Introduction to Poverty Report Card

For several years, Canada has been in the midst of a poverty crisis that no single government can fix alone. Since 2023, the Poverty Report Card has been tracking and analyzing this changing picture of poverty. We’ve seen inflation drive up the cost of food, fuel, and other essentials far faster than wages have grown, forcing many households to take on unsustainable debt just to stay afloat. At the same time, soaring rents and interest rates have deepened an already severe housing crisis.  

Together, these pressures have hit households like an unrelenting storm — with those who have the least hit the hardest. This impact can be seen at food banks every single day. Across the country, in nearly every community, food banks are seeing record-breaking demand. 

While this year’s Poverty Report Card provides a glimmer of hope that Canada may be seeing some level of stabilizing versus prior years, albeit at historically high levels, it is still too early to determine whether the current situation represents a peak, or simply a plateau. 

Fundamental to this glimmer of hope is the slight improvement that we are seeing in this year’s results of an indicator known as the Material Deprivation Index (MDI). The MDI is a measure of poverty that complements Canada’s official measure of poverty (the Market Basket Measure). Containing a selection of goods, services and activities that many Canadians consider necessary for a decent standard of living, the MDI measures outcomes arising from a lack of money, be it income or another financial resource. 

In this report card, discussing poverty through the lens of the MDI is central to this narrative, as this indicator provides results that are time sensitive to current realities, consider factors other than income alone that impact a household’s standard of living, and is more reflective of trends that food banks across Canada are seeing on the front lines.  

This report card offers both a reflection on the past year, and a clear roadmap forward for the Government of Canada to follow to ensure that we all work together towards a target of reducing food insecurity by 50 percent by 2030. 

Key Findings  

1. Compared to 2024, poverty seems to have stabilized slightly; however, it has stabilized at a rate that is unsustainable for too many households.  
   1. Our Material Deprivation Index – which is based on polling gathered in March 2025 – shows decreasing material deprivation across the provinces. Fewer Canadians report feeling less well off than the year prior, However, rates are still too high. 

2. The Food Insecurity rate, however, is the highest in history at 25.5% or more than 1 in 4 households. It is also becoming more severe. 
   1. Between 2023 and 2024, food insecurity rose by 11.4%; however, it was rates of moderate and severe food insecurity that saw the largest increases. 

3. 2024 could be a quietly important year for poverty reduction. This stabilizing poverty is likely the result of several factors: 
   1. Across the country, housing affordability pressure has eased in 2024. Our polling found that housing affordability improved in every province across the country – except for Quebec. 
      1. Our data aligns very closely with rental trends observed by CMHC. Since Oct 2024, advertised rents have been declining due to increased supply and decelerating migration. CMHC reports that both the secondary rental market and purpose-built rental market may be required to lower rents over the next few years in expectation that vacancies will rise. While we have not yet seen improving rental affordability, there are signs that these pressures may ease.  
   2. The previous federal government ushered in a new era of expanded federal social policy, with key additions over the past year. If these programs are properly funded and prioritized, they can continue to reduce poverty as they mature – making this a key strategy the federal government should sustain. 
      1. Policies can directly counter poverty in one of two ways, they can increase the financial resources available to households or reduce the need for such resources.  
      2. Early signs indicate that federal programs that are helping reduce material deprivation of people include: National School Food Program, National Housing Plan, $10-a-day: Early Learning and Child Care, the National pharmacare program, Canadian Dental Care Plan, and Canada Public Transit Fund 
      3. Our data shows signs that the benefits of Pharmacare, school food programs, and childcare & dental care could play a role in structurally shifting the experience of poverty in the country if people are able to fully take advantage of these programs. 
      4. It is encouraging that the new Liberal government has committed to protecting these social programs.  

4. While the Federal Government has made progress in launching new social programs, the real challenge is ensuring they are well-designed, accessible, and properly funded. To cut food insecurity by 50%, complacency is not an option. Strengthening these programs and targeting investments toward the most vulnerable will be key to preventing a rise in poverty. 
   1. The Canda Disability Benefit (CDB) is a good example of a program that had good intentions to reduce poverty for people living with disabilities but has faced strong criticism for being challenging to access, having poor program design and offering an income that is woefully inadequate – with a maximum benefit of only $2,400/year. 
   2. While overall inflation had been easing over the last year down to around average of 2%, and interest rates were cut from 5% to 2.75% between June 2024 and June 2025, the Bank of Canda expects that increase tariffs between the US and Canada will see inflation rise again. Food prices have also continued to rise at a rate higher than inflation. 

5. The world has entered a more volatile political era, and the Federal Government has shifted priorities accordingly. While affordability remains a focus, planned cuts to operating expenses and increased military spending will limit the federal government’s capacity for new programs. To reduce food insecurity by 50% by 2030, the provinces and territories will need to step up action. Provinces that invest in poverty reduction will likely see continued progress, while those that do not may face rising rates -making provincial complacency increasingly visible. 

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of poverty as addressed by the federal government, drawing from diverse and reliable data sources. 

While national datasets like the Census and Canadian Income Survey are vital, their delayed release limits timely evaluation. This report bridges that gap by combining official data with insights from material deprivation studies, national polling, and legislative analysis. 

Using an intersectional lens, it analyzes government actions across key policy areas – including housing, income support, health, and social services – highlighting the varied experiences of communities living in poverty. The report is designed to be accessible and informative, offering a clear view into the realities of poverty and the effectiveness of current initiatives. 

The report card aims to help policymakers identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement, while also increasing public understanding of the support – or lack thereof – available to low-income individuals and families. By fostering transparency and accountability, the report encourages stronger poverty reduction efforts. 

Food Banks Canada hopes this resource will spark dialogue, collaboration, and advocacy, empowering Canadians to push for policies that make a meaningful difference and help us build a country where no one goes hungry. 

National Overview 

This past year brought significant political change, including a new federal Liberal mandate under Prime Minister Mark Carney. While the Prime Minister’s early action suggests a shift in federal priorities – focused on sustainable economic growth, affordability, nation-building projects, and public sector modernization – the commitment to reducing poverty and curbing food bank reliance remains uncertain.   
 
All of this is unfolding against a backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions, threats to the global trading system, and an increasingly divided world. The combination of domestic transition, policy uncertainty, and global instability makes it harder to assess whether political will to address poverty is gaining ground – or losing momentum.  

Canada received an overall grade of D in 2025 — a modest improvement on last year’s D−, but one that masks worsening conditions in key areas. Most notably, food insecurity rose sharply: more than 1 in 4 households (25.5%) now experience some level of food insecurity — the highest rate ever recorded. Unemployment also climbed for the third year in a row, increasing in nearly every province and territory. This year’s findings highlight the inadequacy of social assistance — governments failed to adjust benefits for inflation, leaving vulnerable households in an even more precarious position. 
There are some signs of progress, though. Fewer Canadians reported being worse off than the year prior. This shift is echoed in modest improvements in the Material Deprivation Index (MDI). It is more sensitive to changes in household circumstances and available more quickly than the Market Basket Measure (MBM) (Canada’s official poverty line), and so we recommend using it to complement the MBM. 

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Our Approach

Our Purpose

The aim of this report is to offer a comprehensive understanding of the complexity of poverty in Canada. Historically, poverty has been reduced to a single statistic, which is a poverty rate based on the Market Basket Measure (MBM). However, we recognize that poverty is multi-faceted and cannot be adequately captured by this measure alone. This is exemplified by the fact that food insecurity rates are significantly higher than poverty rates, which tells us that people who live above the poverty line still experience food insecurity.

The Structure of the Report

The report is composed of three main parts:

1.   An analysis of each province, territory, and the federal government:

These sections provide insights into the key poverty-related issues in each jurisdiction and provide context for why some of these issues may be persisting. In these analyses, the report examines recent trends in poverty figures and related topics like labour and the cost of living. The analyses also include reviews of recent policy and political action that have influenced the poverty landscape of the region, as well as a closing section dedicated to policy recommendations. These recommendations are tailored to the specific government in place in each jurisdiction. As such, the recommendations are politically realistic and can feasibly be acted on before the release of the next report card.

2.   A Report Card for Each Jurisdiction

These report cards are divided into four sections to help capture the full picture of poverty.

1. The Experience of Poverty

Based on a national survey, designed and paid for by Food Banks Canada, this section includes five indicators that describe the financial situation of people in 2024. It covers financial stress, how much income people must dedicate to fixed costs, and the perceived adequacy of healthcare and social assistance.

1. Poverty Measures

This section uses existing and well-established measures of poverty to help balance the Experience of Poverty section, which is more subjective. It covers the poverty and food insecurity rate, unemployment, and the adequacy of social assistance.

Unemployment rates are taken from March 2024 data to reflect the same period as the survey used for the Experience of Poverty and Material Deprivation sections. Food insecurity and poverty rates are taken from the Canadian Income Survey released in April 2024 and reflect data from 2022. Social assistance data is based on Maytree’s Welfare in Canada Report. This report is not released until the summer, and therefore it does not have updates for 2024 yet.

1. Material Deprivation

Also based on the national survey designed and paid for by Food Banks Canada, this section aims to fill a gap left by other measures like poverty and food insecurity. As stated earlier, poverty and food insecurity indicators cannot alone capture a full picture of how Canadians struggle daily. This section uses a formalized material deprivation index to determine the quality and standard of living for people in Canada.

1. Legislative Progress

While poverty, food insecurity, and material deprivation represent the result of past omissions in policy action, it is important to acknowledge efforts being made in the present that improve these factors. This section reviews the legislative action taken by the government since the last report to assess whether the policies being introduced are sufficiently tackling the issue of poverty and moving the jurisdiction forward.

For full details on the methodology used to determine grades in the report card, you can visit the methodology section from the table of contents.

3.   Comprehensive Analysis of Poverty and Inequality in Canada

Recognizing that poverty is not felt equally across all demographics in the country, this section provides the final piece of the poverty picture. Much of the poverty data in this section relies on the 2021 Canadian Census as it allows us to view disaggregated trends across a number of vulnerable groups.

Altogether, our report cards have 13 indicators, each weighted differently to provide an overall grade for the jurisdiction. These grades are determined using a baseline that Food Banks Canada developed in 2023 based on the provincial averages of these indicators (see methodology). Through this structured approach, our report aims to provide policymakers, stakeholders, and the public with valuable insights into the state of poverty in Canada, facilitating informed decision-making and targeted interventions to address this critical issue.

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Our Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI)

Food Banks Canada is deeply committed to respecting the principles of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in all we do. As part of our ongoing efforts to develop inclusive environments, our team used an EDI framework to guide us throughout the development of this report.

We recognized the importance of incorporating diverse perspectives from the earliest stages of conceptualization to ensure that our work considered and reflected a robust range of viewpoints.

Before the report was first introduced in 2023, we conducted early consultations with experts — both professionals and people with lived experience — from across the country, actively seeking the participation of individuals from diverse backgrounds and with a range of lived experiences. These consultations provided direction for our team on much of the process and design of the report, including data collection and policy development. In 2024, we continue to make adaptations to this living report through in-depth reviews of our website, design, and content.

All the poverty-based analysis in this report includes a cross-analysis of intersectional demographics. In our own survey that forms part of this report, we disaggregate our findings to identify how racialized people in Canada experience poverty and struggle differently than the rest of the population. In 2024, we also included phone interviews in the territories to better capture the unique experience of isolated low-income communities. Where our survey could not provide data on the experience of marginalized communities, we sought outside resources to fill gaps and effectively provide an inequality analysis for all 14 government levels.

The final report also underwent a third-party EDI analysis to ensure maximum representation and inclusivity.

As we move forward, Food Banks Canada remains committed to learning and to improving our approach to better include and represent all the members of our diverse community. We will continue to seek new and better ways to embrace EDI principles in our reports and all the work we do. Our vision is a Canada where no one goes hungry. This vision is inclusive of every person within our borders, irrespective of race, national or ethnic origin, language, citizenship, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, income source, age, or mental and/or physical ability.

To see our analysis of poverty and inequality in Canada, click here.