What renters who moved in 2026 pay, next to asking rents
Statistics Canada publishes what listings ask. CMHC publishes what tenants in its survey pay. Our submissions add a third figure: what renters who moved in during 2026 report paying. Here are the three side by side, for a 2 bedroom in each city.
What renters who moved in 2026 pay, next to asking rents
Statistics Canada Quarterly rent statistics for the first quarter of 2026 put the average asking rent for a 2 bedroom at $2,350 in Ottawa, $2,660 in Toronto and $3,100 in Vancouver. The CMHC Rental Market Survey for October 2025 found an average rent of $1,916 in Ottawa, $2,045 in Toronto and $2,364 in Vancouver for the same size, and a vacancy rate of 3.0% in Ottawa, 3.0% in Toronto and 3.7% in Vancouver.
| City | Asking rent (Statistics Canada) | Average rent (CMHC) | Reported by 2026 movers (FairRent) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | $2,350 | $1,916 | $2,400 |
| Toronto | $2,660 | $2,045 | $2,900 |
| Vancouver | $3,100 | $2,364 | $3,000 |
In every city, the median reported by 2026 movers is closer to the asking rent than to CMHC's average.
The three figures measure different things. An asking rent is the price in a listing, before any negotiation. CMHC's average covers every tenant in the rental buildings it surveys, including people who have stayed for years under capped increases. Our figure comes from renters who moved in during 2026 and report what they pay, in the areas they chose on the rent check.
The dates and areas do not line up exactly. Statistics Canada and CMHC report for the metropolitan area, for the first quarter of 2026 and for October 2025. Our figures are as of 16 October 2026.
Within our own reports
Here is the median reported by renters who moved in during 2026, beside the median for renters who moved in during 2024 or 2025, as of 16 October 2026.
| City | Type of home | Moved in 2024 to 2025 | Moved in 2026 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | 1 bedroom | $1,850 | $1,950 | +$100 |
| Ottawa | 2 bedrooms | $2,300 | $2,400 | +$100 |
| Toronto | 1 bedroom | $2,200 | $2,200 | unchanged |
| Toronto | 2 bedrooms | $2,750 | $2,900 | +$150 |
| Vancouver | 1 bedroom | $2,300 | $2,350 | +$50 |
| Vancouver | 2 bedrooms | $2,950 | $3,000 | +$50 |
In every city, the median rent reported by 2026 movers is not lower than the median for 2024 and 2025 movers. That should not be read as a rise: the two groups describe different homes.
- The 2024 and 2025 group spans 2 years. The median of a group of several years is hard to compare with a single year.
- Discounts are not all in the rent. One free month in twelve lowers the real cost by 8% without changing the figure on the lease. We now ask whether a rent carries a discount, but most reports came in before we asked.
- The groups are small. Each cell rests on at least 5 reports, and $50 is the smallest difference the rounding can show.
What the table says with certainty is who reports their rent: 37% of reports in Ottawa, 27% of reports in Toronto, 39% of reports in Vancouver come from renters who moved in during 2026. A move is the moment people ask whether their rent is fair.
If you are renewing, if you are moving
When you renew, the asking rents around you are worth knowing. In Ontario, the yearly increase for a tenant who stays is capped at 1.9% for 2027 in most homes. In British Columbia, it is capped at 2.2%. If similar listings ask less than you pay, you can say so to your landlord before signing a renewal. You can also compare before deciding to leave.
- Check your rent. The result compares what you pay with an estimated range for your area and bedrooms, and says how many recent reports support it.
- If you have reported this home before, say so on the form. With your private code, your report is updated rather than counted twice.
- Add the yearly reminder to your calendar. A rent reported last autumn says little this autumn.
- Read your province's rent rules page before answering an increase notice.
How we counted
- Every figure rests on at least 5 reports. A group with fewer, or one where too many reports give the same rent, is not published, and the article says so.
- Medians are rounded to the nearest $50, like every range published on the site.
- Rents are self-reported. An accepted submission is not a verified lease, and two reports can describe the same home.
- The groups compare different homes, not the same home at two points in time. A gap between two groups is not an increase.
- Areas are the ones renters choose on the rent check, not official boundaries.
- FairRent figures: 1,602 accepted whole-unit rent submissions as of 16 October 2026, grouped under the publication rules
- Source: Statistics Canada, Quarterly rent statistics, table 46-10-0092-01, first quarter of 2026. Reproduced and distributed on an "as is" basis with the permission of Statistics Canada.
- Source: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), Rental Market Survey, October 2025. This information is reproduced and distributed on an "as is" basis with the permission of CMHC.
Naming a source does not mean it endorses or partners with FairRent.
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