Toronto, Calgary, L.A.: Which is Vancouver's biggest rival?

Over the last 135 (or so) years, Vancouver has become a major city on the North American west coast.

As such, rivalries have built up over time through sports, arts, media, business, food and more. But which city is the biggest rival to Vancouver, at least according to locals?

Is it the major Canadian metropolises of eastern Canada in Montreal and Toronto which have long led the country's media, business, and cultural communities? Is it the western Canadian cities of Edmonton and Calgary which Vancouver often meets on sports fields and regional politics? Or is it one of the U.S.'s Pacific Northwest cities considered a similar tourist and cultural destination?

Or is it L.A. because of the whole Hollywood and Hollywood North situation?

Two cities dominated the poll when V.I.A. asked readers: Toronto and Seattle.

Toronto was a clear winner, especially with locals, netting 40 per cent of the vote. However, Seattle wasn't too far off, with two-thirds of voters picking the closest major city to Vancouver as its biggest rival.

Calgary scored a distant third-place finish, with around 10 per cent of readers picking the prairie city often positioned opposite Vancouver. Edmonton came in fourth, with just over six per cent of the vote.

L.A., with 5 per cent, beat out Portland and Montreal; they both got a handful of votes, but don't seem to seriously be considered rivals- at least not when Seattle and Toronto are options.