Prince Edward Island is the smallest province in Canada. Still, it has the most significant reasons to move in–low housing costs, cheap transportation, affordable child costs, and utilities.
Although price hikes have been seen, it remains the lowest in Canada. Some cheap places to live in PEI include the growing cities of Summerside and Charlottetown.
If you feel like moving to Prince Edward Island, here are the 9 cheapest places to live in Prince Edward Island!
Key Takeaways
- The average cost of living in PEI is $1,648, 1.03 times cheaper than the Canadian national average.
- The 9 cheapest places to live on Prince Edward Island are Summerside, Stratford, Charlottetown, Kensington, Cornwall, Three Rivers, Murray River, North Rustico, and Souris.
- When choosing a place to live in PEI, the significant factors to consider are livability grade, cost of living, and cost of buying a home or renting.
Cheap Places to Live in PEI
1. Summerside
- Cost of Living: $1,127/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $370,423
- Cost of Renting: $1,033/month (1 bedroom), $1,650/month (3 bedrooms)
Summerside is a city by the sea in Prince County with many recreational facilities, the second largest and one of Canada’s fastest developing cities. The description sounds big time, but it is one of the cheapest places to live in Prince Edward Island, boasting its low utility, and affordable housing rates, making it have one of the highest homeownership rates in North America.
According to Economic Research Institute (ERI), 2023 data for Summerside, Prince Edward Island, the cost of living is 4% below the national average, dragged down by the high affordability of food, housing, and health care services. Moreover, in June 2023, the median list price in Summerside was $370,423, up by 2% since May.
According to Numbeo, goods and services, including rental fees in Summerside, PEI, are 32.1% lower than in Toronto. While comparing the overall cost of living of Summerside to the nearby New Glasgow in Nova Scotia, Summerside still stands lower at 3.9%.
2. Stratford
- Cost of Living: $1,728/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $481,227
- Cost of Renting: $1,183/month
A central city in Queens County with water views, Stratford is one of the cheap places to live in PEI. Like Summerside, Stratford is surrounded by bodies of water where the population is growing strongly due to affordability.
Stratford is an A-rated city regarding housing, healthcare facilities, safety, and cost of living, ranking it #2 from the highest livability score in Prince Edward Island at 79. According to AreaVibes, the cost of living in the city has a rate of 87/100, meaning it’s 13% lower than the Canadian average, and 87/89 giving that 2% lower than PEI.
Although OJO Home states that there has been an increase in the median price of Stratford houses from $426,631 to $481,227 in June 2023, it is still affordable. In fact, AreaVibes found that the housing in the city is 59% lower than the Canadian average.
3. Charlottetown
- Cost of Living: $1398/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $498,783
- Cost of Renting: $1,205/month
Connecting from Stratford by the Hillsborough Bridge is another cheap place to live in PEI, the capital city of Charlottetown. The town has Georgian-style houses thriving through tourism and agriculture. It has been a go-to city for immigrants, mainly Chinese, making up 10% of the total population.
There are so many reasons why immigrants love Charlottetown, and some of them are because of affordable monthly utilities and groceries, the cheap cost of eating out, and the rental market. In fact, according to AreaVibes, the cost of living is 14% lower, and housing is 64% lower than the overall national average.
Numbeo comparison shows that consumer prices, including rent in Charlottetown, are 16.5% lower than in Toronto. Even comparing the rent prices in Charlottetown shows that it is 15.6% lower than in the cheapest city to live in Canada, Sept-iles in Quebec.
4. Kensington
- Cost of Living: $1,187/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $448,766
- Cost of Renting: $1,650/month
Kensington is a residential-dominated area in Prince County of Prince Edward Island of over 1700 population, which serves as a gateway to many famous places in PEI. These include the Summerside, Charlottetown, the Anne of Green Gables site, and the Kensington Train Station, now a tourist venue.
AreaVibes shows that the city has an excellent livability score of 71/100, ranking at the 5th spot of the most livable cities in PEI and 269th among all Canadian cities.
It has a cost of living score of 81/89, 8% lower than the island’s average. If you’re opting to buy a house in Kensington, housing is 79% lower than the national housing average, so it’s a good deal, and transportation is 9% lower.
5. Cornwall
- Cost of Living: $1,369/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $549,325
- Cost of Renting: $1,389/month
Just west of Charlottetown is a beautiful and calming island farm city, the Town of Cornwall. Cornwall is a city covered with so many green-lawn spaces, so expect to see a lot of parks and recreational facilities perfect for families. It also has several eateries and restaurants, churches, and places to stay.
Cornwall, PEI, is an A+ rated city by AreaVibes in terms of cost of living and housing costs. The cost of living is generally 5% lower than the PEI average and 15% lower than the overall Canadian average. Another good news is that you can buy housing or real estate prices here at 69% lower than the national average.
6. Three Rivers
- Cost of Living: $1,198/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $400,000
- Cost of Renting: $1,234/month
The city of Three Rivers, from the name itself, is a waterfront city of PEI with outstanding entrepreneurship and culture. The city is one of the island’s most vibrant towns, with family-oriented festivals like the Three Rivers Festival with music, games, food, treats, and many more.
Three Rivers, Summerside, and Charlottetown, are cities with great activities and affordable living. Residents enjoy a high living standard at a lower cost than the Canadian average.
7. Murray River
- Cost of Living: $1,638/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $239,000 (2-bedroom) $380,000 (3-bedroom)
- Cost of Renting: $1,675/month
Murray River is a picturesque city in Prince Edward Island known for its beautiful red and white pine forest, beautiful Murray village, and heart-warming people. According to AreaVibes, the livability score of Murray River is 59/100, which is entirely below the average. The cost of living in Murray River is 19% lower than the national average and 10% lower than in Murray River.
8. North Rustico
- Cost of Living: $1,093/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $459,900
- Cost of Renting: $1,725/month
The summertime destination North Rustico on the north shore of Prince Edward Islands is a cheap place to stay in PEI. The “Crick City” has a significant fishing tradition, so most of the activities in the town are ocean-related, from swimming, kayaking, and eating fresh seafood at their famous Fisherman’s Wharf.
Based on reports by AreaVibes, the cost of living in North Rustico PEI is 18% lower than the national average and 11% lower than the PEI average. Moreover, North Rustico has been one of the cheapest places to live on Prince Edward Island, with housing and vacation rentals lower than the others on the island.
9. Souris
- Cost of Living: $1,187/month
- Cost of Buying a Home: $252,223
- Cost of Renting: $2,069/month -$3,450/month
Taking the 9th spot for the cheapest places to live in PEI is the friendly and beautiful town of Souris, with an outstanding livability score of 72/100. AreaVibes rated Souris, PEI, an A+ rating regarding the cost of living, giving 18% lower than the Canadian average and 9% lower than PEI.
Aside from the cost of living, housing is an A+ rating, too, with a median home value 71% lower than the Canadian average and 43% lower than the island. More so, Souris government housing assistance makes housing affordable for applicants with a home price-to-income ratio 4x — either reducing the rental cost or trying out the social housing unit rental.
Souris is a small nature city in PEI with a laid-back lifestyle perfect for those looking for a new place to live full-time or temporarily. Since it is a small town, transportation is cheaper than other Canadian cities.
How To Choose the Cheapest Place to Live in PEI
Several beautiful and attractive cities in Prince Edward Island are well-suited to your needs and budget, including its capital Charlottetown, and other prominent cities like Summerside, Stratford, Kensington, Cornwall, etc.
Technically, all these cities in Prince Edward Island have affordable housing and cheaper living costs than other significant Canadian cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Victoria. It has been the most appealing factor to all people who want to live in PEI.
In choosing the cheapest place to live in PEI, consider many factors, including the livability score or the overall cost of living in the city. The score gives you an overview of the quality of living in the area, where a score of above 50 out of 100 is excellent.
Second to consider is the housing and rental costs, wherein the amount from the cheapest cities is between $250,000 and $500,000. The cost of buying a home will depend on several factors, including the condition, size, and location.
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) Statistics show that the average price of houses sold in May 2023 in Prince Edward Island was $379,924. Moreover, comparing this value to WOWA.ca’s typical cost of a home in Canada at $729,044 in the same month, almost double that in PEI. So basically, whichever part of PEI you decide to move to, real estate costs are much more affordable.
Other factors you should consider when choosing a place to live are transportation costs, affordability of utilities, and other goods and services.
Top 5 Cheapest Places in PEI Compared
| Prince Edward Island City | Livability Score | Cost of Living Grade | Cost of Living | Cost of Buying a House | Cost of Renting |
| Summerside | 68 | A+ | $1,127 | $370,423 | $1,033 |
| Charlottetown | 80 | A | $1,398 | $498,783 | $1,205 |
| Kensington | 71 | A+ | $1,187 | $448,766 | $1,650 |
| Stratford | 79 | A- | $1,728 | $481,227 | $1,183 |
| Cornwall | 73 | A+ | $1,369 | $549,325 | $1,389 |
Ranking Methodology
The ranking made for this list of 9 cheapest places is based on several factors, including the livability grade, reasonable cost of living, affordability of buying a house, and home costs. The data obtained for these are from trusted websites like Numbeo, Ojo Homes, Zumper, ERI, etc., where data and statistics are calculated based on the population of PEI residents.
FAQs
PEI residents live a very comfortable life where overall living costs are affordable—from utilities, and transportation, to real estate and housing costs, mostly everything is cheap.
According to LivingCost.Org, the average living cost in PEI is $1,648; 1.03 times less expensive than the Canadian national average. Although there has been a slight increase in housing costs, it remains more affordable than most bigger cities and Canada.
Every area in PEI has something to offer, but take advantage of its capital city, Charlottetown, which provides many entertainment, amenities, world-class restaurants, and outdoor activities. It is also one of the cheap places to stay in PEI.
According to Point2homes, out of 64,000+ households, the median household income in Prince Edward Island is $73,500. The net gain would result in around $64,000
