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How much debt are Canadian households carrying relative to their income? Statistics Canada's quarterly credit-market-debt-to-disposable-income ratio, and what's driving its recent climb.
was household credit market debt as a share of disposable income, Q4 2025
— meaning Canadians carried $1.77 in debt for every dollar of disposable income, the fifth straight quarterly increase.
Statistics Canada
Seasonally adjusted household credit market debt as a share of disposable income, by quarter.
Seasonally adjusted household credit market debt as a percentage of household disposable income, from Statistics Canada's National Balance Sheet and Financial Flow Accounts, Q4 2025 (released March 16, 2026).
Five straight quarterly increases: The debt-to-income ratio climbed every quarter through 2025, from 174.8% at the end of 2024 to 177.2% by Q4 2025, as mortgage borrowing outpaced income growth.
Mortgages are driving it: Households took on $110.6 billion in new mortgage debt in 2025, up from $94.0 billion in 2024, even as non-mortgage borrowing fell.
Still below the 2022 record: At 177.2%, the ratio remains under the all-time high of 188.2% set in the third quarter of 2022, before the Bank of Canada's rate-hike cycle cooled borrowing.
The debt-service burden is easing even as debt grows: The household debt service ratio — the share of income going to debt payments — actually eased to 14.57% in Q4 2025 as mortgage interest costs declined.
| Quarter | Debt-to-income ratio | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2024 | 174.8% | — |
| Q1 2025 | 173.9% | — |
| Q2 2025 | 174.9% | — |
| Q3 2025 | 176.7% | — |
| Q4 2025 | 177.2% | $1.77 in debt per dollar of disposable income |
Source: Statistics Canada, National Balance Sheet and Financial Flow Accounts, Q4 2025 (Table 38-10-0238-01), released March 16, 2026.
All-time-high debt-to-income ratio, set in Q3 2022
Statistics Canada
New household mortgage borrowing in 2025, up from $94.0B in 2024
Statistics Canada
Household debt service ratio, Q4 2025 — the share of income going to debt payments
Statistics Canada
Canada's national average home price at the end of 2025
CREA
A rising debt-to-income ratio means more of your renewal clients are carrying more debt relative to income than they were a year ago — exactly the population an AI growth engine is built to flag before a rate reset catches them off guard. It's also a reminder that new originations need clean, defensible qualification math, since regulators and lenders are watching the same ratio you are.
Last updated August 1, 2026. Each figure carries its source; projections are labelled. Page reviewed on every major source release. Information only — not advice.
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