How much does it cost to rent a room in a shared house in Canada?

What is a ‘shared house’?

Renting a room in a shared house means that you are only renting the single room. In most cases you are also granted access to other parts of the house, including the bathroom, kitchen, dining room, and shared common spaces. However, be sure to check with the landlord to understand specifically what is included in your rent.

Who do you share the house with?

A shared house is often shared between several renters who each rent a single room and share the common spaces. However, it’s also possible to rent a room from the owner of the house who will also be living there with you. Again, it’s good to verify the living arrangements and expectations before signing an agreement or making any payments.

Depending on the province, those renting a single room in a shared house may have fewer tenant rights than tenants renting a complete apartment. For example, in British Columbia, two people living together in the same dwelling might sign the same tenancy agreement (co-tenants) or they might each sign a different agreement with the same landlord (tenants in common). The tenants have slightly different rights and obligations in these situations—outlined here. Comparable differences exist in other provinces, too. It’s a good idea to check the tenant rights for your province before you make a commitment.

Most apartments in Canada are leased for a period of 12 months or more. However, in some cases, a landlord may rent out a room in a shared house for a shorter duration—a few weeks or months. This can make renting a room in a shared house more advantageous for those seeking a shorter rental period.

Factors Impacting Rental Cost

First and foremost, the cost is going to vary dramatically depending on a few factors:

• City/Town: Vancouver and Toronto have the highest rental prices in Canada. Meanwhile, cities like Montreal and Winnipeg have more affordable prices.
• Neighbourhood: Do you want to live downtown right next to the water? You can expect to pay more. Typically, the further away from the downtown core and other trendy neighbourhoods, the cheaper the rent will be.
• Quality of Accommodations: As expected, you’ll typically pay less for a smaller room, a basement room, or a room in a house that hasn’t been renovated in a few years. A recently renovated house with new appliances is likely to be more expensive.
• Number of Roommates: If you have more roommates, usually you’ll pay less rent.
• Research: Spend time researching your options. Start early and work hard. Check popular rental sites like Sparrow and Rentals.ca but also use any community connections you might have. Often the best deals on rentals come through word-of-mouth—a friend of a friend is moving to a new city and needs someone to take over their room? Check it out.

With these tips in mind, it’s time to set some expectations for your rental costs. Since prices vary so dramatically from city to city, we’ve decided to break things down to cover three major cities in Canada: Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. If you’re planning to live in another city, you can still use these ranges as a guide—Toronto and Vancouver have the highest rental costs in Canada, while Montreal is a more affordable option offering a good balance between cost of living and quality of life.

Renting Tips: Research matters

Below, we outline rental estimates for rooms in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. But—the price you pay can vary significantly based on where and how you locate your apartment. We recommend using Rentals.ca and Sparrow to research and compare different options.

Be sure you do your research! Not only can it help you find a good deal, but it can also help you avoid rental scams. And, trust us, there are plenty of scammers out there trying to take advantage of new renters on the market. Check out these tips to help avoid a rental scam.

With enough research online, you can find a decent deal on a rental. But, often there are excellent rentals that are never posted online—they’re rooms traded between friends who are moving and want to get their buddy a good deal.

Finally, consider who you’ll be living with. If it’s a shared house with five other roommates, are you able to meet any of the roommates and chat before signing a lease? This will give you an opportunity to get to know your prospective housemate, ask questions about the apartment, and assess compatibility. (Pro tip: Use this guide from the University of Toronto to help determine roommate compatibility!)

How did we research for this article?

We consulted recent listings on Rentals.ca, Sparrow, and Facebook Marketplace. We also checked average rental calculators like Numbeo—although these tools don’t allow you to filter cost based on ‘type of room.’ Finally, we joined several student housing groups on Facebook for university students in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal, and catalogued prices for recent shared house listings.

The prices in this article reflect the housing market in April 2025.

Cost to rent a shared room in Toronto in 2025

If you want to rent a room in a shared house in downtown Toronto, your options range from approximately $1,100/month to $1,500/month. On the lower end, you can expect small rooms, more roommates, and a less-than-pristine property. The higher end can get you a more spacious room in a nice building in a good location.

Now, if you’re willing to live outside the downtown core—think east of Coxwell Ave., west of Roncesvalles Ave., and north of Lawrence Ave—then rental prices drop significantly. In these areas, prices begin around $850/month.

For international students, we located a few listings for a room in a shared house for students near the University of Toronto that clocked in at about $1,000/month. So, cheaper options are possible but required some digging to find.

Of course, if you want something fancier, more expensive options are available—but, at that point you may also want to consider renting your own apartment or splitting an apartment with one or two roommates.

Cost to rent a shared room in Vancouver in 2025

Vancouver is the most expensive rental market in Canada.

If you’re want to live in Vancouver proper—downtown, East Vancouver, South Vancouver, Kitsilano, etc.—then you can expect to pay a hefty rental fee. In our research for current listings, there are only a handful of room rentals in the downtown core for $1,000 or less and these listings seem less than ideal. One room in the West End stated, “you’ll be living in the living room.” This room costs $1,000 per month.

More legitimate options for renting a shared room in Vancouver proper begin at around $1,200/month. You can expect to pay up to $1,700/month for a more spacious room in a higher-quality place with few roommates. For that cost, however, it is also worth exploring renting a two- or three-bedroom apartment and splitting the cost with roommates.

If don’t need to live in Vancouver itself, you can also find more affordable options in surrounding cities like Burnaby and Surrey. In these cities, it’s possible to find a room in a shared house starting around $800/month.

Cost to rent a shared room in Montreal in 2025

Montreal is the most affordable city we’re exploring in this article. There are cheaper places to live in Canada—smaller cities like Winnipeg (Manitoba), Moncton (New Brunswick) and Quebec City (Quebec)—but Montreal offers an excellent quality of life for its affordability. This makes it a popular option among newcomers and students.

If you have your heart set on living in downtown Montreal, or in one of the trendy neighbourhoods like the Plateau or Mile End, you can expect to pay somewhere between $900-$1,200/month for a room in a shared house. If you’re above $1,200/month, you might be better off searching for an apartment on your own or considering splitting a two-bedroom or three-bedroom apartment with roommates.

If you’re willing to live outside the downtown core and trendy neighbourhoods, it’s possible to find a room in a shared house in Montreal starting around $600/month. This price is typically for a smaller room in a home that could use a deep clean or a renovation. In the $700-$900/month range, it’s possible to find a comfortable room in a decent place. We found a few listings for big, shared houses (6 roommates) for $850/month. In certain private Facebook groups, we found listings even cheaper than that (it’s important to do your research!).

For international students, we were able to find some even better prices close to university campuses by searching Facebook groups for student housing. Always be careful with Facebook groups, though, as they have a lot of scams—be vigilant!

Where to look for a room in a shared house?

We recommend checking out the listings on Rentals.ca and Sparrow. Both companies are trusted partners of Moving2Canada—we’re willing to vouch for their quality.

Of course, you should always do your due diligence. There are several groups on Facebook that can be useful for finding accommodations that aren’t listed anywhere else (this is especially true for student housing). Search for Facebook groups for your preferred neighbourhoods or for students (if you’re a student).

And—talk to friends and family who live in your desired area. A personal connection can get you a much cheaper rental price than an online listing. It never hurts to ask. Happy hunting!