Life in Toronto

Nathan Phillips Square lit up at nighttime with Toronto's City Hall in the centre, surrounded by local buildings.

Welcome

​Like U of T, Toronto is a city that thinks forward to the future. It is a dynamic gateway to global perspectives, and renowned for its rich social tapestry. Take in a professional basketball, hockey, or football game; sample the cuisine of virtually every culture on earth; catch a world-premiere opera or visit some of North America’s finest art galleries and museums—all within a 30-minute walk or bike ride (check out the City of Toronto’s Explore & Enjoy site for details). 

The diversity of Toronto’s population, cultures, and opinions make it the perfect place to pursue your graduate degree. The city also has a reputation for being one of the world’s safest metropolitan areas.

Toronto Facts

  • Toronto is the biggest city in the country.
  • Known as “the city of neighbourhoods,” Toronto has upwards of 140 distinct neighbourhoods within its boundaries.
  • One-third of Canada’s population lives within 160 km of Toronto. The Greater Toronto Area has more than 5.5 million people.
  • The TTC is North America’s third-largest public transportation network.
  • Toronto is the world’s third-largest English-speaking theatre community in the world.
  • The Toronto International Film Festival may be the world’s largest public film festival but it’s only one of more than 75 film festivals hosted by the city each year.
  • Our LGBTQ population is the biggest in Canada. Pride Week‘s celebration is one of the three largest in the world (alongside those of New York City and Sydney, Australia).
  • The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, with its exciting Caribana Parade, has been running for almost 50 years and attracts over a million people to Toronto each summer. 

Toronto’s residents represent more than 200 distinct ethnicities, making it one of the most multicultural cities in the w​​orld. In fact, half the population was born outside Canada. For international students, this diversity can help make a new city feel very much like home. For researchers, it can provide unprecedented opportunities​ for recruitment of research participants from a very broad and diverse population. All of these factors have helped Toronto develop one of North America’s largest life science and medical research clusters, IT start-up communities, and more.