These Are The Best Cities In Canada To Raise A Family & The Top Spots Might Surprise You

If you're thinking about starting a family or simply looking for a new place to settle down with yours, you'll want to look for a city with features like a low cost of living, high quality of life and low crime rate.

Thankfully, a new ranking has done the hard work for you. Personal finance and investment company Yore Oyster ranked the best cities in Canada to raise a family, and you might be surprised by some of the top locations.

The company evaluated 27 Canadian cities, scoring them on criteria including the cost of living, childcare costs, maternity and parental leave, crime rate, quality of life and the median age of residents.

Based on the location of the top three spots, one region is apparently the best province to live in in Canada if you're looking to raise a family.

Quebec dominated the top of the list, with the number one city being Trois Rivières, a city in the province's Mauricie region.

According to Yore Oyster, the city is an attractive place to live for families thanks to its "low cost and high standard of living, and beautiful outdoors."

In Trois-Rivières, the monthly cost of living for a family of four is $3,388, much lower than the average cost of living in Canada for a family of the same size, which Yore Oyster puts at $5,797 per month.

The city is also reported to have a "very low" crime rate.

Quebec City came in second, with its safety, modernity, culture, and nature contributing to its high position. While the monthly cost of living was found to be a bit higher here at $4,218 for a family of four, it's still lower than the national average.

Sherbrooke, Quebec, ranked third on the list, with Yore Oyster highlighting the city's low cost of living and "perfect balance between urban vitality and nature’s tranquility" as reasons for families to consider a move.

While each city in the province has desirable factors like low living costs, public libraries and low rates of crime, another reason Quebec may have dominated the list is its parental benefits.

In Quebec, parents of a newborn or a newly-adopted child are entitled to parental leave without pay for up to 65 weeks in addition to maternity and paternity leave.

While cities in other provinces did make the list, Quebec had the most locations, with five cities in total.

Major hubs like Toronto notably appeared much lower on the list, with Yore Oyster noting that while it has "great public transportation, hospitals, and community centers," the cost of living is considerably higher at $7,106 per month, and the city also has a higher crime rate than others.

Likewise, while Vancouver has "mild temperatures, nature, and urban convenience," the average monthly cost of living is $7,281 for a family of four.