Here's How Rent Costs In Canada Compare Across 20 Cities & Where's Most Affordable

Rent costs in Canada are continuing to go up across the board, but there are a few cities that are being hit harder than others.

A new report from Rentals.ca and Bullpen Research & Consulting found that over the last year, the average national rent rate has increased by 6.6%.

In real-life terms, this works out to be around $1,818 per month for all types of property rentals.

While it's easy to guess that Vancouver and Toronto are the most expensive cities to rent in, with average costs around $2,925 and $2,326 respectively, there are a whole lot of places across the country that are much cheaper than that.

Matter of fact, a few cities even saw a decrease in the average rent.

Winnipeg (Manitoba), Nepean (Ontario) and Regina (Saskatchewan) decreased their average rental cost, making them among the cheapest places to rent in Canada right now.

The Canadian city with the cheapest average rent is Regina, with an average rental cost of $1,020 across all property types.

The second cheapest is also in Canada's Breadbasket, as Saskatoon has an average rent of $1,082.

Looks like moving to the prairies just got a little more attractive!

Other affordable cities west of Canada include Edmonton with an average rent of $1,190, Winnipeg with $1,326 and Calgary with $1,502 respectively.

After those came Gatineau with $1,540) and Montreal, with the latter having the cheapest average rent of the nation's three largest cities – $1,712.

As for renting in Ontario, the cheapest option you have is London with an average monthly cheque to the landlord totaling around $1,790. After that is Scarborough at $1,831, followed by Ottawa at $1,874 and then East York at $1,884.

From there, the cost continues up onto Hamilton, Nepean, Brampton, North York, York, Mississauga, Etobicoke, before eventually capping out at $2,326 on average in Toronto.

So, where does your city stack up? Maybe if you thought it was a bit too high on the list you'll start plotting a move to a place with cheaper rent.

Or, if you can't do that, you'll be sitting and cursing the economy.

And honestly, either one is fair at this point! Unless you live in Regina, that is.

This article’s cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.