The cheapest of these baskets came to $199.89 and the priciest to $292.27, and both are in Vancouver this week. Same 35 brands, same pack sizes, no substitutions.

Every Thursday I price that list at every grocery chain within 15 km of downtown in a few Canadian cities. Seven cities this week - the full tables are in the images.

What surprised me: the gap inside one city is bigger than the gap between cities, and it is not close. The cheapest full basket in five different cities lands between $199.89 and $202.91 - under three dollars apart, coast to coast.

Inside Vancouver alone the same 35 items swing ninety-two. Where you shop is doing far more work than which city you live in.

Prices come from the stores' own websites and flyers, read today, sale or regular, whichever is lower. Where a store did not list an item, it is charged the highest price anyone in that city listed for it, so a gap never makes a store look cheap - each image says how many of the 35 that store actually listed. In-store prices can differ from listed ones.

Want a city or an item added? See my comment below.

There’s a widespread perception that buying Canadian-owned or locally made goods is strictly a luxury that if you want to support domestic businesses, you automatically have to pay double compared to cross-border or overseas alternatives.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been digging through domestic brand catalogs and pricing data to see whether this actually holds up, and the reality is a lot more balanced than most people think.

While heavy winter outerwear and boutique artisan goods carry premium price tags, everyday consumer goods tell a completely different story. Once you factor in currency conversion (CAD vs USD), import duties, and cross-border shipping fees from US retailers, hundreds of Canadian-made and Canadian-owned staples come in competitive or cheaper:

• Kitchen & Pantry Essentials (Under $15–$20): Brands like Camille’s, Maison Orphée, and local roasting companies often beat US imports on a per-unit basis once shelf markups are accounted for.
• Personal Care & Grooming (Under $20): Clean bar soaps, balms, and skincare from domestic makers like Rocky Mountain Soap Co., Routine, and Druide sit neck-and-neck with equivalent US specialty brands.
• Home & Paper Goods (Under $25–$30): Basic home utility items, wool dryer balls, natural cleaning refills, and canvas totes from domestic labels carry almost identical price parity to major commercial shelf brands.

The main hurdle isn’t that affordable options don’t exist—it’s that smaller domestic brands lack the massive shelf-space marketing budgets that multinational conglomerates have. A lot of makers also regularly host clearance and end-of-season sales that fly under the radar unless you actively look for them.

For those trying to keep dollars domestic without stretching budgets: What are your favourite everyday Canadian products that cost under $20 or $30? Which categories do you still struggle to find budget-friendly alternatives for?