A British expat who relocated to Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, has shared her monthly living expenses in a viral TikTok video, revealing one particular cost that left her astonished.
Expensive Phone Plans in Canada
Louise Ware-Armstrong, a lifestyle and travel content creator, moved from the UK to Canada and detailed her outgoings online. While rent and utilities were as expected, phone plans proved far pricier.
“One of the most expensive bills in Canada is your phone plan,” she said in the video, which garnered over 11,000 likes. “You cannot find a cheap phone plan anywhere.”
Her combined monthly spend on mobile, broadband, and TV services totals approximately 400 Canadian dollars (£215). “For my phone and my internet in my house and my TV package, so for all three of them comes to around $400 a month, which is literally crazy,” she explained. “You couldn't find a phone plan when I first moved here for less than $60 a month without the phone.”
Cost-of-Living Concerns
Her comments sparked discussion among followers, many acknowledging this as a significant cost-of-living issue in Canada. Data from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) shows mobile tariffs have decreased recently, but global studies consistently rank Canada among the costliest nations for telecoms.
According to price comparison site WhistleOut, the typical Canadian mobile phone bill is about CA$64 (£34) monthly, considerably higher than UK rates, where Ofcom reports average monthly mobile expenditure between £15 and £20.
Market Competition and Infrastructure Costs
Multiple industry analyses attribute Canada's high mobile costs to reduced market competition and elevated infrastructure expenses.
Louise was detailing her complete monthly expenditure after moving from Britain to Niagara Falls. She pays 1,650 Canadian dollars in rent for a two-bedroom property, with separate charges for electricity, gas, and water utilities.
However, the phone and internet bill proved most striking, with Louise calling it one of the biggest financial surprises since moving overseas.
