study in Toronto
Canada's largest city and financial centre — the country's deepest graduate job market, its most diverse population, and its most expensive housing.
Toronto is Canada's centre of financial and economic gravity. It is also one of the most diverse cities in the world — roughly half its residents were born outside Canada — which means arriving here as an international student is unremarkable rather than isolating.
For graduates, the appeal is the market: banking, insurance, consulting, technology and healthcare all concentrate here, and the Post-Graduation Work Permit is most easily converted into permanent residence where the jobs actually are.
The cost is severe. Toronto has among the highest rents in Canada, and students routinely live an hour or more out along the transit lines. Winters are genuinely cold — well below freezing for months, with real snow.
Three universities in the metropolitan area plus a large, well-regarded college sector. Check that any institution is a Designated Learning Institution before paying anything — this is the single most common way Nepali students are defrauded.
University of Toronto
Canada's largest and highest-ranked university; three campuses, exceptionally broad, strong in medicine, AI and engineering.Toronto Metropolitan University
Downtown and applied; business, engineering, journalism, nursing and computing.York University
Large north-city campus; business, law, liberal arts and environmental studies.McMaster University
In Hamilton, an hour west; internationally known for health sciences and problem-based medical education.Toronto is the most expensive city in this list. The federal proof-of-funds figure is the same across Canada outside Quebec, but what you actually spend here is far above it — housing above all.
Against the other cities we cover in Canada, Toronto is one of the more expensive. That is our reading of this country’s own spread, not a published index.
The living-cost money you must prove before a study permit is granted is CA$22,895 for a single applicant, outside Quebec.
The practical texture of the place — what a week actually looks like.
Climate
Genuinely cold winters — months below freezing, with snow and ice. Hot humid summers. Real winter clothing is a non-negotiable first purchase.
Getting around
Subway, streetcars, buses and the GO regional rail network. Living out along a GO line is the standard way to afford Toronto.
Housing
The hardest and largest cost. Shared apartments and basement units are the norm. Never transfer a deposit before seeing a place, in person or via someone you trust.
Working
Up to 24 hours a week off campus during term under current rules, full-time in scheduled breaks. Retail, hospitality, warehousing and care.
Community
A large, well-organised Nepali community, concentrated in the north-east of the city and in Brampton and Mississauga.
After graduating
The Post-Graduation Work Permit is federal, but Ontario's nominee programme has its own occupation lists — check yours before you choose a course.
Most Ontario study permit applications require a provincial attestation letter (PAL) issued by the province — not by your university, and not by the federal government.
The attestation letters are capped in number and issued by the province, which means a valid offer of admission is no longer sufficient on its own. Confirm your institution can issue or obtain one for your intake before you pay a deposit — and treat any agent who cannot explain this requirement as a warning about everything else they have told you.
Toronto is one of 5 cities we cover in Canada. Tap any pin to compare — the city you pick moves your total cost more than almost any other choice you make.