Student Expense Canada – Basic Expenses for an Indian student to live in Canada
Compared to their native country, every Indians find it difficult to cope up with the high prices for commodities in Canada. Hence, the basic living expense of any person from India who recently shifted to Canada will seems to be higher – Student Expense Canada.
There are cases in which you can adjust your expenses and save accordingly. Depending upon the method you chose to enter Canada, your living expense will be different entirely. Some chose to opt in to a course and come through a study permit and study visa. Some others comes by applying for a job and through a work permit and work visa. Others comes by applying to live in Canada by directly going for PR status or Permanent Residency.
In this article we are going to give you a basic layout of the expenses that will come for you in Canada. This will be applicable for any students as well as any general labourer or worker or a person who has a work visa.
Minimum amount of expenses as an Indian immigrant student in Canada
Accommodation: accommodation basically include the amount required for giving the rent to your landlord. This varies from $200 upto $1000 based on the type of housing you choose. Typically students or workers tends to choose a house where they share an apartment or a house or a basement between 4 to 6 people. Since typical house structures costs around a rent of $1500 to $2500 per month, individually a student or worker shall have an approximate cost of $250 – $350 to $450 – $600 which is roughly around Rs 15000 to Rs 35000 per head. Yes, you heard it right! In Canada, approximate cost of housing rent for a student is equivalent to renting a good house entirely in Indian cities of Bangalore or Chennai or Hyderabad.
Also Read: Secret tips to Find the Perfect Housing in Canada for International Students and Workers in 2024
Basic Amenities: There are different basic amenities depending on the person and their need. Some people need extra drinking water service since there is no active working water filter. But most houses have an active water filter attached to it. If you want to buy one, here are few water filters from Amazon: BRITA which has a rate of $46 but often gets discounted prices of $40 [Check here] and whose replacement filter only costs around $8 [Check here].
Bedding Materials: No matter what you came for, you need a good mattress to sleep on. A good mattress topper for the comfort, Bed sheets and a pair of pillows. Blankets is another necessary material. If the place is clean enough, you can opt out for a bed frame (cots) or else you need that too. Just check pricing of each in Amazon Canada to get an idea. If it is possible to get good second hand ones like cots/bed-frames from any thrift stores or from a friend, go for it at the cheapest price. But it is not recommended to use second hand beds or pillows as it can infect you with lice, germs and other microbes. For the blankets, you can just dry wash them at any laundry service to re-use.
Just check the prices on Amazon Canada for Bedding materials:
Mattresses or bed: [Check prices here]
Our Suggestion for Mattress: Iyee Nature Twin Mattress, 6 Inch Mattress Twin with Cooling-Gel Memory Foam Costs around $120 approx [Check here]
Cots / Bed-frames: [Check prices here]
Our Suggestion for Cot: Zinus Adjustable Bed Frame – Compack 7 inch Platform Bed Frame for Box Spring and Mattress Set Adjustable Size Twin, Full, Queen – 3-in-1 Heavy Duty Metal Bed Frame, Tool-Free Assembly – Approx $149 [Check Here]
Blankets: [Check prices here]
Our suggestion for blanket: Bedsure Sherpa Twin Blanket for Couch Bed Sofa Grey Fluffy Blanket Plush Soft Blanket Fuzzy Fleece Blanket Warm Cozy Thick Bed Blanket for Winter Twin (60 inch x 80 inch) – Approx cost is $29 [Check Price]
Heavvvvvy Cold Blanket: For the heavy cold climates of winter or Northern province winter you must need a Blanket made of Merino Wool which costs from $75 to $150 approx – [Check prices Here]
Pillows: Lighter pillow for cushion purposes range from $3-$8 which you can get it from your nearby convenience store like Walmart. However, a much better Pillow for head sleep with good lasting cushion costs around $25-$50 [Check prices here]
Mattress Topper: A topper is a thick blanket like bed sheets which is used to cover the mattress to provide absolute warmness at nights and to create cushion and air ventilation. It is no that necessary but depends upon your sleep behaviour. [Check the prices here]
Bed Sheets: These are the top most covers over your bed. Most of the people who comes to Canada usually carries a bed sheet on their own. So, if you have one or two with you, don’t purchase it. Only purchase it if it is necessary [Still you can Check the prices here]
Food & Groceries: Cooking your own meals is budget-friendly. Expect to spend CAD 200-CAD 600 monthly on staples like rice (CAD 5-10 per bag), vegetables (CAD 2-5 per kg), and lentils (CAD 3-7 per kg). For Indians who want white/brown rice, they usually comes in 10 lbs (10 pounds – 4.5 KG) Packs or 20 lbs (20 pounds – 9 KG) Packs which costs around $12-$25 per package. It’s much cheaper to buy from stores near by rather than online stores. If you don’t have the means to buy directly from stores or if you are in a distant location from the nearby store and don’t have a proper transportation facilities, [check these online prices for door delivery].
Vegetables are costly compared to Indian Market since the production much lesser than importing. It can cost around $15-$25 a week. For non-veg (fish, chicken, beef, mutton) item, if you are a regular non-veg eater like twice in a week at least, it might cot you around $10-$20 per meal equivalent. Look for No-Frill shops, which provide much cheaper prices than any other places for non-veg raw items. Remember! Cooking yourself is the cheapest way to control your budget! If you don’t know learn that skill right now. (remember to bring as much as spice powders and varieties you want to use from India itself, since it’s very costly here).
Other expenses: Transportation: Public transit passes can range from CAD 80-120 per month. Owning a bicycle can be a cost-effective alternative for shorter distances since buying one only costs around 3-6 months of your bus charges. We personally recommend to buy a bicycle for travels less than 10 kilometres rather than Bus or Taxi – as you will have to regularly go to the Grocery stores, to attend college classes, to part time jobs. Most of the Canadian streets have Bicycle lanes, so don’t worry about high speed vehicles in the main lane, still be careful – Student Expense Canada.
While buying a bicycle: If you are planning to buy one, first look at your college/university to get a second hand one because it will be cheaper. Since you are a new comer, in order to manage your budget don’t go for a bicycle with high modifications and facilities rather go for a simple leg peddled bicycle as it will be much good for your health too.
May be once you get a good part-time job to manage your expenses, you can think about upgrading it to a good bicycle. If you re planning to buy a cheap bicycle from Amazon, we will help you with the best options. Here are some of our suggestions.
1. Hiland 27.5 Inch Mountain Bike Aluminum Frame 21 Speed for Man with Hydraulic Disc-Brake, Lock-Out Suspension Fork 18 Inch Frame costs around $450 – Check it here
2. Schwinn Discover Hybrid Bikes for Men and Women, Featuring Aluminum City Frame, 21-Speed Drivetrain, Front and Rear Fenders, Rear Cargo Rack, and Kick-Stand, with 700c/28-Inch Wheels, Black and White costs around $650 – Check it Here
3. Our Recommendation: HILAND Beach Cruiser Bike, 26 Inch Womens’ Single Speed Commuter Bicycle with Rear Coaster Brake, Low Step-Through Frame, Comfortable Seat, City Hybrid Bike for Women Men Adult, Black Blue Red costs around $300 – Check it here
Among the three bicycles, we recommend to buy the third one because it’s cheaper in price; Since Canada’s roads are almost flat you don’t actually need gears to control speed and it’s always better to use a single speed bicycle with no gears to get rid of the gear chain troubles and maximum efficiency especially when you are not a vivid bicycle racer but just an ordinary rider – Student Expense Canada.
Internet & Wi-Fi: Essential for studies and staying connected. Expect to pay CAD 50-80 per month for student internet plans or Home WiFi plans. Rarely, landlord include this service in their rent.
Mobile phone: Prepaid plans from Koodo or Rogers can cost around CAD $35-$60 monthly, depending on data usage. Rogers is good for connectivity and Range but it’s a bit costlier might cost around $50 minimum. Where as Koodo sim, which is offered for students for free via VFS is the most cheapest one – However the connectivity is said to be a bit low for Internet usage (It has a plan for $35 monthly which gives you unlimited calling to Canada and India).
A Fact: Koodo and Rogers, and another subsidiary of Rogers called Fido – all of them uses the same Network provided by Telus Network. (Koodo is officially run by Telus mobility).
Entertainment: Sorry to say, but we don’t recommend any entertainments for the first 6 months of your Canadian Newcomer life. Get a Part-time Job (for which we ourselves re trying hard to provide you with latest opportunities, just go to our homepage and find) and then decide what kind of entertainment your budget allows you. Mostly students opt for a house party with friends – Cooking and beverages. After managing your budget decide on how much you can spend on Entertainment. – We recommend never not exceed $500 a month.
Minimum amount required to live, for an Indian immigrant student in Canada
So, if we calculate the total expense for a student to live moderately good life in Canada, they need roughly 800 CAD to meet their basic expenses. if you include the bus fees, it roughly estimates up to 1000 CAD. (but if you buy a bicycle it would be much better to reduce cost in a long term scenario – Student Expense Canada.
When a new comer comes to Canada, in order to set up the bedding and other similar stuffs, an average of 500 CAD has to be spend, if you spend wisely. So, in the first month, expect an average expense of 1500 CAD. If you sought to buy a bicycle, an extra $300 – $500 CAD cost should be added to it. From second month onwards, your average monthly costs can be reduced and maxed up to 800 CAD per month. If controlled very wisely it can be reduced up to 500 CAD.
