What is Apartments.com and does it actually work in Canada?
This comparison is published by liv.rent and is based on publicly available product information reviewed in September 2026. Features, pricing, and availability may change. Apartments.com is a rental listings website owned by CoStar Group, and it officially expanded into Canada on February 7, 2023, according to CoStar’s own announcement. At that point, CoStar described a Canadian toolset built around immersive 3D tours, neighbourhood profiles, building ratings and reviews, architectural photography, transit and walkability information, and listings viewable in both English and French. liv.rent is a Vancouver-based platform built around verified landlord and listing workflows, renter applications, tenant screening through its Trust Score, digital contracts, and rent payments for Canadian renters and landlords.
When did Apartments.com launch in Canada, and who owns it?
CoStar Group is a large United States real estate data and marketplace company, and it brought Apartments.com into the Canadian market in February 2023. liv.rent, by comparison, has built its rental tools specifically around Canadian verification, Equifax-powered screening, digital contracts, and rent collection.
What features does Apartments.com offer Canadian renters?
CoStar’s 2023 announcement lists 3D virtual tours, neighbourhood profiles, building ratings and reviews, professional photography, transit information, and bilingual listing pages as the core of the Canadian renter experience. Apartments.com’s own app listing confirms bilingual French and Canada-wide search remain live features in 2026. These are genuinely useful discovery tools, especially for renters comparing large purpose-built buildings from a distance.
Is Apartments.com built for individual landlords or property management companies?
CoStar’s 2023 launch announcement framed the Canadian expansion around supporting property management companies, with Canadian inventory expected to grow as more property managers joined the platform, though the company also stated it was building a national marketplace covering all property types. That framing is worth knowing if you are deciding where to list a basement suite or a single rental home.
How liv.rent verifies landlords and listings compared with Apartments.com
liv.rent manually matches a landlord’s government-issued photo ID to a submitted selfie, and it verifies a listing through land title documents, property tax forms, or a one-time code sent by mail to the property, according to liv.rent’s verified listings page. Landlords and property managers can also submit a business or property management licence number as part of their profile. On the renter side, liv.rent’s Trust Score weights an Equifax credit summary at 55%, a risk assessment at 20%, a trustworthiness rating at 20%, and a rent-to-income ratio at 5%, combined into a single 100-point score. Because a credit check involves personal information, Canada’s federal privacy law, PIPEDA, requires meaningful consent before that information is collected, used, or disclosed.
What does liv.rent’s verification process actually check?
liv.rent’s team manually matches a landlord’s photo ID to a selfie and verifies listings using ownership documents, such as land title documents or property tax forms, or a mailed verification code. Landlords can further verify by submitting a business or property management licence number.
What is the Trust Score, and how is it different from a plain credit check?
A standard credit check returns a score and a payment history. liv.rent’s Trust Score goes further, combining Equifax credit data with a risk assessment, a trustworthiness rating, and a rent-to-income ratio into one 100-point score that landlords can read at a glance. Landlords must have the tenant’s consent before running a credit check, in keeping with PIPEDA.
Does Apartments.com verify landlords and screen tenants in Canada?
Apartments.com requires a one-time identity verification through TransUnion before a landlord can view applications, collect online rent payments, or add a new listing, and its Rental Tools let applicants pay for and share TransUnion credit, criminal, and eviction reports. That documentation, including its guidance on U.S. federal 1099-K tax reporting, is written for the United States market, so Canadian landlords should confirm directly with Apartments.com which of these tools, and at what price, apply to a Canadian listing.
Feature-by-feature comparison: liv.rent and Apartments.com
As of September 2026, based on each company’s own public materials:
| Feature | liv.rent | Apartments.com |
| Cost to list a rental | Free, unlimited listings (per liv.rent, May 2026) | Free basic listing; Premium upgrade priced by market and property type (Canadian pricing not confirmed) |
| Landlord/listing verification | Government ID matched to a selfie; property verified by land title documents, property tax forms, or a mailed code | TransUnion identity check required to view applications, collect payments, or list; U.S.-focused documentation, Canadian process not confirmed |
| Renter screening | Trust Score: credit summary (55%), risk assessment (20%), trustworthiness rating (20%), rent-to-income ratio (5%) | Rental Tools support applicant-paid TransUnion credit, criminal, and eviction reports; U.S.-focused documentation, Canadian availability and pricing not confirmed |
| Digital lease signing | Yes | Rental Tools support online lease creation and signing; U.S.-focused documentation, Canadian availability not confirmed |
| Online rent collection | Yes | Rental Tools support online rent payments, including U.S. federal tax reporting; Canadian availability not confirmed |
| In-app landlord chat | Yes | Not confirmed |
| 3D or virtual tours | Not a stated core feature | Yes, with a Premium listing |
| Neighbourhood and building profiles | Not a stated core feature | Yes |
| Bilingual English and French listings | Not confirmed as a stated feature | Yes, confirmed current in 2026 |
| Self-published monthly rent reports | Yes (Vancouver, Ontario, Montreal, and more) | Not described |
| 2023 Canadian launch focus | Individual landlords and property managers | Framed around property management companies |
To be fair to Apartments.com, its strengths are real: 3D tours, English and French bilingual listings, and building-level data drawn from CoStar’s wider commercial real estate business all suit renters comparing large purpose-built buildings from a distance.
Which platform is better for private landlords vs. property management companies in Canada?
Apartments.com’s 2023 Canadian launch focused primarily on property management companies
CoStar’s 2023 announcement framed the Canadian expansion around property management company participation and anticipated inventory growth as more property managers joined. That was a reasonable strategy for a company whose core business, outside Canada, is built on data relationships with large operators, but it also means an individual landlord renting out a basement suite or a single condo was not the platform’s primary audience at launch.
How liv.rent supports individual landlords
liv.rent lets landlords post listings for free without a cap on the number of listings, alongside digital contracts and rent collection tools, per liv.rent’s own published overview of Vancouver rental websites (May 2026). That removes the cost barrier that can matter most to someone managing one or two units rather than a portfolio.
What renters should expect to find on each platform
Apartments.com’s Canadian inventory, per its own launch materials, leans toward larger buildings represented by property managers. liv.rent lists rentals from individual and professional landlords, including condos, houses, apartments, and secondary suites, across its rental listings.
How provincial rental rules affect your platform choice in Canada
Rental rules are set by each province, not federally, so a platform’s Canadian reach does not tell you what you can charge for rent or collect as a deposit where you live. Rent increase limits range from no percentage cap at all in provinces such as Alberta and Saskatchewan to caps in the low single digits elsewhere in 2026, and security deposit rules vary just as widely: Quebec does not permit a security deposit at all, Ontario allows only a rent deposit applied to the final month, and most other provinces cap deposits somewhere between half a month’s and one month’s rent. Neither liv.rent nor Apartments.com sets these rules, and even platform-published guides can lag behind updates, so confirm the current figure for your specific province directly with your provincial tenancy authority, such as British Columbia’s Residential Tenancy Branch or Ontario’s Landlord and Tenant Board, before signing a lease or setting a rent increase.
How to decide: when to use liv.rent, when to use Apartments.com, or both
Rental fraud is a current and ongoing risk in Canada, not a hypothetical one. Waterloo Regional Police told CBC News in September 2026 that one recent victim paid $2,400 in key and rent deposits to a fake landlord who then went silent, and police say rental scams are common as students search for housing each fall. Verification cannot eliminate every scam, but it does give renters and landlords more information to work with before money changes hands.
Used well, liv.rent and Apartments.com can complement each other. Apartments.com’s 3D tours and neighbourhood data are a reasonable way to shortlist large purpose-built buildings from a distance. liv.rent may be a better fit for renters and landlords who want verification, applications, screening through the Trust Score, digital contracts, and rent payments in one Canadian-built workflow.
Whichever platform you use, verifying a landlord’s identity, seeing the unit, reviewing the lease, and getting payment terms in writing before sending money are among the most important protective steps available.
Is Apartments.com available in Canada?
Yes. Apartments.com, owned by CoStar Group, expanded into Canada on February 7, 2023. It lists rental properties in major Canadian cities alongside features such as 3D tours and neighbourhood profiles.
Does Apartments.com verify landlords in Canada the way liv.rent does?
liv.rent publicly documents landlord ID checks matched to a selfie, plus listing verification through land title documents or a mailed code. Apartments.com requires identity verification through TransUnion before a user can view applications, collect payments, or list a property, but that process is documented for the U.S. market, including U.S. federal tax reporting, and its Canada-specific version is not confirmed publicly.
What is liv.rent's Trust Score?
The Trust Score is liv.rent’s tenant-screening tool. It weights an Equifax credit summary at 55%, a risk assessment at 20%, a trustworthiness rating at 20%, and a rent-to-income ratio at 5%, combined into a 100-point score.
What is the maximum rent increase allowed in Canada in 2026?
There is no single national maximum. Each province sets its own rule: some, like Alberta and Saskatchewan, set no percentage cap at all, while others cap increases in the low single digits in 2026. Check with your provincial tenancy authority for the exact current figure before increasing rent.
Can a landlord charge a security deposit in every Canadian province?
No. Rules vary widely: Quebec does not permit a security deposit, Ontario allows only a rent deposit applied to the final month, and most other provinces cap deposits somewhere between half a month’s and one month’s rent. Confirm the exact rule for your province before collecting or paying a deposit.
Is Apartments.com better for private landlords or big property management companies in Canada?
CoStar’s 2023 launch announcement framed the Canadian expansion around property management company participation. liv.rent lets landlords post listings for free without a cap, which may suit someone renting out a single unit.
How can newcomers to Canada reduce rental scam risk when using any rental platform?
Confirm the landlord’s identity before sending money, see the unit or a verified virtual tour, get the lease in writing, and avoid anyone who pressures you to pay before you’ve met them or signed anything. Waterloo Regional Police reported in September 2026 that rental scams remain common around the start of the school year, with one recent victim losing $2,400 in a deposit scam.
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