Ontario’s economy grew 1.8% in 2025; its household interest burden, 10.4%, was the highest in Canada

What happened

Statistics Canada released the provincial and territorial economic accounts for 2025 on November 5, 2026. This yearly report shows how much each province’s economy grew and how much households earned, spent and saved. These are the figures in the release and its map and chart.

• In 2025, GDP rose in every province and in Yukon and Nunavut. Only the Northwest Territories (−1.7%) declined. Among the provinces, Newfoundland and Labrador (+4.3%) grew fastest and Quebec (+1.0%) slowest. British Columbia grew 2.4%.
• Household spending rose 2.0%. This was the slowest growth since the COVID-19 drop in 2020.
• Among the provinces, household saving rates were highest in Quebec (8.6%) and Alberta (8.0%); the territories were higher still. Ontario (3.4%) was below the Canadian average, but Statistics Canada noted that Ontario’s saving grew faster than average from a year earlier.
• Ontario (10.4%) and British Columbia (9.7%) had the highest household debt service ratios. These two provinces also had the largest drops in the ratio.
• Interest paid on mortgages and other debt fell in every province and territory in 2025. Statistics Canada said the Bank of Canada’s policy rate cuts, from June 2024 through October 2025, helped ease household borrowing costs.
• This release also revised the figures for 2023 and 2024 with new data.

In a chart: three years in Ontario

There are two charts. The first shows Ontario’s economic growth using each year’s first-release figure. The second shows Ontario’s household debt service ratio using one table released this week. On first-release figures, growth was similar each year, in the high 1% range. The interest burden rose a lot from 2021 and came down a little in 2025.

• +1.8%Ontario real GDP growth, 2025 (Canada +1.9%)
• 3.4%Ontario household saving rate, 2025 (Canada 4.4%)
• 10.4%Ontario household debt service ratio (interest only), 2025 — highest in Canada

The terms in plain words

• Real GDP: the value of all goods and services made in a country or province in a year, with price increases taken out. The growth rate is how much it rose from the year before, in percent.
• Disposable income: income minus payments such as income tax, plus money received from governments. It is the money households can actually spend.
• Household saving rate: the share of disposable income households do not spend. 3.4% means $3.40 left over from every $100 (a regional average).
• Household debt service ratio (interest only): the share of disposable income that goes to interest on mortgages and other debt. Principal is not included. It is worked out differently from the GDS and TDS ratios lenders use.
• Imputed rent: a value for the rent that people who live in their own homes would pay. Statistics Canada counts it in household spending, along with rent actually paid.
• Revised: Statistics Canada updates past years with data that came in late, so the same year can show different numbers in different releases.

The background Statistics Canada gave

• Growth was led by household spending, followed by government spending and investment. Lower goods exports and falling business inventories held growth back.
• The rise in household spending was led by financial services (mainly investment fees), followed by rent (both paid and imputed). Spending on education fell as there were fewer international students, and spending abroad fell as fewer Canadians travelled to the United States.
• The household consumption price measure (deflator) rose 2.5% in 2025, easing from 2.6% in 2024 and 3.7% in 2023.
• Investment (capital spending) rose 1.6%, led by government spending on engineering structures and non-residential buildings.
• International exports fell 1.1% and international imports fell 0.4%. With tariffs and global uncertainty, trade between provinces grew as a share of total trade. Ontario had the lowest share of trade between provinces, at 27.8%.
• Compensation of employees (wages and similar pay) rose 4.8% (2024: 6.1%).

What it means if you are buying, selling or renting in the GTA (explained)

This is not advice. It explains what the statistics mean in plain words. These figures are province-wide averages for 2025; they do not show numbers for the GTA alone or for your own household.

• Interest burden: in 2025, Ontario households on average paid about $10 of every $100 of disposable income in interest. Statistics Canada said this is because they hold more debt, especially for housing. Lower rates eased the burden in 2025, but on October 28, 2026 the Bank of Canada raised its policy rate from 2.25% to 2.50% (Bank of Canada key interest rate page). The effect of that increase is not in the 2025 figures.
• Buyers: your own numbers matter more than the average. At pre-approval, check your monthly payment at the stress-test rate, and add up everything you will pay each month: principal as well as interest, property tax and condo fees.
• Saving rate of 3.4% (opinion): Ontario households, on average, keep less of their income than the Canadian average. Many may need more time to build a down payment. Still, saving was up from a year earlier.
• Sellers: Ontario’s growth (1.8%) was close to Canada’s (1.9%). These statistics cannot tell you which way prices in your neighbourhood will go. For your local market, GTA figures such as TRREB’s monthly statistics are the better guide (opinion).
• Renters: rent was one of the items that led the rise in household spending in 2025. Rent increases follow Ontario law, so check the Ontario government’s official guidance for the limit that applies to your lease.

What to watch next

• For the dates of the next provincial and territorial economic accounts and the quarterly national accounts, check the release schedule on the Statistics Canada website.
• The Bank of Canada’s next rate decision date is on the Bank’s official schedule.
• The numbers here are from the November 5, 2026 release; Statistics Canada can revise them later.