Canada's top trending city for renters was revealed and it's not Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal
You'll probably never guess...
The top Canadian cities for renter interest were revealed and some surprising spots are trending right now.
If you're on the hunt for apartments for rent in Canada, you might be surprised by which cities are trending right now. A new report reveals the top Canadian cities getting the most interest from renters right now, and none of the usual suspects even cracked the top five.
While cities like Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal may be the first spots that come to mind when you're thinking of renting in Canada, new data shows that renters are shifting their focus to smaller markets offering a better mix of availability, affordability and lifestyle.
The latest Renter Interest Report from RentCafe looked at millions of interactions with rental listings — tracking page views, saved searches and favourites — to see where demand is heating up in the Canada housing market.
And according to the new report, Canada's top trending city for renters right now is none other than... Winnipeg.
Yes, you read that right. The Manitoba capital just claimed the top spot as the most in-demand rental market in the country.
Toronto rent and Vancouver apartments may still draw views, but the top of the list now belongs to smaller and mid-sized cities that are becoming real competitors in the Canada housing market.
Winnipeg led the country in listings added to favourites, and it ranked second in saved searches. It also ranked third in overall page views for local rental listings.
Moncton, which led the ranking last quarter, now sits at number two. Still, it's pulling impressive numbers, with triple the page views it saw this time last year.
Kingston saw the biggest leap this quarter, jumping eight spots to land in third place. RentCafe notes that most of the interest in apartments for rent in Kingston is coming from people in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal, who might be seeking a more affordable lifestyle in a nearby market.
Edmonton held on to fourth place, leading the country in saved searches. Even with some dips in other areas, the interest in apartments for rent in Edmonton remains high.
Halifax rounds out the top five, with a 158% spike in listings being added to favourites compared to last year. That surge is linked to growing job opportunities and population growth, according to the report.
Some major cities are still holding ground, but others slipped. Montreal dropped to 21st place with a sharp decline in renter engagement, while Vancouver fell to 22nd. Even with more listings available, fewer renters are saving searches or marking properties as favourites, according to the data.
Toronto, on the other hand, inched up to 12th — still outside the top 10, but up three spots from last quarter as availability continues to grow and Toronto rent prices continue to drop.
The report also highlights how interest in laid-back cities like Nanaimo and St. Catharines is on the rise, while working-class Hamilton and Kitchener saw big drops. Hamilton fell a whopping 10 places to 24th, despite its reputation for more affordable housing near Toronto. Kitchener also dropped 10 spots to 23rd.
Here are all 25 cities included in the report, ranked by renter interest in Q2 2025:
- Winnipeg, MB
- Moncton, NB
- Kingston, ON
- Edmonton, AB
- Halifax, NS
- Saskatoon, SK
- Ottawa, ON
- Calgary, AB
- Regina, SK
- Victoria, BC
- Oshawa, ON
- Toronto, ON
- Nanaimo, BC
- London, ON
- Niagara Falls, ON
- Barrie, ON
- St. Catharines, ON
- Guelph, ON
- Gatineau, QC
- Kelowna, BC
- Montreal, QC
- Vancouver, BC
- Kitchener, ON
- Hamilton, ON
- Windsor, ON
Whether it's about saving money, finding more space, or just switching things up, the top spots are the cities renters are watching closely right now. And as the Canadian housing market keeps shifting, the next hot rental destination might not be where you'd expect.
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