Dec 5, 20214 min read

French store equivalent in Toronto

Updated: Mar 8, 2022

When you've just arrived in Canada, you can quickly lose your bearings when looking for the stores you knew in France. So I made this article to guide you, you who try to understand the equivalences in Toronto.

Food

Lidl = No Frills / Freshco : Indeed, in these stores you will find a lot of things at low prices like fruits and vegetables, fresh products, but also food products of all kinds (frozen food, spices, products coming from other countries....).

Carrefour/Leclerc = Walmart : Gigantic store symbol of capitalist consumption. Carrefour is the closest I could associate with but you can also compare with a very big Auchan or Leclerc. You can buy everything there and at a rather reasonable price, from food to clothes, or multimedia, everything is there.

Intermarché = Metro/Loblaws : it's a city supermarket, where the products are more expensive than the average but close by. A little bonus if you are lucky, some of them even sell beer.

Grand Frais = Farm boy: In this store, a lot of fresh products and generally of better quality. They make many of their products without preservatives or chemicals, including fresh soups, sausages, handmade burgers and kebabs...

Les frères Tang / T&T : For those of you who don't know, this is a chain of stores supplying many Asian products. If you're looking for sticky rice, sesame oil or seaweed leaves you should find what you're looking for!

Local grocery store / local tobacco shop / gas station = 7/11 or INS market: So frankly this one is a bit complicated. The 7/11 is expensive and there is a bit of everything, it is really a mix between your local tobacco shop and a gas station. You will find there for sure cigarettes as well as lottery tickets.

Night grocery store = Rabba : It is the case to say it, you will see that all these stores in Toronto are open 24/24. And the best part is that you'll find most of the products you already have in the above-mentioned stores at a decent price! Useful when you are out of butter or milk at 2 o'clock in the morning (we always have a craving for pancakes).

Métro = Costco : As Métro (Wholesaler in France), you will need a card to reach this store. But inside it is a gold mine as much for the good deals, as for certain French products. However, be prepared to have a full cart and a car. This is a good deal if you are shopping with your family. It will cost you between $60 and $120 per year.

Picard = M&M: Mostly because these stores both have 100% frozen food. However, I don't necessarily guarantee the quality for M&M.

Biocoop = Ambrosia / Healthy Planet: For the connoisseurs, I was advised it as a substitute of Biocoop. There you will find organic food and supplements.

Buying alcohol = LCBO / Beer Store / Wine Rack (no equivalent in France): Here the sale of alcohol is regulated by the government. That's why all types of alcohol, spirits, wines, beers... are gathered in one store, the LCBO. You can also find some at Wine Rack but the choice is more limited.

Multimedia

Micromania = EB Games/Gamestop : If you have a lot of stores with multimedia, from TVs to phones or appliances, you will find everything you need.

FNAC = Indigo Chapters : So here it's more for the bookstore side of the Fnac and toys. For the multimedia side, I put it below.

Boulanger/Darty = Best Buy/The source : A lot of store with multimedia, from TVs to phones or household appliances everything is there.

Brico Dépôt/ M. Bricolage = home depot : Well I think that everything is said in the title, it is here that I find most of the tools for the house.

Canadian Tire : I wasn't sure where to put this one. You'll find a lot of sports equipment, kitchen equipment, household appliances, home tools, .... In short, it's a bit of a fair... Also be careful, because sometimes in this store the prices are a bit high.

Tout pour la maison

ikea = ikea : And yes ! You may be in Canada, but there are Ikeas here too! Then, in case it's too far for you, you can also check Wayfair..

Dollorama : sorry for this one, I didn't find the right match. These stores sell a lot of things at very low prices. If you need a screwdriver or even a notebook or a pen at a low price, this is the store for you. You can find all sorts of things... Some people compare it to Action.

Clothing and equipment clearance : Winners / Marshalls / Homesense: If you don't know these chains, you will quickly fall in love with them. It's all about clearance of major brands in clothing, home supplies, and other goodies! Each store has its own markdowns.

Health

Pharmacies and Parapharmacies: Shoppers Drug Mart / Rexall: Here, exit the small green cross logos of France. They are chain stores. Inside, you will find a counter where they sell medicines... but you will also be surprised to see that there are foodstuffs such as packets of chips or even sometimes a post office. A rather atypical mix.

Sports equipment

Intersport/Decathlon = MEC / Sport Chek : so there are Decathlons here, but they are very far from the city center. That's why I put you these 2 stores as options.