5 neighborhoods to discover

Richmond

City Snapshot

Metro population

232K city · 2.6M Metro Vancouver (2023)

Average commute

29 min (2021)

Climate

Mild wet winters · Warm dry summers · ~160 rainy days/yr · flat sea-level island

Cost of living (NYC = 100)

Top industries

Aviation & YVR airport · Logistics & trade · Retail & Asia-Pacific food · Agriculture (ALR) · Tech & manufacturing

Currency

CAD

Time zone

PT (UTC−8 / −7 DST)

Languages

English · ~60% speak Mandarin, Cantonese, or another language at home (highest Asian-language share in Canada)

Best move season

Jun–Sep

Sources

StatCan 2021 Census + 2023 estimates — Richmond is an island city on the Fraser delta, the most Asian-majority city in Canada
CMHC Rental Market Survey 2025 — Vancouver CMA / Richmond survey zones
Zumper.ca Richmond rent report (1BR ~$2,000, 2BR ~$2,780, roughly flat YoY, mid-2026) + liv.rent neighbourhood data
Numbeo Cost of Living index, Q1 2026 (Richmond runs just below the City of Vancouver)
Environment Canada climate normals 1991–2020 (Vancouver International Airport / Richmond)
Fraser Institute 2024–2025 elementary & secondary report cards — Richmond School District (SD38)

Pacific Relocation's take

Island city: dyke trails, dim sum, and the airport next door.

Richmond is the right answer surprisingly often — flat, bikeable, YVR-adjacent, with Asia-Pacific food culture no other Metro city matches. Steveston is the postcard village; City Centre stacks new towers on the Canada Line. Check flood-plain insurance fine print on ground-level units, and know that school catchments here are among BC's most competitive.