Here's how much you really need to earn per hour to afford rent in Toronto right now

Even for those who aren't locked into mortgages to cover the exorbitant expense of owning a home in the Toronto area, simply getting by in the region and keeping a roof over one's head requires a job that earns far more than you may think.

Multiple reports about the "real" cost of living in the region continue to reiterate how wide the gap is between the government-mandated minimum wage and a "living" wage, which is what experts believe one would need to make to "comfortably" cover rent and other basic bills.

Adding fuel to this narrative, another such study was just published, outlining where the living wage in the region currently stands.

In the generally accepted model for living wage calculations, residents should devote, at most, somewhere around 30 per cent of their income to housing expenses. And, based on the latest rent prices — gathered by Canadian real estate company Zoocasa — this means that someone in Toronto would need to bring in more than double Ontario's new minimum wage of $17.60 per hour.

This is even in the face of declining rental rates and progressively increasing number of landlords offering rent breaks and other incentives across Ontario in recent months.

"In October 2025, five provinces (including Ontario) raised their minimum wages to help workers keep pace with rising living costs, joining [others] that had already made similar increases in early 2025," Zoocasa states in its new release on what tenants should earn to cover housing costs and still have enough left over for daily life expenses in hubs across the country.

"Despite these efforts, one major expense continues to rise faster than incomes: rent. While rental prices have cooled slightly from the record highs of 2023, affordability remains out of reach for many Canadians, especially single earners trying to rent a one-bedroom apartment at the average price," it continues.

People in Toronto, which perennially serves as one of the top three priciest places to rent (or purchase) a place in the nation, of course, need to rake in more than elsewhere in the country to cover the standard apartment, which now runs for about $2,295 per month, says the report.

At this price, a single citizen would need to make $44.13 per hour, or $86,062 per year, if they want to avoid the financial stress of existing hand-to-mouth.

And, venturing outside the city centre doesn't ease the burden much, with the living wage in Oakville ($42.81 hourly/$83,475 annually), Mississauga ($41.12 hourly/$80,175 annually) and even Greater Sudbury ($40.94 hourly/$79,838) still representing at least two times the current minimum wage.

Things are the worst in Vancouver and North Vancouver, where, by Zoocasa's metric, one would need to have a gig paying $48.10-$49.42 per hour (or $93,788-$96,375 per year) to get by "comfortably."

How living wage rates compare to minimum wage rates and rent prices across Canada in October 2025. Chart from Zoocasa.

And what about those who want to own a home of their own?

Recent analyses indicate that a salary of just over $200,000 per year is required to cover the typical mortgage, even with property values plummeting amid the market downturn.

Unfortunately, simply calling for lower housing prices isn't a simple answer, with many landlords hardly breaking even or losing money on top of grappling with other struggles in this environment. The loss of such mom-and-pop property owners would only lead to further domination of corporate landlords, which is not anyone's ideal.