The Cheapest Places to Live in Ontario in 2026 (With Current Prices)

The cheapest place to live in Ontario right now is Timmins. Homes there sold for an average of $324,413 in September 2026, about 59 per cent below the Ontario average of $791,691 for the same month. Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay come next, and the other cheapest places to live in Ontario ranked here sit in the north and the southwest: Chatham-Kent, Sarnia, North Bay, Greater Sudbury, Windsor and London.

Each price below is the latest monthly figure from that city’s own real estate board, and each rent comes from CMHC’s most recent rental survey, so every number carries its month. Small markets swing from month to month, which is why each city note also says which way prices are moving and how much room a buyer has to bargain.

The cheapest places to live in Ontario, ranked

Nine of the most affordable places to live in Ontario, ordered by the average price of homes sold in the latest month each board has reported. Rent figures are CMHC’s October 2025 averages by city for a one-bedroom apartment. The last two rows are the yardsticks: Ontario as a whole and the Greater Toronto Area.

Thunder Bay’s board summary gives a benchmark price rather than an average. Its median detached house sold for $395,000 in September 2026.

1. Timmins

On price alone, Timmins is the cheapest city to live in Ontario, and by a clear margin. Homes sold through the Timmins, Cochrane and Timiskaming Districts board averaged $324,413 in September 2026, according to the board’s September report, and $316,318 over the first nine months of the year. Cheap does not mean slow, though. Prices were up 11.8 per cent on the year, active listings were at their lowest September level in five years, and the market had 2.6 months of inventory against a long-run norm of 4.8 for the season. Buyers here compete for a thin supply.

The board covers a big piece of the northeast, from Hearst and Kapuskasing to Kirkland Lake and New Liskeard, so its average blends the city with smaller towns. A one-bedroom apartment averaged $1,177 in CMHC’s survey. Timmins makes the most sense if you already have work lined up there or earn a remote income, and you want the most house your money can buy anywhere in the province.

2. Sault Ste. Marie

The Sault Ste. Marie Real Estate Board reported an average sale price of $347,370 for August 2026 and $328,224 for the year to date. Its benchmark price, which tracks a typical home rather than whatever happened to sell that month, was lower still at $318,300. The market is loosening: August sales were the weakest for that month in 12 years, active listings were up 15.4 per cent and inventory reached 4.3 months. A buyer gets more choice and more room to negotiate here than in Timmins.

A one-bedroom averaged $1,167, second only to North Bay among the nine cities. The board’s territory runs across Algoma to Wawa and Elliot Lake. The Soo suits buyers who want a border city on the St. Marys River, with Algoma University and Sault College, at less than half the provincial average price.

3. Thunder Bay

Thunder Bay’s board summary gives a benchmark price instead of an average: $384,900 in September 2026, down 2.8 per cent from a year earlier. The median detached house sold for $395,000. Prices are easing even with buyers out in force, since September sales of detached homes in the city were the highest for that month in more than five years.

Work is the surprise. Thunder Bay had the lowest unemployment rate of any Ontario metro area in August 2026, 4.7 per cent on Statistics Canada’s three-month average. A one-bedroom averaged $1,173. It suits people who want a full regional centre, with a university, a college and the region’s main hospital, at northern prices, and who don’t mind being the farthest city on this list from Toronto.

4. Chatham-Kent

Chatham-Kent is the cheapest place to buy in southern Ontario on this list. Homes averaged $410,864 in September 2026 and $435,149 for the year to date. The market favours buyers: active listings reached their highest September level in more than a decade, and inventory sat at five months. The board covers the whole municipality, which takes in Chatham, Wallaceburg, Tilbury, Ridgetown and a long run of Lake Erie shoreline.

A one-bedroom averaged $1,203 and a two-bedroom $1,365. Chatham-Kent suits buyers who want small-town quiet and a shorter winter than the north, within reach of Windsor and London on the 401, and who can work locally or from home.

5. Sarnia

Sarnia-Lambton homes averaged $480,080 in September 2026, 5.1 per cent less than a year before, and the benchmark was $488,800. Active listings were the highest for September in 15 years and inventory stood at 5.6 months, which puts buyers in a strong spot this fall. A one-bedroom averaged $1,235.

Sarnia sits where Lake Huron drains into the St. Clair River, at the end of Highway 402 and the Blue Water Bridge to Michigan. It suits buyers who want beaches and a mid-sized city a few hours west of Toronto, and who have checked the local job market before they list their Toronto place.

6. North Bay

The North Bay and Area REALTORS Association reported an average of $481,809 for September 2026, down 6 per cent on the year, with a year-to-date average of $498,118 and a benchmark of $418,600. On price it is effectively tied with Sarnia. Where North Bay stands apart is rent: CMHC’s average for a one-bedroom was $1,078, the lowest of the nine cities.

It is also the closest of the northern cities on this list to Toronto, on Highway 11 between Lake Nipissing and Trout Lake. North Bay suits renters, retirees and anyone who wants the north without committing to the far north.

7. Greater Sudbury

Sudbury averaged $496,588 in August 2026 and $506,305 for the year to date, with a benchmark of $499,500. That is the top of the northern range, but it buys the north’s biggest job market, built on mining and mining supply, Laurentian University, Cambrian College and Health Sciences North. Unemployment was 6.2 per cent in August 2026, below Toronto’s 6.8. A one-bedroom averaged $1,244.

Check the tax bill before you fall for a listing. The 2026 residential rate in the former City of Sudbury is 1.907170 per cent of assessed value, about two and a half times Toronto’s rate; the section on other costs below has the comparison. If Sudbury makes your shortlist, see our page on moving to Greater Sudbury.

8. Windsor

Windsor-Essex homes averaged $544,184 in September 2026, a 4.6 per cent drop over twelve months, and $544,653 for the year to date. The board’s composite benchmark was $570,000, but townhouses came in at $422,600 and apartments at $368,500, which is where first-time buyers find the value. Inventory of 5.3 months, against a long-run average of 3.1 for September, gives buyers time.

A one-bedroom averaged $1,193, second only to Thunder Bay among Ontario’s metropolitan areas. The catch is work: unemployment was 7.5 per cent in August 2026, in a region built around auto plants and cross-border trade. Windsor suits buyers with secure or remote income who want a real city at about 31 per cent under the provincial average price.

9. London

London is the most expensive city on this list and still about a quarter below the Ontario average. The London and St. Thomas board’s August 2026 average was $590,550, with London East at $489,735 and St. Thomas at $557,485. Inventory reached a new high of 6.3 months, so buyers have leverage.

The weak spot is jobs: London’s unemployment rate was 8.5 per cent in August 2026, the highest of the metro areas here. A one-bedroom averaged $1,371. London suits people who want a big-city setup, with Western University and Fanshawe College, about two hours down the 401 from Toronto. For the move itself, see our page on London moving services.

How we ranked these cities

Prices come from each local board’s monthly report, published on CREA’s statistics site, which also carries the Ontario-wide figures. We used the newest month available in early October 2026: September for most boards, August for Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury and London. The ranking uses the average sale price because almost every board reports it. Thunder Bay’s summary gives a benchmark and a median instead, so its benchmark appears in the table. The nine are not the only low-priced markets: the Cornwall and District board in eastern Ontario averaged $478,008 in August 2026, just under Sarnia-Lambton’s September figure.

An average is a blunt tool. A month with a few lakefront sales pushes it up and a month of small bungalows pulls it down, so treat cities within a few per cent of each other, like Sarnia and North Bay, as tied. Board areas are also wider than the city names suggest: the Timmins board covers the Cochrane and Timiskaming districts, the Sault board covers Algoma, and the London board covers Middlesex and Elgin counties.

Rents are CMHC’s October 2025 averages for purpose-built apartments and townhouses, the newest survey available. They reflect what all tenants pay, including people who moved in years ago, so a unit listed today will usually cost more.

How the prices compare with Toronto

The gap with Toronto is the reason this list gets read. TRREB put the Greater Toronto Area’s average selling price at $1,006,409 in its September 2026 market report, down 5.1 per cent from a year earlier. That is about three times the Timmins average, roughly twice the averages in Sarnia, North Bay and Sudbury, and 1.7 times London’s.

Rent tells the same story with smaller numbers. CMHC’s average for a Toronto one-bedroom was $1,761 in October 2025, against $1,078 in North Bay and $1,177 in Timmins. New leases cost more again: the average asking rent for apartments and condos in Toronto was $2,554 in September 2026, the lowest September level in five years, according to Rentals.ca’s October 2026 National Rent Report.

The saving is only as solid as your income. If your pay depends on a Toronto employer, the numbers above hold only if the job travels with you. Run them against the work you will actually have before you list.

The cheapest cities to rent in Ontario

Renters get a different ranking. On CMHC’s numbers for a one-bedroom, North Bay ($1,078) is the cheapest city to rent in Ontario among these nine, followed by Sault Ste. Marie ($1,167), Thunder Bay ($1,173), Timmins ($1,177) and Windsor ($1,193). London is the priciest at $1,371, still well below the Ontario average of $1,589. For a two-bedroom, Timmins ($1,291) and Chatham-Kent ($1,365) come out cheapest.

Smaller towns go lower still. In the same October 2025 survey, Elliot Lake’s average one-bedroom was $789 and Pembroke’s $953. Expect fewer units to choose from in places that size.

Asking rents are also falling across the province. Rentals.ca measured a 4.8 per cent annual drop for all property types in Ontario in September 2026, and Ontario apartment and condo rents were 10.3 per cent lower than three years earlier. That makes renting in a new city for a while, before you decide to buy, cheaper than it was.

What else moves the cost of living

House price and rent are the big lines. Three other costs can close the gap faster than people expect.

Property tax. Toronto’s 2026 residential rate is 0.767311 per cent of assessed value, according to the City of Toronto’s 2026 tax rates. Greater Sudbury’s 2026 tax rate schedule sets 1.907170 per cent in the former City of Sudbury and 1.705568 per cent in most outlying areas. On every $100,000 of assessed value, that is about $767 a year in Toronto against about $1,907 in central Sudbury. Bills are based on the assessed value set by MPAC, not your purchase price, so ask for the current tax bill on any house you look at instead of doing the maths from the listing price.

Heat and the car. Northern winters are longer and colder, so budget more for heating, snow tires and a block heater for the coldest January mornings. Outside Toronto, most of these cities are built around the car. All of them run local buses, but nothing replaces a subway and streetcar network, and a household that gets by with one car in Toronto may need two in Sudbury or Chatham-Kent.

Jobs. A cheap house only works if the income holds. In August 2026, Statistics Canada’s three-month unemployment rates were 4.7 per cent in Thunder Bay, 6.2 in Greater Sudbury, 6.8 in Toronto, 7.5 in Windsor and 8.5 in London, according to the Canadian Press list of jobless rates by city. Timmins, the Sault, North Bay, Sarnia and Chatham-Kent are not in those monthly figures, which cover only the larger metropolitan areas.

Where prices are heading in each market

These cities are cheap for plain reasons: fewer buyers, more land, smaller job markets and a long drive to the GTA’s employers. The board reports add direction, and right now the far north and the southwest are moving in opposite ways. Across the province, September 2026 sales were 8.3 per cent lower than a year earlier.

In Timmins, supply is tight and prices are climbing, up 11.8 per cent in a year with only 2.6 months of inventory. The southwest has the opposite problem. Windsor-Essex had 5.3 months of inventory, Sarnia-Lambton had more homes for sale than in any September for 15 years, Chatham-Kent’s were the highest in more than a decade, and London’s inventory reached a new high in August. Sault Ste. Marie sits in between, with listings up and its weakest August sales in 12 years.

That calls for two different approaches. In the southwest and the Soo, you can take your time, put conditions in your offer and negotiate on price. In Timmins, a fairly priced house is unlikely to wait while you think it over.

The trade-offs to weigh before you move

Lower prices come with costs that never show up in a table. The north means long winters, long drives back to family in the GTA and flights out of smaller airports. Some specialist health care may mean travel. Rental choice is thin in the smaller markets, and a house in a slow market can take longer to sell if you change your mind.

The upside is real too: more space for the money, shorter commutes and, in the north, lakes and trails close to home. A few habits cut the risk. Visit in February as well as July. Check the internet service at the exact address if you work remotely. And rent for six months to a year before you buy, so you learn the neighbourhoods before you commit to one.

Moving from Toronto to a cheaper Ontario city

Once you have picked a city, the move becomes a long-distance job, and we quote it for your route and your load. Our published starting prices for long-distance moves out of Toronto include Toronto to London from $700 for a one-bedroom and from $1,100 for a two-bedroom. Longer runs, such as a move to Timmins or a relocation to Thunder Bay, are priced after a quick video walkthrough of your home, which gets you a real estimate instead of a guess.

Our own crews do the work; we don’t use brokers or subcontracted crews. Standard coverage of $0.60 per pound per article, the industry standard, is included, and a full replacement-value upgrade is available, which is worth pricing for a long haul. Our long-haul moving service page explains how those moves run.

If you plan to rent before you buy, you may not want to haul a full house of furniture into a one-bedroom. Our climate-controlled storage is short or long term, monitored and inventoried, nothing goes to a third-party warehouse, and you pay only for the space and time you use. It also pays to declutter room by room before the walkthrough, since every box you sell or donate is weight you don’t pay to move.

Timing matters more on these routes than in the city. Highway 11 and Highway 17 in January are not the same roads they are in June, so if your dates are flexible, read up on the cheapest time of year to move in Ontario before you set a closing date. To price your move, call (905) 752-7787 or request a quote online.

Put a real number next to your budget. Call (905) 752-7787; the line is open 24 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cheapest place to live in Ontario?

Timmins, on home prices. The local board’s September 2026 average was $324,413, less than half of Ontario’s September average of $791,691, and its average for the first nine months of the year was $316,318. Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay are the next cheapest, and both still come in at less than half the provincial average.

What are the top 5 cheapest places to live in Ontario?

Using the latest 2026 average sale price from each local real estate board, the five cheapest are Timmins at $324,413, Sault Ste. Marie at $347,370, Thunder Bay at $384,900 (a benchmark price), Chatham-Kent at $410,864 and Cornwall at $478,008. The Sault and Cornwall figures are for August 2026 and the rest are for September 2026. Sarnia-Lambton ($480,080) and North Bay ($481,809) are effectively tied with Cornwall.

What is the cheapest city to rent in Ontario?

Among the nine cities ranked here, North Bay had the lowest average one-bedroom rent in CMHC’s October 2025 survey at $1,078, followed by Sault Ste. Marie ($1,167), Thunder Bay ($1,173) and Timmins ($1,177). Small towns go lower; Elliot Lake averaged $789. Units listed for rent today usually cost more than these averages, which include long-time tenants.

Which city has the lowest cost of living in Ontario?

For housing, the north wins: Timmins has the lowest home prices and North Bay the lowest one-bedroom rents among the cities ranked here. The full cost of living also depends on property tax (central Sudbury’s 2026 residential rate is about two and a half times Toronto’s), heating, car costs and local wages, so compare a whole monthly budget, not prices alone.

Is Northern Ontario cheaper than Southern Ontario?

Mostly, yes. Three of the four cheapest markets by home price in the latest board reports are northern: Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay. Chatham-Kent, in the southwest, is the exception. The northern cities on this list sit roughly 37 to 59 per cent below the Ontario average price, while Windsor and London cost more but offer bigger job markets.

What is the average house price in Ontario right now?

The average price of homes sold across Ontario was $791,691 in September 2026, 4.3 per cent lower than a year earlier, according to CREA’s figures for the province. The average for the first nine months of 2026 was $813,003, and the MLS Home Price Index benchmark was $736,300. In the Greater Toronto Area, TRREB’s September 2026 average was $1,006,409.

How much does it cost to move from Toronto to a cheaper Ontario city?

Moving Co. quotes each long-distance move for the route and the load. Its published starting prices for Toronto to London are from $700 (one-bedroom) and from $1,100 (two-bedroom). Moves to northern cities such as Timmins, Thunder Bay or Sault Ste. Marie are priced once you show us your home in a short video walkthrough, which gives you a real estimate rather than a guess.

Where is the cheapest place to live in Canada in 2026?

For renters, the lowest average asking rents in Rentals.ca’s September 2026 data were in Alberta: Fort McMurray ($1,258), Medicine Hat ($1,339) and Lloydminster ($1,379), with Saskatoon ($1,397) and Regina ($1,400) the cheapest outside Alberta. None of the cheapest markets it names are in Ontario; on CMHC’s survey of what tenants pay, North Bay’s average one-bedroom was $1,078 in October 2025.