10 most affordable places to live in Ontario

A new report reveals the most affordable places to live and buy a home in Ontario.

Real estate prices are down in Ontario’s biggest cities. In the Greater Toronto Area, the average selling price was down 6.7 per cent from March 2025 to $1,017,796, and the composite benchmark price, meant to represent the typical home, was down 7.4 per cent year-over-year.

But for many people, paying over $1 million for a home isn’t feasible.

Those looking for more affordable homeownership may want to check out a new report from Canadian real estate marketplace Zolo. Zolo examined 96 cities in Ontario and ranked them by affordability.

The report examined average home prices, incomes, population growth and unemployment rates in 96 small, medium and large cities in Ontario. The cities were scored on each variable and then ranked accordingly.

Seven of the top 10 cities are in the Ottawa region and Ottawa Valley, highlighting the area as a “beacon of affordability,” Zolo said.

Additionally, small cities accounted for 50 per cent of the top 10, with Arnprior taking the top spot. Arnprior is a town in Renfrew County, about 65 kilometres northwest of Ottawa, with a population of around 10,000 people.

The average home price in Arnprior is $399,995 and the average household income is $92,300, according to the report.

Larger cities in the top 10 include Kanata, Nepean and Kingston. These cities have populations of over 100,000.

The average home price is $623,750 in Kanata. The city is adjacent to Ottawa and is known for being home to Canada’s largest technology park, with companies such as Nokia, Cisco, and Mitel. The unemployment rate is generally low, and the average household income is around $146,600 per year, compared to the provincial average of $116,000, Zolo noted.

Nepean, also close to Ottawa, has an average home price of $615,000 and an average household income of $137,000. The city has parks and trails, including the popular Greenbelt, and it has many family-friendly neighbourhoods.

Kingston is known as the Limestone City for its 19th-century limestone architecture, and is celebrated for its historic charm. The average home price is $550,354 and the average income is $96,100.

Affordable medium-sized cities include Woodstock, Thunder Bay and Leamington.

Here is Zolo’s list of the top 10 most affordable cities:

Cities ranked at the bottom, as least affordable, include Greater Toronto Area communities such as Mississauga, Brampton, Burlington and Newmarket. Toronto ranks as number 93 with a slightly higher average household income than other cities. The least affordable is Scarborough Centre.

See the full Most Affordable Places to Live in Ontario report here.

Lead photo of Arnprior: Google Maps