Cost of Renting in Toronto 2026 | Prices & Affordability

The cost of renting in Toronto 2026 sits at a median of $2,400 per month, based on CMHC Rental Market Report 2024 data. That figure puts serious pressure on most household budgets, and the rent-to-income picture varies sharply depending on where your earnings land. Here's what the numbers actually show.

Toronto Rent Benchmarks at a Glance

Rent in Toronto spans a wide range. The bottom 10% of the market starts at $1,500 per month, the median sits at $2,400, and the top 10% reaches $3,800 per month. These figures come from CMHC and Statistics Canada income data, with a 2024 data year. One-bedroom rent growth decelerated to +2.7% year-over-year, a notable slowdown compared to the sharp increases seen in prior years. That doesn't make Toronto cheap. It means the pace of pain is easing slightly.

How Much of Your Income Goes to Rent?

The rent-to-income ratio tells you more about affordability than the raw rent figure alone. In Toronto, renters at the 25th income percentile spend around 26% of their income on rent. The median renter spends 35%. Those at the 75th percentile spend 46%. The widely cited affordability threshold is 30%, so a large share of Toronto renters are already stretched beyond it. If you're spending 35% or more, you're not an outlier here. You're typical. For a deeper look at how these ratios break down, see Rent to Income Ratio Toronto: 2024 Affordability Data.

What Drives Costs at Different Price Points

The gap between the $1,500 floor and the $3,800 ceiling reflects real differences in unit type, neighbourhood, and building age. Older purpose-built rentals tend to cluster toward the lower end of the range. Newer condos and units in high-demand neighbourhoods push toward the top. The median of $2,400 is a useful anchor, but your actual cost depends heavily on which part of the city you're targeting and what trade-offs you're willing to make on size and commute.

Affordability in Practice: Running the Numbers

At a $2,400 median rent, you'd need a gross monthly income of roughly $6,857 to keep housing at 35% of earnings, and around $8,000 to stay under the 30% threshold. Many Toronto renters don't hit those income levels, which is why the city's rent-to-income ratios are as stretched as the data shows. Use a rent affordability calculator to check your own ratio before committing to a unit. You can also compare Toronto's profile against broader average rent trends: Average Rent in Toronto 2026 | SpendVerdict.

Data Confidence and Sources

The figures on this page carry a medium confidence rating. They're drawn from the CMHC Rental Market Report 2024 and Statistics Canada income data. Because rental markets shift faster than annual reports can capture, treat these benchmarks as a strong directional guide rather than a precise real-time quote. Always cross-check against current listings in your target neighbourhood before making a housing decision.

Check your personal rent-to-income ratio with the SpendVerdict affordability calculator.