3 Canadian Cities Ranked In The Top 10 For Most Livable Cities Should There Be More

What are the best cities for living and working in Canada?

Since I've lived in Ottawa for 4 years now I feel compelled to tell you a little bit about it, then I'll get on with other notable cities in Canada.  Ottawa is well-known for being a Government town. As the capital of Canada there are obviously very many Government buildings around. If you're looking to work in Government this is probably the best place. It's very close to Gatineau (QC) as well which offers housing at lower prices.  Ottawa actually also has a pretty big StartUp community. Once you get involved - you'll quickly get to know everyone and find out how exciting (in my personal opinion) it is. Check out my answer on the best cities for Startups in Canada for a little bit more info: @Hailley Griffis's answer to What are the best startup/tech cities in Canada? ) Ottawa is beautiful with lots of history to see (endless museums and Parliament buildings!) On top of that there are always lots of festivals happening. Cities that there is a lot of 'buzz' around:  Montreal  I've visited Montreal a couple of times and I absolutely love it. It is noticably larger than Ottawa (which is why people will drive from Ottawa to Montreal for weekend trips - it only takes about 2 hours) which makes it a neat destination for interesting restaurants, a great nightlife, concerts as well as great shopping.  Montreal is one of the only Canadian cities that has ever reminded me of Europe, they have the copplestone streets and older buildings that give it a little bit more of the European feel.  What I've heard from people living in Montreal is that if you live downtown, it's amazing! If you live anywhere else, it's better to have a car to get around because the transit is a little slow. Vancouver I've had quite a few friends that attended the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Everyone that has been there praises Vancouver for it's green spaces and healthy lifestyle. Everyone is supposed to be very active and the community revolved around maintaining that high level of exercise and health.  On top of that, Vancouver is stunning and is home to some pretty cool Canadian companies. HootSuite is one of the tops ones. Other cities that I've heard good things aobut in no particular order:  Calgary (Lots of fun things to do in a growing city) Edmonton (It gets cold here but the residents love it!) Toronto (A very busy city - the largest in Canada) Quebec City (Another beautiful city) Waterloo (Famous for their StartUps)

Why are no American cities consistently ranked in the top 10 most livable cities?

What makes a city “liveable” is extremely subjective, and different organisations regularly come up with completely different lists (albeit with some fixtures, such as Vienna). Here's a nice opinion piece in the New York Times for you to enjoy: The Best Place to Live?Anyway, there are a few factors that are, according to the Wikipedia article, used to determine “liveability” that I could imagine lose a lot of wonderful US cities points relative to their European, Australian or Japanese cousins (this is guesswork): safety — people get shot on the street or incarcerated for minor offences a lot more than in other countries.education — while American universities are excellent, public secondary schools are not exactly world-class.health care — it's been getting better, but the health insurance situation has in the past been catastrophic, with many people under-insured and unable to afford the care they need to live.public transport — only few US cities have high quality public transport networks.environment — I'm not sure about how significant this but I imagine that a car-centric approach to mobility significantly lowers air quality.And don't forget that while no US cities tend to make the top 10 in these rankings, there are a lot of cities in the world, and many US cities are excellent places to live, and they do occupy proud places on these ludicrous lists – with several in Mercer's top 50!

Are there Canadian city equivalents to US cities?

It’s difficult to find good equivalents for Canada US pairs. The best one I can think of is Toronto/Chicago as they are both large Great Lakes cities and have a similar look and to some extent feel about them.Looking at the top 10 Canadian cities1 Toronto, Ontario 5,429,5242 Montreal, Quebec 3,519,5953 Vancouver, British Columbia 2,264,8234 Calgary, Alberta 1,237,6565 Edmonton, Alberta 1,062,6436 Ottawa–Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec 989,6577 Winnipeg, Manitoba 711,9258 Quebec City, Quebec 705,1039 Hamilton, Ontario 693,64510 Kitchener–Waterloo–Cambridge, Ontario 470,015I would pair them up this way :Toronto/ChicagoMontreal / odd mix of New Orleans and BostonVancouver / PortlandCalgary / DallasEdmonton / MinneapolisOttawa / not Washington …probably a techy state capital like Sacramento.Quebec City / no comparableHamilton/PittsburghKWC / any large generic techy collegy burbIn most cases the US cities are a lot bigger and have bigger crime and social problems, they also have more industry and individuals with tremendous wealth who can fund/donate to things. Climate isn’t considered in any of these comparisons as the US climate is almost always milder.

Which is the best city for a new immigrant to move to in Canada?

You couldn’t do better than take advice from Michael Barnard, who is in the same industry as you.Alberta really is the no-brainer choice; I’d suggest the decision of which city you pick should come down to the best options in that province. Mike makes a strong case for Calgary, which should rank near the top of your options. One thing I will mention is the weather: one of my clients moved from Toronto to Calgary and said it took her a while to get used to it, but has settled in nicely now.Other cities in Alberta you might want to consider:St. Albert. Not many may have heard of it, but this city on the outskirts of Edmonton was ranked #1 in MoneySense’s Canada's Best Places to Live in 2014 (it was second in 2013). Low unemployment rate (4 per cent), low crime rate. Incidentally, Calgary is second on this list.Edmonton. Ranked third (behind Calgary and Ottawa) for best large city to live in Canada on that same list.Smaller cities in Alberta that also rate highly on the MoneySense list: Strathcona County and Lacombe.Outside Alberta: If good weather is a key factor in your decision, Vancouver or other cities in the Greater Vancouver Area might be more appealing to you. By far the most expensive choice you are likely to make, though.The Greater Toronto Area offers a lower cost of living than Vancouver and warmer weather than Calgary, but nowhere near the same job opportunities for someone in your line of work.