Toronto vs Calgary vs Vancouver vs Ottawa - Where to land

[Ketevan]

I work in public administration. What made me unhappy in Calgary is expensive rental, limited public transit, limited cultural activities, and lower education level than in the East Coast.

This is exactly what I want, I want to land in a city where i can secure a job in my area of expertise in the shortest time.

what is your area of work? if IT what in IT?

can you also tell me what things made you unhappy in calgary?

 

[vehla_ji]

calgary will be a right decision and i moved here 2012 and that was right decision. i lives toronto, ottawa, winnipeg but really like living calgary

 

[S7]

calgary will be a right decision and i moved here 2012 and that was right decision. i lives toronto, ottawa, winnipeg but really like living calgary

thank you for your feedback,,,, can you please tell us why Calgary is better? whats your take on the job market

 

[vehla_ji]

thank you for your feedback,,,, can you please tell us why Calgary is better? whats your take on the job market

welcome. what i like we have everything here as a international airport, nexus office, all major embassies, offices and all other major things. depends what kind of job are you looking for or interested but according to my experience last year i changed 7 jobs lol... and whenever i drop my resume especially in offices i got job call next day or so. and its a 3 largest or crowded city of canada.

 

[Ketevan]

There are no embassies in Calgary. These are called consulate generals. Only the capital, Ottawa, has embassies.
The so called international airport mostly flies to US - this is not overly international.

welcome. what i like we have everything here as a international airport, nexus office, all major embassies, offices and all other major things. depends what kind of job are you looking for or interested but according to my experience last year i changed 7 jobs lol... and whenever i drop my resume especially in offices i got job call next day or so. and its a 3 largest or crowded city of canada.

 

[Al Kabeer awy]

welcome. what i like we have everything here as a international airport, nexus office, all major embassies, offices and all other major things. depends what kind of job are you looking for or interested but according to my experience last year i changed 7 jobs lol... and whenever i drop my resume especially in offices i got job call next day or so. and its a 3 largest or crowded city of canada.

Can I ask what is your major?

Thanks!

 

[steaky]

There are no embassies in Calgary. These are called consulate generals. Only the capital, Ottawa, has embassies.
The so called international airport mostly flies to US - this is not overly international.

At least at Calgary international airport, there are non stops flights to UK and Japan. This is overly international if you compare with other international airports across the country.

 

[mak142003]

Hi,

I found this discussion very helpful. my question is somewhat similar but relating to Financial accounting

I will be moving to Canada in Sep this year, qualified CMA (USA) and studying ACCA (UK)

I had made up my mind to move to Calgary, reason being my wife is a chemical engineer and she relates more to the Oil & Gas and related fields.

However, Calgary economy and employment rate (3% up YoY) is obviously declining. It will take longer to find a job in same field. Toronto on the other hand, is doing good with employment rate 18.3% up year on year this june. Competition is higher as Toronto is 3 times bigger in terms of the population. BUT again not sure how helpful is this indicator for Finance. BUT I am not sure what is in there for Finance people.

Cost of living in Calgary is somewhat cheaper and weather wise I don't see much issues.

I have not looked at other options because in Calgary we have a friend and in Toronto i have a relative settled.

My main worry is in terms of job availability, which place provides better opportunities for finance people.. Calgary or Toronto?

Thanks,

Choosing between Toronto vs Calgary Vs Vancouver vs Ottawa:

A wise person will never choose any of the above discussed cities based on comparisons between grocery prices,house rents, weather or transit systems etc.

Best is to choose a city based on your personal capabilities. e.g if you are an IT seed get planted in Vancouver and you may grow into a full tall tree.

-For an IT Guy who has good background in IT should choose Vancouver (lots of IT jobs and it is the technology hub of Canada)
-For a administrative, finance, doctors, service industry or general labor working should choose Toronto or surroundings.
-oil related, retail, real estate, construction, general labor work, small business and easy going life having high standards choose Alberta (Calgary/Edmonton)
-Small business, retail business you may hide your self at any small bedroom town/cities in alberta, ON or anywhere (e.g brooks etc).

in an outsider's perspective it is just CANADA..... BUT in reality believe me canada is really big with people living far far away from each other.
finding job here no mater where you live sometimes seems to be impossible. it all depends on your approach and intent to settle and capacity to face hardships.
the good thing of Canada is that no matter what... eventually you do get settled. in short i would say it is a land of LUCK where a doctor may be seen driving a taxi and on the other hand a simple layman person becoming millionaire. but both seems to be HAppy .

Weather: Most of the Canada in whole is COLD. wherever you go you will have to face the weather factor. my personal experience about Calgary weather is that it has a lot of myths associated with it. it is not the way it is presented/quoted. Calgary winters are very live-able as it has a lot of Chinook winds(hot wind) during winter times. less snow storms and low humidity which makes the winter very live-able. a lot of sun throughout the year. the summer time in Calgary is also very pleasant and not very hot which means you wont need air conditioners. -10 here in calgary will be better/comfortable than +5 of Toronto (due to humidity factor). You wont see snow covered all the time in Calgary as the Chinook wind melts it out within hours. a person living in toronto showels more snow in a year from his drive-way as compare to a person living in Calgary.

 

[S7]

Guys,

I have landed in August and I live ow in Ottawa, I was able to secure a contract job for 6 months which pays 25 per hour, which covers my expenses. The job I found is in IT but a junior position which is fine as a start. It took me 3 months to find this job.

Once important thing I have noticed and you should be aware that many government jobs are available, I was called many times to go for interviews for jobs with the governments through recruiters with great packages. However I can not work for the government as the need security clearance which can not be obtained unless if you have lived in canada for 4 or 5 years. read here for more info https://bts.calian.com/en/resources/faqs/clearance.asp

so you only can work with provate which I am, Ottawa is liek the silicon valley of Canada with Toronto and Vancouver competing on this tittle.


overall, I loved ottawa, nice quite city, nothing really to complain about, it matches my preferences.


Regards,
S7

 

[Atlast]

Guys,

I have landed in August and I live ow in Ottawa, I was able to secure a contract job for 6 months which pays 25 per hour, which covers my expenses. The job I found is in IT but a junior position which is fine as a start. It took me 3 months to find this job.

Once important thing I have noticed and you should be aware that many government jobs are available, I was called many times to go for interviews for jobs with the governments through recruiters with great packages. However I can not work for the government as the need security clearance which can not be obtained unless if you have lived in canada for 4 or 5 years. read here for more info https://bts.calian.com/en/resources/faqs/clearance.asp

so you only can work with provate which I am, Ottawa is liek the silicon valley of Canada with Toronto and Vancouver competing on this tittle.


overall, I loved ottawa, nice quite city, nothing really to complain about, it matches my preferences.


Regards,
S7

Thanks for the update. We are looking at moving to Ottawa too. How's the job market for people in finance?

 

[OhCanada77]

I can't speak for the job market at present but i adore Ottawa. There's so much to do, in any season, great transport (new O-train opening soon enough). It's where i'll be when i land and i can't wait!

 

[xyris87]

From what I have read so far, LinkedIN is the best source for job hunting. And currently, Vancouver doesn't even have half as many as openings in IT (Business Analyst) / Marketing as Toronto does.

 

[nokia3315]

If you are thinking about Calgary then heres a breakdown of expenses for research purposes only.

I think $2000 per month will be expenses for single adult living alone.

$800-$1000 for rent for 1 bed flat https://www.rentfaster.ca/ab/calgary/
$150 for hydro
$500 for groceries https://www.walmart.ca/en/grocery/N-117
$100 for Ctransit monthly pass https://www.calgarytransit.com/fares-passes
$50 for Mobile BYOD (call + data) plans http://www.comparecellular.ca/compare-plans-in-alberta/byod/?Minutes=12&Data=11
$55 for home broadband https://www.shaw.ca/internet/plans/

-----------------------------
Total $1655 - $1855

Minimum wage $13.60 x 40hrs/week x 52 weeks = $28288
Take home salary = $23600 yearly ($1966 per month) http://neuvoo.ca/tax-calculator/?salary=28288&region=Alberta

 

[S7]

I can't speak for the job market at present but i adore Ottawa. There's so much to do, in any season, great transport (new O-train opening soon enough). It's where i'll be when i land and i can't wait!

It has been now almost 4 years since I had this post, I landed in Ottawa, I can't say how much I love ottawa and Canada, I will be soon a Canadian citizen

 

[canuck78]

It has been now almost 4 years since I had this post, I landed in Ottawa, I can't say how much I love ottawa and Canada, I will be soon a Canadian citizen

Yes Ottawa is an overlooked location by many immigrants.