The top 10 cities in Canada for full-time jobs

While overall trends in Canadian job growth point to an increase in part-time jobs, there are still plenty of full-time positions to be had. And according to a report from Global News, Regina is the best Canadian city for full-time work.
The report looked at recent StatsCan data to determine full-time employment rates for cities across the country (determined by dividing a city’s full-time employment by its population*).
To take things a step further, we looked at the top ten cities for full-time work and compared each city’s population, median family income, life satisfaction scores, and average cost of rent, dinner, and transit. As a bonus, we also included one of Yelp’s top rated local restaurants for each city – just in case you get hungry before a job interview.
Here is a comparison of the top ten cities in Canada for full-time work.
- Full-time employment rate: 57.2 per cent
- Population: 202,700
- Full-time employment: 116,100
- Median household income: $96,080
- Life satisfaction score: 7.94
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $990.45
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $55.50
- Monthly transit pass: $84
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Flip Eatery & Drink
- Full-time employment rate: 55.9 per cent
- Population: 131,200
- Full-time employment: 73,400
- Median household income: $84,230
- Life satisfaction score: 7.85
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $1,055.56
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $60
- Monthly transit pass: $77.50
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Baker Street Station
- Full-time employment rate: 55.3 per cent
- Population: 428,200
- Full-time employment: 236,900
- Median household income: $84,380
- Life satisfaction score: 7.88
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $948.15
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $60
- Monthly transit pass: $82
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Public Kitchen & Bar
- Full-time employment rate: 54.2 per cent
- Population: 1,127,400
- Full-time employment: 610,700
- Median household income: $101.470
- Life satisfaction score: 7.87
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $1,162.07
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $60
- Monthly transit pass: $91.50
- Top restaurant on Yelp: RGE RD
- Full-time employment rate: 53.8 per cent
- Population: 1,210,300
- Full-time employment: 650,800
- Average Salary: $104,530
- Life satisfaction score: 7.95
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $1,233.16
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $70
- Monthly transit pass: $99
- Top restaurant on Yelp: The Rock
- Full-time employment rate: 53.6 per cent
- Population: 329,200
- Full-time employment: 176,400
- Median household income: $89,430
- Life satisfaction score: 7.96
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $900
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $80
- Monthly transit pass: $99
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Jimmy Guaco’s
- Full-time employment rate: 53.1 per cent
- Population: 677,500
- Full-time employment: 360,300
- Median household income: $86,110
- Life satisfaction score: 8.14
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $752.93
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $60
- Monthly transit pass: $84
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Le Billig
- Full-time employment rate: 52.9 per cent
- Population: 105,400
- Full-time employment: 55,800
- Median household income: $76,450
- Life satisfaction score: 8.12
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $704.17
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $62
- Monthly transit pass: $77
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Saint John Ale House
- Full-time employment rate: 50.9 per cent
- Population: 1,116,300
- Full-time employment: 568,600
- Median household income: $102,020
- Life satisfaction score: 8.04
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $1,212.17 (Ottawa), $725 (Gatineau)
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $70 (Ottawa), $62.50 (Gatineau)
- Monthly transit pass: $105 (Ottawa), $93 (Gatineau)
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Wilf & Ada’s (Ottawa), Café Cinc Sens (Gatineau)
- Full-time employment rate: 50.3 per cent
- Population (Dec. 2016): 5,231,800
- Full-time employment: 2,631,600
- Median household income: $75,270
- Life satisfaction score: 7.81
- Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the city centre: $1594.15
- Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: $70
- Monthly transit pass: $141.50
- Top restaurant on Yelp: Richmond Station
Median salary information found at StatsCan and MoneySense.
*Population data is from 2011.