Compare Canadian mortgage options

Where rates stand (October 2026)

• Bank of Canada policy rate: 2.25% (held September 2, 2026; next decision October 28)
• Big-bank prime rate: 4.45% — variable mortgages are priced as prime minus a discount
• Best insured 5-year fixed: 4.34% (Ratehub, October 19, 2026)
• Best 5-year variable: 3.43% (Ratehub, October 19, 2026) — roughly prime minus 1.00%
• Big 5 advertised 5-year fixed specials: about 4.59%–5.39%, after several banks raised rates through September and October 2026

Insured rates assume a down payment under 20% and a purchase under $1.5 million. Uninsured mortgages (20%+ down, refinances, rentals) typically price 0.2–0.5 points higher.

Six real lenders and brokerages, compared

Rates compiled October 2026 from Ratehub's lender tables, nesto.ca, WOWA lender pages and bank websites. Rates change with bond yields — sometimes daily — and the rate you are offered depends on your credit, down payment, property and province. Confirm live rates before relying on any figure here.

What the spread is worth on a real mortgage

On a $500,000 mortgage with a 25-year amortization, using Canadian semi-annual compounding:

• At 4.34% (best insured 5-year fixed): about $2,723/month
• At 4.99% (TD's lower advertised special in October 2026): about $2,905/month
• At 5.39% (TD's advertised special after its October 15 increase): about $3,020/month
• At 3.65% (RBC and Scotiabank's variable special, prime − 0.80%): about $2,536/month — while prime stays at 4.45%

The gap between the best broker quote and the top of the Big 5 range is roughly $297 a month, or about $17,800 over a 5-year term. Run your own numbers in the mortgage calculator.

What to compare beyond the rate

• Posted vs. special vs. broker rates. Scotiabank's posted 5-year fixed was 6.19% in October 2026 against a special near 4.59%. Posted rates also inflate break penalties — never sign at one.
• Fixed vs. variable rate, and whether a variable payment is fixed or adjustable.
• Prepayment privileges — typically 15–20% of the original balance per year plus a payment increase option, but low-rate broker products sometimes restrict these.
• Break penalty formula — the greater of three months' interest or the interest rate differential (IRD); bank IRD penalties calculated off posted rates are the most expensive in the industry.
• Portability and assumability if you might move before the term ends.

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Fixed vs. variable: how the choice works

With a fixed-rate mortgage, your interest rate — and usually your payment — stays the same for the whole term, which makes budgeting predictable. With a variable-rate mortgage, the rate moves with the lender's prime rate: your payment may stay the same while the interest/principal split shifts, or the payment itself may adjust, depending on the product. In October 2026 that choice is concrete: the best variable rate (3.43%) starts about 0.9 points below the best 5-year fixed (4.34%), and buys that discount with exposure to every Bank of Canada decision — the next one lands October 28, 2026.

When comparing, look past the headline rate: ask whether the variable product has a fixed payment or adjustable payment, what converting to a fixed rate mid-term would cost, and how each option treats prepayments.

Term length, amortization and prepayment privileges

The term is how long your current rate and conditions last (commonly 1–5 years in Canada); the amortization is how long it would take to pay the mortgage off in full (often 25 years, sometimes longer or shorter). A longer amortization lowers the regular payment but increases the total interest paid over the life of the loan — use the mortgage calculator to see the trade-off in dollars.

Prepayment privileges let you pay extra — for example, a lump sum each year or a higher regular payment — without penalty. If you expect bonuses or irregular income, generous prepayment terms can matter more than a small rate difference. Also check the penalty formula for breaking the mortgage early: it is typically the greater of three months' interest or an interest-rate-differential amount, and the details vary by lender and product. Monoline and broker-channel lenders (the kind nesto, Butler and True North place you with) usually calculate the IRD against actual market rates, while the big banks calculate it against their much higher posted rates — the same break can cost several thousand dollars more at a bank.

How lenders qualify you in Canada

Federally regulated lenders must qualify you at a rate above your contract rate — the "stress test": your rate plus 2 percentage points, or 5.25%, whichever is higher. At nesto's 4.59% insured 5-year fixed (October 2026), that means qualifying at 6.59%. They also look at your gross debt service and total debt service ratios, i.e., your housing costs and total debts relative to income. A larger down payment, lower non-mortgage debt and a stable income history all improve the amount you may qualify for.

Getting pre-approved before house hunting clarifies your budget and locks a rate for a limited hold period (typically 90–120 days), but a pre-approval is not a guarantee of final financing — the property itself still has to satisfy the lender.