year (2025); highest $16,463 a year (2025), lowest $12,845 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$10,000$20,000$30,000202520232021Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 20252020: Shelter: $19,638 a year; Food: $12,845 a year2021: Shelter: $20,187 a year; Food: $13,141 a year2022: Shelter: $21,582 a year; Food: $14,332 a year2023: Shelter: $22,427 a year; Food: $15,410 a year2024: Shelter: $23,020 a year; Food: $15,854 a year2025: Shelter: $23,510 a year; Food: $16,463 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. Shelter: starts at $19,638 a year (2020), ends at $23,510 a year (2025); highest $23,510 a year (2025), lowest $19,638 a year (2020). Food: starts at $12,845 a year (2020), ends at $16,463 a year (2025); highest $16,463 a year (2025), lowest $12,845 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$10,000$20,000$30,000202520242023202220212020Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 2025Shelter $23,510Food $16,4632020: Shelter: $19,638 a year; Food: $12,845 a year2021: Shelter: $20,187 a year; Food: $13,141 a year2022: Shelter: $21,582 a year; Food: $14,332 a year2023: Shelter: $22,427 a year; Food: $15,410 a year2024: Shelter: $23,020 a year; Food: $15,854 a year2025: Shelter: $23,510 a year; Food: $16,463 a year
Line chart of 2 lines, 6 periods from 2020 to 2025. Shelter: starts at $19,638 a year (2020), ends at $23,510 a year (2025); highest $23,510 a year (2025), lowest $19,638 a year (2020). Food: starts at $12,845 a year (2020), ends at $16,463 a year (2025); highest $16,463 a year (2025), lowest $12,845 a year (2020). Short ticks on the top edge mark general election days: Federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025. Every value is in the table.$0$10,000$20,000$30,000202520242023202220212020Federal election, Sep 20, 2021Federal election, Apr 28, 2025Shelter $23,510Food $16,4632020: Shelter: $19,638 a year; Food: $12,845 a year2021: Shelter: $20,187 a year; Food: $13,141 a year2022: Shelter: $21,582 a year; Food: $14,332 a year2023: Shelter: $22,427 a year; Food: $15,410 a year2024: Shelter: $23,020 a year; Food: $15,854 a year2025: Shelter: $23,510 a year; Food: $16,463 a year

Tap or drag on the chart to read any year.

F federal election: Sep 20, 2021; Apr 28, 2025

About these ticks

Targets and comparisons

Context measure: no target expected

  • Context measure: no target expected. The poverty line itself, a cost of living figure. Governments set targets for how many people live below it, not for what the basics cost.

How targets are chosen

Show the numbers as a table
Cost of the basket for a family of four (dollars a year) (newest first)
PeriodB.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999Vancouver
2025$59,363$64,351
2024$57,943$62,842
2023$56,854$61,621
2022$54,656$59,262
2021$51,069$55,384
2020$50,012$54,224
Shelter and food in the basket (dollars a year) (newest first)
PeriodShelterFood
2025$23,510$16,463
2024$23,020$15,854
2023$22,427$15,410
2022$21,582$14,332
2021$20,187$13,141
2020$19,638$12,845

How it compares

Statistics Canada, 2025, a year. Comparisons are not goals.

Vancouver$64,351B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999$59,363

Who decides

Bank of Canada. Sets and publishes the minimum rate at which it lends, as part of its job to regulate credit and currency. Bank of Canada Act, s. 21

Show the 1 other body and the laws
Who decides what: Cost of a basic standard of living, family of four
BodyWhat it decidesLaw or bylawLast decisionNext decision
Bank of CanadaSets and publishes the minimum rate at which it lends, as part of its job to regulate credit and currency.Bank of Canada Act, s. 21
Bank of Canada Act, preamble		Rate set at 2.50% on October 28, 2026Next scheduled announcement December 9, 2026
Government of Canada and ParliamentIf the Minister of Finance and the Bank disagree on monetary policy, the Minister can give the Bank a written directive, with Cabinet approval.Bank of Canada Act, s. 14

No government decides this directly. Most prices are set by sellers and buyers.

Canada: last general election April 28, 2025; next set for October 15, 2029 unless called earlier (Canada Elections Act, s. 56.1).

Each row says what a body decides and links to the law, order or bylaw that gives it that role. It does not say who caused a change: markets, households and other governments also move these numbers. Who decides what, for every measure · How we choose

What this number does not show

  • This is the Market Basket Measure, Canada’s official poverty line: the cost of a basket of goods and services for a family of two adults and two children. A family with less disposable income than this is below the poverty line.
One more limit
  • Statistics Canada does not publish a basket for Victoria alone. The area is its region for B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 people, which includes Greater Victoria; Vancouver has its own basket, shown for comparison.

Not measured yet in cost of living: rent in basement suites, rented condos and houses. See all 18 gaps

In plain words

Up 2.5% in a year. Up 19% since 2020. * 2020 was a pandemic year; 2019 is not used because: the source file has no 2019 figure in the same series.

Canada’s official poverty line (the Market Basket Measure): what a family of two adults and two children needs in a year for food, clothing, transportation, shelter and other basics, for B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 people, which include Greater Victoria.

How we decide “Steady this year. Rising over 5 years.”

A cost of living figure, like prices: it is shown for context. The change is 2.5% of the earlier value, below the 5% threshold. Over 5 years (since 2020) the change is 18.7% of the earlier value, at or above the 5% threshold, so the label also says Rising over 5 years.

$59,363 in 2025 against $57,943 in 2024 (+2.5%), current dollars, 2023 base. Shelter $23,510; food $16,463. Vancouver: $64,351.

Outcome measures read Better, Worse or About the same; published government targets read Ahead of, On or Behind target; value-judgement measures read Rising, Falling or Steady in a neutral colour. A change smaller than the agency's own margin of error, or otherwise smaller than 5% of the earlier value, is About the same (or Steady). No change is calculated across a marked break in a series. The rule.

All notes on this number

Why it matters. It puts a dollar figure on the basics. It is shown for context, without a better or worse label.

  • This is the Market Basket Measure, Canada’s official poverty line: the cost of a basket of goods and services for a family of two adults and two children. A family with less disposable income than this is below the poverty line.
  • Statistics Canada does not publish a basket for Victoria alone. The area is its region for B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 people, which includes Greater Victoria; Vancouver has its own basket, shown for comparison.
  • Amounts are in current dollars on the 2023 base. Statistics Canada rebases the basket from time to time; earlier bases are not mixed into this series.
  • Shown for context. It rises with prices, so a higher figure means the basics cost more.

Which places

Area: B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999

Statistics Canada’s Market Basket Measure region for B.C. communities of 100,000 to 499,999 people. Greater Victoria is one of them.

Included

  • Population centres in B.C. of 100,000 to 499,999 people, including Greater Victoria

Not included

  • Vancouver, which has its own basket
  • Smaller communities and rural areas, which have their own

Official definition

How the agency describes it: Statistics Canada’s Market Basket Measure region “British Columbia, population 100,000 to 499,999” (includes Greater Victoria).

How we got it

This number is published by the agency as shown; it is not calculated here. The script reads it from the agency’s own file.

What the 2025 amount is made of

  • Shelter: $23,510 (2025). 2024: $23,020.
  • Food: $16,463 (2025). 2024: $15,854.
  • Transportation: $5,272 (2025). 2024: $5,225.
  • Other expenses: $9,684 (2025). 2024: $9,482.
  • Clothing: $2,895 (2025). 2024: $2,856.
  • Communication services: $1,540 (2025). 2024: $1,506.

Licence and credits

Published under an open licence: anyone may reuse it with credit. About licences.

Updated by agency
Annually (spring); latest release Apr 29, 2026
Retrieved
Nov 12, 2026, 10:22 PM B.C. time

Adapted from Statistics Canada, table 11-10-0066-01. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.

Related measures

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