Study of the Canadian Consumer Winter 2026<\/a> reveals that 49 per cent of Canadians carrying debt report living paycheque to paycheque, highlighting the financial strain many are facing right now.\u00a0<\/p>\nThe findings come just ahead of the Bank of Canada\u2019s next interest rate decision, showing how rising costs \u2014 from groceries to housing \u2014 are reshaping how people manage their money.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the survey, financial pressure is widespread among Canadians with debt. More than half (58 per cent) say they have less disposable income than before, while 51 per cent say they need to stick to a strict budget just to make ends meet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a lot of people in the country, credit cards are becoming less of a convenience and more of a lifeline. The report found that 36 per cent of Canadian credit card holders carry a balance, often using credit to cover gaps when money runs short.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What\u2019s driving the paycheque to paycheque reality?<\/p>\n
While the survey doesn\u2019t directly measure causes, Vividata\u2019s President and CEO Pat Pellegrini says the trend reflects deeper, long-term financial shifts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s two things,\u201d Pellegrini said. \u201cOne, wages in Canada have not kept up with the rate of inflation\u2026 and then I think debt levels, people\u2019s attitudes about taking credit, have changed over generations.\u201d<\/p>\n
He points to a widening gap between income and cost of living\u2014especially in cities like Toronto\u2014where salaries haven\u2019t kept pace with rising expenses.<\/p>\n
\u201cThirty years ago, some starting salaries in cities like Toronto, not that different [than today], but the cost of living is much more,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I think, people have to live more carefully than they did in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the same time, access to credit has reshaped spending habits, particularly among younger Canadians.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven if they don\u2019t need it, they will take offers to have credit,\u201d Pellegrini said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf they want to live a certain lifestyle, they will use their credit card instead of having money to pay for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That reliance on credit can quickly snowball.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you have non-mortgage debt, and unsecured types of lines, you can end up with quite a bit of debt in your credit card,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Reactions from Torontonians\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the streets of the city, many say the numbers reflect what they\u2019re already living through.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t surprise me at all,\u201d Rebecca said, who recently lost her job due to cuts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m now in that position myself, and I know for lots of folks, the job market is very rough right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says the rising cost of living has forced her and those around her to rethink housing, but options are limited.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are trying to find cheaper places, but it\u2019s only a couple of hundred dollars in difference; it\u2019s a drop in the bucket.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amy S. pointed to inflation and stagnant wages as key pressures.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSurprised? Not at all, not in this economy. Everything is quite expensive, we\u2019re not getting raises, we\u2019re not getting promotions, people can\u2019t keep up.\u201d<\/p>\n
To cope, she\u2019s cut back on spending. \u201cLess going out, less restaurants, eating more at home. Even subscriptions, trying to check everything and remove what I don\u2019t need.\u201d<\/p>\n
For others, the experience is already the norm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMe and my boyfriend live paycheque to paycheque, and I think everybody else I know in the city does as well,\u201d Morgan said. \u201cGroceries are expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joan E., who has worked in the food industry for nearly a decade, says the struggle isn\u2019t new.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s pretty awful having to live paycheque to paycheque, but it isn\u2019t really surprising, it\u2019s the norm.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even those not currently struggling say the trend makes sense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the cost of living going up all the time, it\u2019s not surprising.\u201d He added that he isn\u2019t currently living paycheque to paycheque, but recognizes how common it\u2019s become, and how fortunate he is.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A shift toward \u201csurvival spending\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond day-to-day budgeting, Pellegrini says the bigger concern is what this means long-term.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t live like you want to live and save in your 20\u2019s and 30\u2019s\u2026 it\u2019s just not what\u2019s happening,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead, many Canadians are delaying savings and focusing on managing debt, what he describes as a fundamental shift in financial behaviour.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of saving, they\u2019re servicing their debt,\u201d Pellegrini said, pointing to survey findings that show Canadians are increasingly using credit as a \u201csafety valve\u201d when money is tight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The emotional toll is also rising. More than a third (37 per cent) of Canadians with debt say they feel overwhelmed by financial burdens, while 71 per cent say rising costs have reduced their ability to save.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And while the inflation economic indicator may suggest stability, Pellegrini says they don\u2019t reflect lived reality.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is more the reality than putting out a percentage number like \u2018oh well, inflation is only 1.8 per cent, so we\u2019re all in good shape.\u2019 I don\u2019t think so,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What to know 49 per cent of Canadians with debt say they\u2019re living paycheque to paycheque, reflecting widespread…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":546914,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[45,49,48,10262,46,3302],"class_list":["post-546913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cost-of-living","tag-economy","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=546913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/546913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/546914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=546913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=546913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=546913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}