Cost to Build a House in Canada: Calculator

Construction cost per square foot in Canada (2025–2026)

A standard single-family house costs about CAD 140–320 per square foot to build in Canada, hard cost only, depending on the city: CAD 200–275 in the Greater Toronto Area, 200–320 in Vancouver and 175–265 in Calgary. Custom homes cost CAD 345–1,250 per square foot.

Source: Altus Group, 2025 Canadian Cost Guide, data as at 31 January 2025. Hard construction cost on a level, open site with average finishes; excludes GST/HST/QST but includes PST. Altus published a 2026 guide in April 2026; check it for the latest figures.

Which area to enter: leave out the basement

Apply the Altus rate to the above-grade floor area only, measured to the outside face of the walls. The rate already includes an unfinished basement, so don't add basement or garage area.

In the calculator, enter the above-grade floor area and leave Include a basement unticked if the basement stays unfinished. To finish it, add the cost under Other costs: about CAD 50–100 per square foot for a standard finish and more for a high-end finish or a legal secondary suite (NerdWallet Canada, February 2026).

Measuring to the outside of the walls matters: Altus notes that using zoning floor area instead can understate the cost by up to 12%.

Production home vs custom home

A custom-built home costs roughly 2.5 to 4 times as much per square foot as a production (builder) home in the same city: CAD 520–1,130 against CAD 200–275 in the Greater Toronto Area.

Choose the premium finish in the calculator for a high-specification build, or type in a custom builder's rate. The default premium rate is the midpoint of the Altus GTA custom range.

What the cost per square foot leaves out

The Altus rates are hard construction cost only. Land, design and engineering fees, permits and development charges, surveys and soil tests, site servicing, financing, insurance, contingency and GST/HST are all extra.

• Development charges: CAD 102,700–195,300 per low-rise home across GTA municipalities (BILD on the CHBA study, March 2025). Toronto's charge for a single or semi-detached home is CAD 137,846, with a proposed 60% cut to CAD 55,138 (City of Toronto, July 2026).
• Sales tax: 5% GST, or 13–15% HST in Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
• Contingency: Altus leaves it out, so add one in the calculator.

GST/HST and new home rebates for owner-builders

If you build your own home you can claim back part of the GST: 36% of it, up to CAD 6,300, on homes worth up to CAD 450,000, and first-time buyers can recover up to CAD 50,000 on homes up to CAD 1 million.

• GST/HST new housing rebate for owner-built homes: 36% of the GST or federal part of HST, up to CAD 6,300, in full up to a fair market value of CAD 350,000 and phased out by CAD 450,000. File within two years (CRA RC4028).
• First-time home buyers' GST rebate: 100% of the GST up to CAD 50,000 on homes up to CAD 1 million, phased out by CAD 1.5 million. For owner-built homes, construction must start on or after 20 March 2025 and before 2031 (CRA).
• Ontario: full 13% HST relief on new homes up to CAD 1 million (maximum CAD 130,000) where construction starts between 1 April 2026 and 31 March 2027 (Ontario, July 2026).

Default rates for Canada

The calculator starts from these CAD rates per sq ft, data as of 2025-03. Change any of them in the tool to match a local quote.

• Altus rates are hard construction cost only: no land, soft costs, development charges, contingency or GST/HST (PST is included).
• Altus single-family rates already include an unfinished basement: apply them to the above-grade area only, and add basement finishing (about CAD 50–100 per sq ft) separately.
• Basic is the low end of the Altus standard range; premium is the custom-home range midpoint.

Sources: Altus Group, 2025 Canadian Cost Guide (2025-03); Red Deer Advocate, Home prices largely impacted by labour costs (WRLA) (undated). A dash means no reliable source: enter your own rate. See the methodology for how defaults are chosen.