Skip to main content

Living in Ontario: A Money Guide (2026)

Updated

Ontario’s tax system has two pieces most other provinces don’t: a surtax on higher provincial tax bills and a Health Premium collected through the tax return. In return, Ontario pays several credits through CRA, such as the Ontario Trillium Benefit and the Ontario Child Benefit, and OHIP has no waiting period for people moving from another province. Housing costs depend heavily on whether you live in the Greater Toronto Area or elsewhere in the province. This guide covers what living in Ontario means for taxes, benefits, housing, insurance and pay; for the move itself, see the moving provinces guide.

Income tax in Ontario

A single employee earning $60,000 in Ontario pays about $8,320 in federal and provincial income tax, including the Health Premium, and takes home $47,340 after CPP and EI (2026 rates). Ontario’s first bracket is 5.05%, and two additions push the total up as income rises:

  • The surtax. Ontario adds a surtax on top of its basic provincial tax: 20% of Ontario tax above $5,818 plus 36% of Ontario tax above $7,446 (2026 thresholds), which raises Ontario's top marginal rates above the bracket rates. With it, the top combined federal and Ontario rate is 53.53%.
  • The Health Premium. Ontario residents pay the Ontario Health Premium through the income tax system: from $0 at a taxable income of $20,000 or less to $900 a year above $200,600; it doesn't affect eligibility for OHIP.

The full brackets are on Ontario income tax rates, and moving from Ontario to Alberta compares Ontario’s total with Alberta’s at five incomes.

Sales tax: HST

Ontario charges a single 13% HST, of which 8 percentage points are the provincial portion. Some items get a point-of-sale rebate of the provincial portion, and insurance premiums carry a separate 8% retail sales tax; sales tax in Ontario covers both.

Ontario benefits and credits

ProgramWhat it paysDetails
Ontario Trillium BenefitCombines the energy and property tax credit (up to $1,307 a year, $1,488 for seniors), the sales tax credit (up to $378 per adult and child) and the Northern Ontario energy creditClaimed on your return; 2026 benefit year (July 2026 - June 2027)
Ontario Child BenefitUp to $1,760 a year per childPaid with the CCB; no separate application
GAINS (Guaranteed Annual Income System)Up to $92 a month for a single seniorFor low-income seniors who get OAS and the GIS
Ontario WorksUp to $733 a month for a single personIncome assistance
ODSPUp to $1,436 a month for a single personDisability income support

Each has its own income test. Government benefits by province compares them with other provinces’ programs.

Health coverage: OHIP

OHIP covers medically necessary doctor and hospital care, and there is no waiting period for people moving from another province; apply at ServiceOntario once you arrive (see the moving provinces guide). OHIP does not cover prescription drugs outside hospital, dental care in a dentist's office, or eyeglasses and contact lenses; Ontario's separate drug programs cover many prescriptions for people 24 and under without a private plan (OHIP+) and for people 65 and older (the Ontario Drug Benefit).

Housing

The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board reported an average price of $993,410 across the Greater Toronto Area for August 2026, and the Ottawa Real Estate Board $688,253 for August 2026. The Ontario market page and city pages such as Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton and London track prices, and the cost-of-living pages for Toronto, Ottawa and Hamilton cover rent.

Buyers pay Ontario’s land transfer tax, and homes in Toronto also pay the city’s municipal land transfer tax; first-time buyers can get a refund of part of both. The land transfer tax calculator works out the amounts. Renters’ rules, including rent increase limits, are in tenant rights in Ontario.

Car insurance

Car insurance in Ontario is sold by private insurers under rules set by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA), and premiums vary widely with where you live, especially across the Greater Toronto Area. Car insurance in Ontario covers the coverage you need and what drives the price, and car insurance by province compares averages.

Child care

In Ontario, licensed child care programs enrolled in the Canada-wide (CWELCC) system charge at most $22 a day for children under six, with no application needed; programs that aren't enrolled set their own fees.

Wages and work rules

Ontario’s general minimum wage is $17.95 an hour (since October 1, 2026), the second-highest of the ten provinces. The student minimum wage is $16.90 an hour. In Ontario the student minimum wage is for students under 18 who work 28 hours a week or less while school is in session, or who work during a school break or the summer holidays; a student of any age who works as a homeworker gets the homeworker rate. Minimum wage in Canada compares the provinces and has the full student conditions, and Ontario’s Employment Standards Act rules on notice, severance and leave are covered in notice periods, severance pay and job-protected leave.

Sources

The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 5, 2026 and October 13, 2026. How we check facts.