Canada
Canadian mortgage calculators, rates, and plain-English guides
Work out what you can afford, what the stress test means, and what your payment really costs — then read a guide that cites the official Canadian source instead of guessing.
Start here
The questions most Canadian borrowers ask first.
Qualifying & Pre-Approval
The Canadian Mortgage Stress Test, Explained
The mortgage stress test in Canada, explained: how the qualifying rate is set, who must pass it, and how it changes the amount you are allowed to borrow.
Qualifying & Pre-Approval
How Much Mortgage Can I Afford in Canada?
How much mortgage can I afford? Work through income, debts, the stress test, and the real costs of ownership to land on a payment you can genuinely live with.
Renewal, Refinance & Switching
Mortgage Renewal in Canada: A Step-by-Step Guide
A mortgage renewal is your best chance to cut costs. Learn the notice window, why switching at maturity is cheapest, and how renewal differs from a refinance.
Mortgage Basics
Fixed vs Variable Mortgage Rates in Canada
Fixed vs variable mortgage rate: compare how each is set, how your payments move, and which break penalty applies, so you can choose what fits your budget.
Closing Costs & Insurance
Mortgage Default Insurance in Canada, Explained
Mortgage default insurance protects your lender, not you. See when it is required, how the tiered premium is structured, and how to avoid paying it at all.
Home Equity & HELOC
Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOC) in Canada
A home equity line of credit lets you borrow against your home at a variable rate. Learn the 65% and 80% limits, demand-facility risk, and the real costs.
First-Time Buyers
First-Time Home Buyer Programs in Canada
The main first time home buyer programs in Canada include the RRSP Home Buyers' Plan, the FHSA, and tax rebates. Learn how each works and how to combine them.
Payments & Amortization
How Mortgage Payments Are Calculated in Canada
See how mortgage payments are calculated in Canada: the semi-annual compounding formula, the principal-and-interest split, and a fully worked example.
Free mortgage calculators
Every calculator runs in your browser. No sign-up, and no rate figures invented — you enter the numbers.
Calculator
Mortgage Payment Calculator
Work out your monthly, bi-weekly, or weekly mortgage payment from the loan amount, rate, amortization, and payment frequency.
Calculator
Mortgage Affordability Calculator
Estimate the maximum home price and mortgage you may qualify for using Canadian gross debt service (GDS) and total debt service (TDS) ratios.
Calculator
Mortgage Stress Test Calculator
See the qualifying rate the federal mortgage stress test applies to your application and what it does to your maximum purchase price.
Calculator
Mortgage Renewal Calculator
Compare your current payment with the payment at a new renewal rate, and see the interest difference over the next term.
Calculator
Amortization Schedule Calculator
Generate a year-by-year mortgage amortization schedule showing how each payment splits between principal and interest.
Calculator
Down Payment Calculator
Calculate the minimum down payment for a Canadian home under the tiered rules, plus whether CMHC mortgage insurance applies.
Mortgage rates & rules
Benchmark rates and lending rules, each attributed to the official publisher with an as-of date.
Bank of Canada policy interest rate (target for the overnight rate)
2.25%
Source: Bank of Canada · Rate maintained at 2.25% on September 2, 2026, effective September 3, 2026. Last change was a decrease to 2.25% on October 29, 2025.
Prime rate (chartered banks)
4.45%
Source: Bank of Canada · Bank of Canada series V80691311 (prime rate). Each financial institution sets its own prime rate.
Conventional mortgage: 5-year (chartered banks)
6.09%
Source: Bank of Canada · Bank of Canada series V80691335: the interest rate for a 5-year conventional mortgage offered by chartered banks in Canada.
Minimum qualifying rate (mortgage stress test floor)
5.25%
(the greater of the contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%)
Source: Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) · Applies to uninsured mortgages. For insured mortgages the Minister of Finance applies the same floor of 5.25% (or the contract rate plus 2%). Confirm the current floor with OSFI or your lender.
Explore by topic
Nine clusters covering the whole life of a mortgage, from first pre-approval to paying it off.
13 guides
Mortgage Basics
What a mortgage is, how Canadian mortgages are structured, and the choices you make before you apply.
13 guides
Qualifying & Pre-Approval
How lenders decide, what the federal stress test requires, and how to get pre-approved.
12 guides
Rates & Terms
How mortgage rates are set in Canada, what moves them, and how to compare them honestly.
12 guides
Payments & Amortization
How payments are calculated, how frequency changes them, and how amortization works.
12 guides
Closing Costs & Insurance
The one-time and ongoing costs of a mortgage: default insurance, land transfer tax, and fees.
12 guides
Renewal, Refinance & Switching
What happens at renewal, how to switch lenders, and how to refinance without overpaying.
12 guides
Home Equity & HELOC
Borrowing against home equity: HELOCs, second mortgages, reverse mortgages, and consolidation.
12 guides
First-Time Buyers
Down payments, the RRSP Home Buyers' Plan, the FHSA, and the federal first-time buyer programs.
12 guides
Paying Off Faster
Prepayments, payment frequency, and the trade-offs of paying a mortgage down early.
Mortgages across Canada
Provincial rules and city pages with local population data from the 2021 Census.
Why trust this site
Every guide is written for the Canadian market and cites official sources — CMHC, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, OSFI, the Bank of Canada, and the Canada Revenue Agency. Where a figure changes, we attach its as-of date and a link to the publisher instead of printing a number that quietly goes stale.
This site is independent. Some links are affiliate links, clearly disclosed, and they never change what we publish or how we explain it. Read our editorial policy and our methodology.