Canadian households spent an average of $242 a month in 2023 on electricity, heating fuel and water (Statistics Canada, Survey of Household Spending), of which $125 was electricity. Heating is a large part of most Canadian homes’ energy use, so many of the changes worth making either cut heat loss or make heat cheaper to produce. This guide covers them in order of cost: free habits first, then small purchases, then renovations. It is part of our budgeting guides.
What utilities cost where you live
What a household pays depends on the province’s electricity prices, the fuel its home is heated with and the climate. The guide to average utility bills by province has each province’s average spending on electricity, natural gas, water and internet, and the current residential electricity and gas rates behind them.
The main ways to cut utility costs
| Action | Upfront cost | What the saving depends on |
|---|---|---|
| Lower the thermostat at night and when away | None | How many degrees lower, for how many hours, and the price of your heating fuel |
| Shift laundry and dishwashing to off-peak hours | None | Whether your utility charges time-of-use rates, and the gap between peak and off-peak prices |
| Wash laundry in cold water | None | How much of your hot water goes to laundry |
| Seal air leaks with weatherstripping and caulking | Low | How drafty the home is now |
| LED bulbs throughout | Low | How many incandescent or halogen bulbs are left, and how long they’re on |
| Low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators | Low | Hot water use and how water is heated and billed |
| Programmable or smart thermostat | Low to moderate | Whether you already adjust the temperature by hand |
| ENERGY STAR appliances (when replacing one) | Price premium over a standard model | How old and inefficient the replaced appliance is |
| Attic insulation | Moderate to high | Current insulation level, house size and climate |
| Heat pump (replacing or supplementing a furnace) | High | The fuel it replaces, the climate, electricity prices and rebates |
| New windows | High | Condition of the current windows; usually the slowest to pay back |
The payback period of any upgrade is its upfront cost (after rebates) divided by the yearly saving on the bill. The costs of the larger projects, and the grants that reduce them, are in the guides to heat pump costs and grants and home insulation costs.
Free strategies
1. Set the thermostat on a schedule
Heating a home less when nobody needs the heat is one of the main free savings. A common schedule keeps the home at a comfortable temperature (around 20°C) while people are home and awake, and a few degrees lower overnight and while everyone is out. A programmable or smart thermostat makes the schedule automatic.
2. Use curtains and blinds
- Open south-facing curtains on sunny winter days to let the sun add heat.
- Close curtains at night to reduce heat lost through the glass.
- Heavy thermal curtains help most on north-facing windows, which get no winter sun.
3. Check the furnace filter
A clogged filter makes a furnace work harder and run longer. Checking it monthly during the heating season and replacing it when it’s dirty keeps air moving freely; the furnace manual gives the replacement interval for its filter type.
4. Bleed radiators (hot water systems)
If some radiators in a hot-water system are cold at the top, trapped air is blocking the water. Releasing it with a radiator key lets the radiator heat fully again.
5. Reverse the ceiling fans
In winter, setting ceiling fans to turn clockwise at low speed pushes the warm air that collects near the ceiling back down along the walls, so rooms feel warmer at the same thermostat setting.
Quick wins under $50
- Keep the fridge at 4°C and the freezer at −18°C.
- Clean the fridge’s condenser coils once a year.
- Use cold water for laundry.
- Air-dry dishes instead of using the heated dry cycle.
- Unplug chargers and devices that draw power on standby.
- Use a power bar with a switch for the entertainment system.
- Clean the dryer lint trap before every load.
- Replace the remaining incandescent bulbs with LEDs.
Smart thermostat savings
How much a smart thermostat saves depends on the habits it replaces: a household that already turns the heat down by hand gains less than one that leaves the temperature fixed.
Example: a household that spends $1,500 a year on heating. If a smart thermostat reduced its heating use by 10%, the saving would be $150 a year, before the cost of the thermostat.
Ontario time-of-use electricity rates
Ontario’s regulated electricity prices change with the time of day, so moving heavy appliance use to off-peak hours lowers the bill without using less power.
| Time period | Rate (¢/kWh) | Hours (winter, weekdays) | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off-peak | 9.8¢ | 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., plus weekends and holidays all day | Dishwasher, laundry, dryer |
| Mid-peak | 15.7¢ | 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Normal use |
| On-peak | 20.3¢ | 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. | Light use |
Ontario Energy Board Regulated Price Plan prices (electricity commodity only; delivery and regulatory charges are extra). Winter hours are shown (November 1 to April 30); in summer (May 1 to October 31), on-peak is weekdays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and mid-peak is weekdays 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m..
Ontario households can also choose an ultra-low overnight plan, which charges 3.9¢ per kWh overnight but 39.1¢ on-peak, which suits a household that can move a large load, such as charging an electric car, to the night.
Example: moving 60 kWh a month of laundry and dishwashing from on-peak to off-peak saves the difference between the two prices, 10.5¢ per kWh: about $6 a month before tax.
Heating fuel and heat pumps
The fuel a home is heated with sets most of its winter bill, and which fuel costs less to run depends on the province’s electricity and gas prices. The comparison of electric vs gas heating costs works through the running costs of each fuel and of heat pumps, and the heat pump costs and grants guide covers installation prices.
Rebates for energy upgrades
Provinces and utilities offer rebates, grants and loans for insulation, air sealing, heat pumps and other upgrades, and many require an energy assessment before the work starts. The guide to energy rebates by province lists the programs open in each province and the federal programs that have closed.
Water and sewer bills
Water rates are set by each municipality, so the price of water varies from city to city; the average utility bills page has what households spend on water and sewage in each province. A water bill usually has two parts:
- A water charge, based on the litres used (on a meter) or a flat rate.
- A sewer or wastewater charge, often calculated from the water used.
Because both charges usually follow the water used, a leak raises both.
Fixing water leaks
Toilet leaks
A running toilet can waste a large amount of water without being obvious. The flapper valve (the rubber seal at the bottom of the tank) is the most common cause, and a replacement is an inexpensive part most people can fit themselves.
How to test: put a few drops of food colouring in the tank. If colour appears in the bowl within about 15 minutes without flushing, the flapper is leaking.
Dripping faucets
Most dripping faucets need only a new washer or cartridge, a small do-it-yourself repair.
Irrigation system leaks
Lawn irrigation systems are prone to cracked lines, broken heads and faulty valves, and a broken head can lose water for hours before anyone notices. Inspecting the system at the start of each season catches most of them.
The bottom line
The free changes cost nothing to try: a thermostat schedule, off-peak appliance use where time-of-use rates apply, cold-water laundry and sealing visible drafts. Small purchases such as a smart thermostat, LED bulbs and low-flow fixtures come next. Larger projects such as insulation and heat pumps cost more and can save more, and their payback depends heavily on the rebates available, which often must be applied for before the work begins.
Related articles
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them on September 24, 2026. How we check facts.
- Ontario Energy Board: Electricity rates | Ontario Energy Board
- Statistics Canada: Household spending, Canada, regions and provinces
- Statistics Canada: Household spending by household type