July 2026 Ontario Rent Report

At a glance

• Most GTA municipalities recorded lower year-over-year unfurnished one-bedroom rents
  • Most municipalities in the GTA recorded lower unfurnished one-bedroom rents compared with July 2025, with declines ranging from 0.6% in Burlington to 15.8% in Markham. Milton was the exception, increasing slightly by 0.3%.
    
• York Region records the GTA’s steepest year-over-year rent declines
  • Markham and Vaughan-Richmond Hill posted the largest year-over-year declines in unfurnished one-bedroom rents, falling by 15.8% and 14.8%, respectively.
    
• Downtown Toronto remains one of the GTA’s most expensive rental markets despite only a modest year-over-year decline
  • While most GTA municipalities recorded lower year-over-year rents, Downtown Toronto saw one of the smallest declines (declining by 1.0%, from $2,127 to $2,106.) and remained one of the region’s highest-priced markets for unfurnished one-bedroom rentals.
    

Download liv.rent’s 2026 Canada Rental Market Trends Report for in-depth insights and forecasts on average rent prices, regional market comparisons, key economic drivers, and emerging AI trends shaping Canada’s rental landscape.

As of June 10th, 2026, the Bank of Canada maintains the interest rate at 2.25%, marking the sixth consecutive announcement with no change. Many economists expect the Bank to remain cautious through 2026 as inflation and economic uncertainty persist.

As of July 2026, the City of Toronto’s average monthly rent for an unfurnished one-bedroom dropped YoY by $87, reaching a new average of $1,961/month.

Ontario rent trends

Compared to last month, the average rent price for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit in Toronto decreased by $9 this July to $1,961/month. On the other hand, the average rent for a furnished one-bedroom decreased by $11 since last month, bringing the rate to $1,918/month.

Planning on raising rent this year? Ontario’s annual allowable rent increase guideline for 2026 is 2.1%. Find out when and how you can increase rent and ensure you’re complying with provincial guidelines by reading our updated Guide to Ontario Rent Increases.

Month-to-month rent change

This chart breaks down the percentage change in rent prices across major Ontario cities and municipalities. between June and July 2026.

Unfurnished Toronto rent trends

For unfurnished one-bedroom units, Brampton and Scarborough saw the largest decreases, while Downtown Toronto and North York were the only areas shown that recorded increases.

Furnished Toronto rent trends

Furnished one-bedroom rents saw mixed movement this month. North York and Brampton recorded the strongest increases, while Vaughan-Richmond Hill and Downtown Toronto recorded decreases.

Toronto furnished vs. unfurnished averages

This month, prices for both furnished and unfurnished one-bedroom units decreased, falling by 0.58% to $1,918/month and by 0.48% to $1,961/month, respectively. The average furnished one-bedroom unit rents for $43 less than an unfurnished one-bedroom unit.

Rent per square foot

Our monthly Rent Reports also look more closely at the average rent per square foot in major Ontario cities and municipalities. This July, Downtown ($2.81/sq. ft.) had the highest rent per square foot. At the other end of the spectrum, Brampton had the lowest rent per square foot ($1.31/sq. ft.).

Active listing data

We’ll also look at detailed statistics for currently active listings available to see which property types and number of bedrooms are the most represented. For renters, these numbers show which types of units you’re most likely to encounter in the Greater Toronto Area, while for landlords, you can assess how much competition you’ll face based on the current supply.

Active listings by property type

As of July 2026, the most common rental property type was apartments, representing the vast majority of active listings in the GTA at 94.96%. Partial houses were the second most common unit type this month, representing a distant 3.17% of active listings, followed by houses at 1.72% and townhouses at 0.16%.

Active listings by number of bedrooms

In terms of the number of bedrooms, we saw a varied spread across active listings on the market this July. One-bedroom units were the most common type of listing in the GTA this month at 50.33%, while two-bedroom units represented 41.42% of the region’s active listings. Three-bedroom units made up the remaining 8.25%.

City breakdown

This July, Oshawa is the cheapest municipality among the GTA areas included in this section, while Oakville is the most expensive place to rent this month.

The average rent price for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit in Oakville currently stands at $2,132/month, while in Oshawa the same type of unit rents for an average of $1,652/month. That is a difference of $480 between the two.

With Ontario’s different communities being so diverse, we’re breaking down selected Ontario areas into its different cities and municipalities to see the price difference within listing types: one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units, both unfurnished and furnished.

• All prices for unfurnished one-bedrooms decreased except in Downtown and North York.
• All prices for furnished one-bedroom rents increased everywhere except Vaughan-Richmond Hill and Downtown month-to-month.
• Downtown was the only area that saw an increase in price for all types of unfurnished units.

Rental averages for other Ontario cities

We’ve also looked at data from cities and municipalities in other regions within and surrounding the GTA. Looking at these additional cities, London is the least expensive to rent in July for one-bedroom unfurnished units at $1,487/month. Oakville is the most expensive for unfurnished one-bedroom units at $2,132/month.

For complete data on these cities as well as other municipalities outside of the Greater Toronto Area, download our full report here to view the complete report.

Most expensive cities in Canada

This July, the top 4 of the country’s most expensive cities are located in Metro Vancouver as West Vancouver claims the top spot as the most expensive city in the country to rent in, followed by North Vancouver, Vancouver, and Richmond with Burlington, Ontario rounding out the top 5.

Downloadable resources

Our complete July 2026 Rent Report has information on even more key areas, broken down into region and unit type for a complete overview of rental averages in Ontario. To view these and all the other new information we’ve added, be sure to download your copy of the Rent Report below.

---

Renting in Ontario

For more information on renting in Ontario, refer to these comprehensive resource posts:

• What’s A Standard Rental Application?
• What do you need when applying for a rental?
• What Can A Landlord Ask For On A Rental Application In Ontario?
• How Do I Fill Out A Rental Application?
• Ontario Standard Lease Explained
• Frequently Asked Questions: Everything You Need to Know About Eviction in Ontario

Data collection methodology

Our monthly rent reports use data from our own liv.rent listings, as well as data our team manually collects from other popular listing sites – looking at available basement suites, apartments, condos, townhouses, semi-detached houses, and single-detached houses for each area.

When collecting this data, we do exclude luxury properties listed at over $5,000, as well as rooms for rent and shared accommodation. Investing in manual data collection means that we only consider the current month’s listing, since we can filter out duplicate listings and older ads that haven’t been removed.

Another key difference between our data collection methods and some government agencies like the CMHC is that we only include current asking rent prices. Many official reports will include data for entire buildings in their reports, which tends to skew numbers lower since many units are already occupied, and may be rent-controlled or rented for significantly lower than the current rates.

As we are a Canadian rental platform founded and based in Vancouver, we want to ensure that we’re providing a completely accurate depiction of the rental market in the cities we look at.

---

Rethink The Way You Rent

Not on liv.rent yet? Experience the ease of digital applications & contracts, verified tenants & landlords, virtual tours and more – all on one platform. Sign up for free or download the app.

Learn More

Subscribe to receive monthly updates on Canada’s major rental markets. Discover last month’s Rent Reports below:

Vancouver Rent Report
Ontario Rent Report
Montreal Rent Report
Calgary and Edmonton Rent Report