How much cash do you need for your first 3–6 months in Canada?
Estimate your monthly cost of living, one-time settlement costs and how long your savings would last before income is stable. This is a budgeting and settlement planning estimate, not financial advice. Two-bedroom rent and adult transit fares are source-backed anchors (CMHC 2025 turnover rent, Statistics Canada Q4 2025 for Gatineau, and published 2026 transit fares). Every other cost — including room / 1-bedroom / 3-bedroom rents derived from the 2-bedroom anchor — is an editable planning estimate that varies widely by city, housing choice, family needs, lifestyle and market conditions.
Household size: 3. Leave empty if no children.
Editing this switches housing to a custom rent.
Defaults to zero — benefits often start only after your first tax filing.
Ontario landlords may require first and last month's rent up front.
Starting savings look short of the modelled runway
- •Scenario: Typical — Mid-range assumptions for a settling family.
- •Cost defaults for Toronto / GTA (ON), 2026 planning year.
- •Two-bedroom rent and adult transit fares are source-backed anchors (CMHC 2025 turnover rent, Statistics Canada Q4 2025 for Gatineau, and published 2026 transit fares). Every other cost — including room / 1-bedroom / 3-bedroom rents derived from the 2-bedroom anchor — is an editable planning estimate that varies widely by city, housing choice, family needs, lifestyle and market conditions.
- •Last verified: September 2026
- •2-bedroom rent anchor: $2,547 — CMHC Rental Market Survey — average monthly turnover rent, 2-bedroom purpose-built rental (2025 survey).
- •Adult transit anchor: $155.10 — TTC published 2026 adult fares.
- •Equivalent to the adult pay-as-you-go monthly fare cap (47 × $3.30). Most regular monthly passes ended 31 August 2026; the $143 12-month pass requires an annual commitment, so it is not used as the default.
- •One-time settlement costs are all charged to month 1.
- •Recurring costs are held flat across the planning horizon (no inflation or rent increase modelled).
- •Employment income is treated as net (after tax and payroll deductions) and starts at the beginning of the month entered.
- •Benefit income defaults to zero unless you enter an amount; benefit payments often begin only after your first Canadian tax filing.
- •Ontario landlords may require first and last month's rent up front.
- •This is a budgeting and settlement planning estimate, not financial advice.
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Useful next steps
Your first-month setup checklist
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Track how long your money lasts
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