The gap between Canada’s richest and poorest grew last year, StatCan says

A magnifying glass enlarges the holographic image of Parliament Hill's Peace Tower on a $20 bill issued by the Bank of Canada, shown in a display case at the Bank of Canada Museum in Ottawa, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

OTTAWA — The gap between Canada’s richest and poorest grew last year as financial markets gained while interest payouts declined and the job market softened, said Statistics Canada on Monday.

The agency says the income gap, measuring the difference in the share of disposable income between households in the top 40 per cent and those in the bottom 40 per cent, reached 46.7 percentage points in 2025.

The result compared with a gap of 46.4 percentage points a year earlier.

The wider gap came as the lowest-income households saw wages rise slower than the overall average, and saw their investment income fall because of lower interest payments on savings, the agency said.

Meanwhile, Statistics Canada says the top 20 per cent of the wealth distribution accounted for 65.7 per cent of Canada’s total net worth at the end of 2025, averaging $3.5 million per household.

In contrast, the bottom 40 per cent of the wealth distribution held three per cent of Canada’s net worth, averaging $81,650 per household.

The gap in wealth between the top 20 per cent and the bottom 40 per cent was 62.7 percentage points at the end of 2025, up 0.6 percentage points from a year earlier.

Insolvency practice MNP Ltd. said Monday that the rising divide could also be seen in financial surveys, though it also noted signs of overall stability.

It said its survey-based debt index has held steady over the last year as Canadians have become cautious on spending, but that financial pressures remain uneven.

The average amount Canadians have left at month-end hit an all-time time high of $1,000 as of its March survey, up from $907 at the end of November.

The results, however, also showed that 43 per cent are within $200 or less of not being able to meet their monthly spending needs, up from 41 per cent last quarter. Twenty-nine per cent say they already aren’t making enough to cover bills and debt payments, up from 25 per cent.

The survey of 2,000 adult Canadians between March 10 and 11 was complied by Ipsos and is considered accurate to within 2.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The firm’s survey shows many Canadians are holding back on major financial decisions, and that nearly three quarters say rising prices for essentials are straining their finances.

“Many Canadians are not just feeling financial pressure, they are navigating an environment that continues to shift, increasing uncertainty and making it more difficult to plan, budget, and stay ahead financially,” said Grant Bazian, president of MNP Ltd., in a news release.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.