How Utilities in Canada Work

What are the Utilities in Canada?

Utilities are the essential home services that keep your household running. In different countries, these services may also be referred to as public utilities, utility services, or essential services.

In Canada, utilities typically include electricity, water, heating, natural gas, internet, and waste collection. Provincial or municipal authorities regulate these services and may be provided by public or private companies, depending on the region.

When renting or buying a home in Canada, some utilities may be included in your monthly housing costs, while others need to be set up and paid separately.

How Much Do Utilities Cost Per Month in Canada?

In general, utilities in Canada are not overly expensive. If you’re renting a property, the costs may be included in your monthly rent.

As of May 2026, these are the usual ranges for utilities across Canada:

Are Utilities Always Included in Rent?

List of Utilities in Canada

Here’s a list of service providers for basic utilities in Canada.

1. Electricity

Residential electricity prices vary considerably across Canada.
As of data released in 2025, for a household consuming around 1,000 kWh per month, the cost can go from $83 up to to $375 per month, depending on the province or territory.

Here are the rates for a typical household, consuming 1,000 kWh per month, per province:

• Alberta: $187,10
• British Columbia: $131,9
• Manitoba: $109,5
• New Brunswick: $152
• Newfoundland: $169,5
• Nova Scotia: $161
• Northwest Territories: $255
• Nunavut: $374,7
• Ontario: $164,5
• Prince Edward Island: $198
• Quebec: $82,9
• Saskatchewan: $178,9
• Yukon: $136.1

The differences are caused by a variety of factors, including the type of energy sources used in the area, population density, and the distance from the generation source to the household.

Canada’s rates are among the lowest in the world, and household electricity is cheaper in Canada than in the USA and many European countries.

Which electricity company serves my province?

• British Columbia: BC Hydro
• Ontario: several options, including Hydro One and Toronto Hydro
• Alberta: Energy Alberta
• Saskatchwean: SaskPower
• Manitoba: Manitoba Hydro
• Quebec: Hydro Quebec
• Prince Edward Island: Maritime Electric
• New Brunswick: NB Power
• Nova Scotia: Nova Scotia Power
• Newfoundland: Newfoundland & Labrador Hydro

2. Phone

Rogers, Bell, Telus, and Shaw are among the providers of landline home phone service and also mobile plans. Availability will depend on your location.

What is the cost of a home phone landline in Canada?

The costs vary significantly based on the technology and providers. As of May 2026:

• TELUS: Standard landline plans start around CAD$33/month.
• Bell: Packages like Home Phone Lite start at around CAD$58.32/month
• Rogers: is the cheapest, voice plans can be added to existing bundles for around CAD$17.00/month

What is the cost of a home cell phone plan in Canada?

In Canada, mobile plan costs typically range from CAD$15 to CAD$85+per month, depending on your data needs, if its prepaid or postpaid and whether you bring your own device.

As of May 2026:

• Basic talk and text plans: From CAD$15 to CAD$20/month
• Data (40GB to 60GB) 5G plans: From CAD$45 to CAD$55/month.

For detailed mobile prepaid and postpaid cell service costs, visit our Cell Phone Plans in Canada Guide for a list of options and for guidance to help you choose your plan.

Get Your Phone Plan Before You Land in Canada

CanadianSIM offers newcomers competitive phone plans (like 50GB for $30!) with the following included as standard:

• No cancellation fees and no contracts, so it doesn’t cost you hundreds of dollars to cancel.
• 1000 International minutes, unlimited Canada-wide calling, and plans that cover Canada and the USA.
• Unlimited international texting.
• Caller ID and voicemail, for no extra cost.
• Unlimited data allowances, so no charges for using extra data (you’ll just use a slower network if you go over your allowance).
• Free doorstop delivery of your SIM in certain countries — and eSIM availability, so you can connect when you land.
• Post-paid plans that help you build your credit history in Canada.

The catch? You must get your CanadianSIM before you land in Canada. It’s a special offer for those not yet in Canada.

Step into Canada fully connected. Your SIM card, your way! Get started with CanadianSIM by completing this short form.

3. Internet Service Providers

The main internet service providers in Canada offer promotions to new customers, so be sure to see what savings you can receive.

There are a number of other considerations you’ll need to keep in mind also, including what technical support is available, usage caps and download / upload speeds, and any rental costs for equipment.

Visit our Internet Service Providers in Canada guide for more detail.

4. Cable TV

Cable TV services are offered by Bell, Rogers, Shaw, Telus, Novus, and others. Availability depends on your location in Canada. Since 2016, service providers must offer a package that costs no more than $25 per month, not including the rental or purchase of equipment. However, if you want to watch sports and movies, then you can expect to pay close to $100 a month, or more.

Another option is to buy an aerial (or ‘antenna’), and receive free ‘over-the-air (OTA)’ channels, similar to how you receive Freeview in the UK, or Saorview in Ireland. This isn’t a commonly used option in Canada however, so you’ll likely only pick up five or six channels (or none at all, if nearby environmental factors prevent you getting a signal). These will have some of the most popular news and entertainment programs, a few live hockey games, and will usually be in HD.

Many Canadians are opting for subscription streaming services like Netflix and Prime Video rather than traditional cable options.

Related: How to stream TV from home in Canada

To manage your finances well and make smart financial decisions once you move to Canada, it is important to keep track of your credit score. There are free tools and services available to support you in doing so. For instance, Borrowell’s free credit score tool can help you monitor your creditworthiness with financial institutions.