Canada Salary Guide 2026: Hourly and Yearly Pay by Role
You have applied to a lot of Canadian jobs, and some ads list pay by the hour while others list it by the year. It is hard to tell what is fair when the units keep changing. A clear baseline in both units makes it much easier to know what to ask for.
As of November 5, 2026, the median advertised pay in Canada is CAD 27.00 an hour, or CAD 56,200 a year. The middle half of ads sit between CAD 43,000 and CAD 78,000 a year. These numbers come from 35,825 job ads that state a pay range.
Where these numbers come from#
JobRise tracks open jobs from employer career pages and public job boards. This guide uses only the ads that state a pay range in Canadian dollars with a clear pay period. Repeat ads from the same employer count once.
Most of the 35,825 ads come from Job Bank, which accounts for 33,241 of them. The rest come from Himalayas (1,686), Ashby (806), Lever (56) and Recruitee (27). Because Job Bank is the main source, this guide has a lot of hourly, hands-on jobs in it.
Each number is the midpoint of the posted range. Yearly pay is the hourly figure times 2,080 hours, or the monthly figure times 12. Values are rounded to the nearest 100. Hourly and yearly figures are both shown where the data has them, so you can compare an hourly ad with a salaried one.
Two limits matter here:
- These are advertised numbers. They show what employers put in the ad, not what people are paid after negotiation.
- This is not a salary survey. Nobody was asked what they earn.
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Canada salary by field#
The table below shows the fields with 50 or more ads. The field table gives yearly and monthly pay. Hourly figures are in the role table further down.
| Field | Ads | Median yearly (CAD) | Median monthly (CAD) | Middle half yearly (CAD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backend | 51 | 183,000 | 15,200 | 150,000 to 196,800 |
| Data / AI | 265 | 147,500 | 12,300 | 111,100 to 175,600 |
| Product | 91 | 145,000 | 12,100 | 125,000 to 180,000 |
| Software Dev | 635 | 120,000 | 10,000 | 85,300 to 160,600 |
| Engineering | 561 | 90,400 | 7,500 | 70,000 to 119,900 |
| Construction | 1,472 | 72,800 | 6,100 | 57,200 to 80,100 |
| Skilled Trades | 3,517 | 68,600 | 5,700 | 57,200 to 79,000 |
| Logistics | 2,068 | 58,200 | 4,900 | 45,800 to 75,900 |
| Healthcare | 3,341 | 54,100 | 4,500 | 43,700 to 90,000 |
| Hospitality | 4,563 | 43,700 | 3,600 | 38,000 to 58,200 |
| Security | 162 | 39,500 | 3,300 | 37,300 to 47,800 |
Backend leads at CAD 183,000 a year, followed by Data / AI at CAD 147,500 and Product at CAD 145,000. Those fields have fewer ads, so the numbers depend on a smaller sample.
Skilled Trades has 3,517 ads and a median of CAD 68,600 a year, which is a big part of the market. Hospitality has the most ads in the table, 4,563, with a median of CAD 43,700 a year. Security has the lowest median of the fields shown, at CAD 39,500 a year.
Categories come from job titles and departments, using keyword rules. A field label is a best guess from the wording of the ad.
Canada salary by role: hourly and yearly#
Job titles give a closer view than fields. This table covers a selection of roles with 30 or more ads, with hourly and yearly pay side by side.
| Role | Ads | Median hourly (CAD) | Median yearly (CAD) | Middle half yearly (CAD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor / physician | 84 | 128.23 | 266,700 | 154,500 to 366,800 |
| Data scientist / ML engineer | 67 | 72.60 | 151,000 | 121,000 to 177,500 |
| Product manager | 97 | 71.15 | 148,000 | 125,000 to 179,200 |
| DevOps / cloud engineer | 45 | 67.31 | 140,000 | 116,200 to 160,000 |
| Software engineer / developer | 589 | 62.98 | 131,000 | 99,900 to 174,500 |
| Cybersecurity | 50 | 56.01 | 116,500 | 96,600 to 162,800 |
| Project manager | 199 | 43.27 | 90,000 | 72,300 to 107,500 |
| Electrician | 231 | 38.09 | 79,200 | 68,600 to 88,400 |
| Nurse | 441 | 34.26 | 71,300 | 51,300 to 96,900 |
| Accountant | 406 | 32.50 | 67,600 | 55,000 to 80,000 |
| Technician | 1,382 | 32.00 | 66,600 | 52,000 to 78,000 |
| Driver | 1,400 | 29.00 | 60,300 | 49,900 to 76,800 |
| Construction worker | 2,220 | 26.00 | 54,100 | 38,900 to 71,800 |
| Teacher | 428 | 26.00 | 54,100 | 46,100 to 67,800 |
| Admin / office assistant | 2,317 | 23.39 | 48,700 | 41,600 to 58,400 |
| Retail / store | 988 | 21.94 | 45,600 | 38,200 to 63,300 |
| Cook / chef | 2,467 | 21.00 | 43,700 | 38,500 to 52,500 |
| Healthcare assistant / care worker | 850 | 21.00 | 43,700 | 41,600 to 48,900 |
| Cleaner | 919 | 20.50 | 42,600 | 38,400 to 49,900 |
Which roles pay most and least
Doctor / physician has the highest median in the table, at CAD 128.23 an hour or CAD 266,700 a year. Data scientist / ML engineer comes next at CAD 72.60 an hour, and Product manager at CAD 71.15 an hour.
Software engineer / developer is the largest tech role here, with 589 ads and a median of CAD 62.98 an hour, or CAD 131,000 a year. Its middle half runs from CAD 99,900 to CAD 174,500 a year, which is a wide band. The ads in this data do not say what drives that spread.
At the other end, Cleaner has the lowest median in the table, at CAD 20.50 an hour or CAD 42,600 a year. Cook / chef and Healthcare assistant / care worker both sit at CAD 21.00 an hour.
Cook / chef has the most ads of any role in the table, 2,467, with a median of CAD 21.00 an hour. Construction worker, with 2,220 ads, has a median of CAD 26.00 an hour.
Employers in the salary sample#
These are the employers with the most salaried ads in the sample, with at least 15 ads each.
| Employer | Ads | Median yearly (CAD) |
|---|---|---|
| Affirm | 64 | 179,000 |
| Mercor | 83 | 135,200 |
| Pointclickcare | 44 | 134,600 |
| Maintainx | 88 | 107,200 |
| PCL Construction | 47 | 91,500 |
| NL Health Services | 116 | 90,100 |
| Fed Manutech | 55 | 90,000 |
| Vitalité Health Network | 101 | 87,300 |
| Sienna Senior Living | 132 | 50,200 |
| Roots | 54 | 42,000 |
| Subway | 50 | 41,200 |
| Tim Hortons | 136 | 39,000 |
| Saskatchewan Health Authority | 68 | 31,200 |
Affirm, Mercor, Pointclickcare and Maintainx have the highest medians on the list, all above CAD 100,000 a year. Tim Hortons has the most ads of the names listed, 136, with a median of CAD 39,000 a year. Saskatchewan Health Authority has the lowest median on the list, at CAD 31,200 a year.
The data counts the employer named on each posting, and staffing agencies count as the employer they name. Check the employer on each posting before you compare it with the figures here.
How to use these numbers in a salary talk#
- Anchor on the middle half, not the top. For a software engineer, the middle half is CAD 99,900 to CAD 174,500 a year. A number near the middle of your field's range is easier to defend than one at the very top.
- Compare in the same unit. If one ad is hourly and another is yearly, compare the hourly with the hourly and the yearly with the yearly. Do not mix them in your head.
- Ask for the range early. Before you name a figure, ask, "What is the budget for this role?" If the employer gives a range, you know where to aim.
- Check the ad's own range. The medians here are midpoints of posted ranges. If the ad gives a range, read the whole range and the pay period before you respond.
What to do this week#
- Find your role in the tables above. Write down the median hourly and yearly figures and the middle half for your role. That is your starting range.
- Check the employer before you apply. If a staffing firm posts the job, ask who the employer is before you accept an offer.
- Match your resume to the ad. Run your resume through the free ATS resume check against one posting you want.
- Browse live listings. Start with Canada jobs and look for ads that state a pay range, since those are the ones this data is built from.
- Prepare your number. Use the salary negotiation helper before your next call, so you walk in with a range and a reason.
- Read the wider picture. The Canada job market 2026 post covers fields, employers and skills, and the Canada hiring report shows where the 55,516 open jobs sit.
Employers name skills in their ads, and some skills show up far more often than others. The Canada skills page shows which ones are in demand, so you can check your resume against them.
Start your salary talk with a number you can defend#
The median in this guide is a starting point, not a target. Your own range depends on your field, your experience, your province or city, and the employer. A number based on real ads is still much better than a guess made on the spot.
Want to check your resume before you apply? Run the free ATS check, or see all free tools. Free, no signup.
Send this to whoever has the interview this week.