

I recommend you check out the Big Mac Index as it makes this stuff easier to understand.
The fact that $1CAD is worth less than $1USD or €1 doesn’t mean much. It’s just numbers printed on a screen/plastic/paper. What matters is what it buys.
The Big Mac Index was developed by The Economist to make this easier to understand. It calculates what what a Big Mac costs in each country against a common currency. It doesn’t matter if $1USD = $1CAD or $1,000CAD. What matters is what that buys.
In 2022 - the year the graphic in the posted link corresponds to, a Big Mac cost $5.35 in the US and $5.17 in Canada when using the same (USD) currency. This implies that the effective difference in purchasing power is a paltry 3.5%.
If a burger is $5USD in the US and $7CAD in Canada, and the exchange rate is $1USD = $1.40CAD then those prices are the same.
I was just in Japan where I was paying 5000¥ for a fancy coffee - which was about $4.5CAD - roughly what I’d pay here in Canada.


















You are absolutely correct!