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How Canadians on ODSP, AISH or CPP Disability actually qualify for loans: which income counts, realistic amounts, benefit interactions, and the alternatives to check first.
4 min · Read
September stacks school supplies, tuition, and activity fees onto regular bills. Here is how Canadians are borrowing for back to school, and how to compare offers before you commit.
5 min · Read
Quebec borrows a little bigger than the country and looks different on credit. Across 5,221 Smarter Loans applications in the year to July 2026, Quebecers requested $2,730 on average, fair and low credit were nearly tied, and the province has no conventional payday lending.
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British Columbia borrows slightly smaller than the country. Across 9,687 Smarter Loans applications in the year to July 2026, British Columbians requested $2,470 on average against $2,604 nationally, and 72 percent asked for $1,500 or less.
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Alberta sits close to the national pattern for personal borrowing and above it for business. Across 15,218 Smarter Loans applications in the year to July 2026, Albertans requested $2,503 on average, and Alberta businesses $98,218 against $92,806 nationally.
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Ontario borrows slightly bigger than the country. Across 33,943 Smarter Loans applications in the year to July 2026, Ontarians requested $2,828 on average against $2,604 nationally, and Ontario is one of only two provinces where every credit band clears the reporting floor.
4 min · Read
Fair credit is the largest self-reported band in almost every province, across more than 40,000 Smarter Loans personal loan applications in the year to July 2026. Saskatchewan is the only exception, where low credit leads, and good or great stays under one in seven everywhere.
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Canadian businesses asked for an average of $92,806 across 823 Smarter Loans business loan applications in the year to July 2026. Expansion carried the largest requests at $128,450 and Quebec the highest provincial average at $109,849.
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Tuesday is the busiest day to apply for a loan at 18.3 percent, across more than 79,000 Smarter Loans applications in the year to July 2026. May is the busiest month at double September, and about a quarter of applications arrive at weekends.
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TransUnion's Q2 2026 Consumer Pulse found a quarter of Canadians plan to apply for credit and one in four expects to miss a bill. Across more than 79,000 Smarter Loans applications, the people who actually apply ask small: 71 percent want $1,500 or less.
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Applicants reporting unsecured debt on a Smarter Loans personal loan application carried an average of $13,410 in the year to July 2026. Those applying to consolidate asked for $6,659, about half of what they owe.
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71 percent of more than 79,000 Smarter Loans personal loan applications in the year to July 2026 asked for $1,500 or less. The average request in that range was $552, and it barely moves across income types or provinces.
4 min · Read
