Minimum Wage in Canada 2026 — Province-by-Province Table
The current 2026 minimum wage for every Canadian province and territory. Ontario, BC, Alberta, Quebec, Manitoba plus student and tipped rates, and when the next raise lands.
Minimum wage in Canada is set by each province — not federally — and every jurisdiction now indexes it to inflation. Here's the 2026 rate wherever you work.
The 2026 rates at a glance
- Alberta — $15.00 (unchanged since 2018)
- British Columbia — $18.25
- Manitoba — $16.40
- New Brunswick — $15.90
- Newfoundland and Labrador — $16.35
- Nova Scotia — $17.00
- Northwest Territories — $17.20
- Nunavut — $20.17 (highest in Canada)
- Ontario — $17.95
- Prince Edward Island — $17.30 ($17.60 scheduled for April 1, 2027)
- Quebec — $16.60
- Saskatchewan — $15.70
- Yukon — $18.51
- Federal (federally regulated employers) — $18.15
Who has the highest minimum wage
Nunavut leads at $20.17, largely because remote-community cost-of-living pressures are extreme — food and housing regularly run 2–4× southern prices. Yukon and BC come next. Alberta has held at $15.00 since 2018 and is now the lowest general rate in the country; the provincial government has not scheduled increases.
Ontario — the biggest workforce
Ontario's general minimum wage is $17.95/hour as of Oct 1, 2026, adjusted each October based on the Consumer Price Index. Ontario also runs three sub-rates: students under 18 working during school hours ($16.90), homeworkers ($19.70), and hunting/fishing/wilderness guides (piece-rate).
If you're working full-time at Ontario's minimum wage, that annualises to about $37,336 (40 hrs × 52 weeks). After federal and Ontario tax, the Ontario Health Premium, CPP and EI, your take-home is roughly $30,800 (see the Ontario take-home calculator).
See your exact after-tax take-home
Enter any Ontario gross salary — get net annual, monthly, bi-weekly and weekly pay for 2026.
Federal minimum wage
Canada's federal minimum wage applies only to federally regulated industries: banks, telecom (Bell, Rogers, Telus), airlines (Air Canada, WestJet), interprovincial trucking, marine and rail transport, First Nations government, and radio/TV broadcasting. In 2026 it's $18.15/hour (since April 1), indexed each April 1. If your provincial minimum is higher (as in BC, Yukon, Nunavut and Ontario), you get the provincial rate.
Student, tipped and homeworker rates
- Students (under 18, ≤28 hrs/week during school): Ontario $16.90, Alberta $13.00. Most other provinces treat students at the general rate.
- Tipped / server: Only Quebec keeps a lower rate — $13.30/hour since May 1, 2026. BC removed it in 2021, Ontario in 2022.
- Homeworkers: Ontario homeworkers earn $19.70. Some provinces have separate piece-rate schedules for domestic/agricultural work.
When your rate goes up
Adjustment calendar in Canada, worth putting in your phone:
- April 1: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, federal (PEI and Nova Scotia also raised rates on April 1, 2026).
- June 1: British Columbia.
- Oct 1: Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan (and PEI and Nova Scotia in 2026).
- May 1: Quebec.
- No fixed date: Alberta (currently frozen), Nunavut and NT (both last raised Sept 1, 2026).
If you're job-hunting at these rates, our part-time job resume guide and student resume template are built for the roles most affected — retail, food service, warehouse and student jobs.