Canadian Consumer Debt Hits All-Time High of $2.7 Trillion

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, on Sept. 4, 2024. The Canadian Press/Justin TangCanadian consumer debt rose to $2.68 trillion in the second quarter of 2026, marking a 4.18 percent increase compared to the same period the previous year, new data shows.Debt rose by 1.3 percent in this year’s second quarter to hit a record high, according to a consumer credit report by Equifax Inc. Consumer debt is money that Canadian households owe for items they purchase, and can include personal loans, credit card balances, and student loans.The Aug. 24 report indicated a “slow start” to consumer card usage, but said credit card balances grew in the second quarter.  The average credit card spend per Canadian reached $2,192 in the second quarter when adjusted for inflation to sit 1.4 percent higher than it was one year ago.The report also said the national credit card debt increased from $130.6 billion in the first quarter of 2026 to $134.2 billion in the second. However, the 90 day delinquency rate for credit cards slightly improved from 4.28 percent in the first quarter to 4.19 percent in the second, but increased on an annual basis by 6.8 percent.A total of 65 percent of consumers were paying their credit card balance in full each month, which was the same as the previous quarter. A recent Equifax Canada Consumer Survey had found 25 percent of respondents expected to make only minimum payments in coming months, while another 7 percent said they were likely to fall behind.Equifax Canada vice-president of advanced analytics Rebecca Oakes said there appeared to be a “significant amount of uncertainty in the current environment,” indicating a need for more awareness of the impact that “additional economic pressures could have on this particular consumer group.”Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said Canadian consumer debt hitting a “record high” was evidence that families “can’t make ends meet under the weight” of inflation, taxes, and government debt.Poilievre called for the federal government to “bring down the cost of government and take all taxes off gas and homebuilding so Canadians can live in a prosperous, affordable country.”Canada’s federal debt sits at roughly $1.36 billion, while its spring economic update had projected a $66.9 billion deficit for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. The federal government has also projected that the deficit will decline to $53.2 billion by 2030-2031.Ottawa has said that Canada has the lowest net debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7, and is in a strong fiscal position that allows it to invest.Prime Minister Mark Carney said during an Aug. 22 speech his government has attempted to address affordability issues  by introducing the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit to give up to $1,890 per family as well as by cutting income taxes and taxes on housing and gas.