Canada · Bank of Canada data, updated after each decisionOn September 2, 2026 the Bank held its policy rate at 2.25%, its 7th hold in a row. Prime is 4.45%. The next announcement is October 28, 2026 at 9:45 a.m. ET, with the Monetary Policy Report.
By Artem Titarenko · Reviewed October 14, 2026 · Methodology
Policy rate
2.25%
Since October 30, 2025
Next decision
October 28, 2026
9:45 a.m. ET · with Monetary Policy Report ·
Prime is 4.45%; most variable mortgages are prime minus a discount.
Your rate goes from 3.95% to 3.70%.
Adjustable payment
−$67.14
a month: $2,616.57 → $2,549.42 (−$805.72 a year)
Fixed payment
The payment stays $2,616.57, but $102.54 a month more goes to principal, so you finish sooner.
Line of credit
Interest changes by −$20.83 a month.
Monthly payments, rate compounded semi-annually as in our mortgage calculators. Lenders that compound variable mortgages monthly will differ by a few dollars.
A $500,000 variable mortgage with 25 years left at prime minus 0.50% (3.95%) costs $2,616.57 a month. If the Bank cuts by 0.25%, prime falls to 4.20% the next day and the rate to 3.70%: the payment drops to $2,549.42, saving $67.14 a month or $805.72 a year. A hike of the same size costs slightly more than a cut saves. On a line of credit, every 0.25% is $20.83 a month per $100,000 borrowed.
| Announcement | Decision | Policy rate | Prime after |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2, 2026 | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Jul 15, 2026MPR | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Jun 10, 2026 | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Apr 29, 2026MPR | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Mar 18, 2026 | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Jan 28, 2026MPR | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Dec 10, 2025 | Hold | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Oct 29, 2025MPR | Cut 25 bp | 2.25% | 4.45% |
| Sep 17, 2025 | Cut 25 bp | 2.50% | 4.70% |
| Jul 30, 2025MPR | Hold | 2.75% | 4.95% |
| Jun 4, 2025 | Hold | 2.75% | 4.95% |
| Apr 16, 2025MPR | Hold | 2.75% | 4.95% |
| Mar 12, 2025 | Cut 25 bp | 2.75% | 4.95% |
| Jan 29, 2025MPR | Cut 25 bp | 3.00% | 5.20% |
| Dec 11, 2024 | Cut 50 bp | 3.25% | 5.45% |
| Oct 23, 2024MPR | Cut 50 bp | 3.75% | 5.95% |
| Sep 4, 2024 | Cut 25 bp | 4.25% | 6.45% |
| Jul 24, 2024MPR | Cut 25 bp | 4.50% | 6.70% |
| Jun 5, 2024 | Cut 25 bp | 4.75% | 6.95% |
| Apr 10, 2024MPR | Hold | 5.00% | 7.20% |
| Mar 6, 2024 | Hold | 5.00% | 7.20% |
| Jan 24, 2024MPR | Hold | 5.00% | 7.20% |
bp = basis points (100 bp = 1%). MPR = announced with the Monetary Policy Report. Rates take effect the day after the announcement.
All at 9:45 a.m. ET. Source: Bank of Canada schedules.
October 28, 2026, at 9:45 a.m. Eastern, together with the Monetary Policy Report and a press conference at 10:30. The Bank announces eight times a year on pre-set Wednesdays; the 2027 dates are January 27, March 3, April 28, June 2, July 21, September 8, October 27, December 8.
2.25%, in effect since October 30, 2025. The Bank Rate is 2.50% and the deposit rate 2.20%. The last change was a 25 basis point cut on October 29, 2025.
Banks move their prime rate by the same amount, usually effective the next day, and variable mortgages and lines of credit follow prime. On a $500,000 variable mortgage with 25 years left at 3.95%, a 0.25% cut lowers an adjustable payment by about $67.14 a month. With a fixed-payment variable mortgage the payment stays the same and more of it goes to principal. Fixed-rate mortgages don't change until renewal.
The policy rate (target for the overnight rate) is what the Bank of Canada wants banks to charge each other for one-day loans. Prime is what banks set as the base for variable loans to customers. Since 2015 the major banks have kept prime 2.20 percentage points above the policy rate, so 2.25% means a 4.45% prime.
Not directly. Fixed rates follow Government of Canada bond yields, which move on expectations about future policy rates, inflation and US yields. Fixed rates often change weeks before or after a decision, and can even rise after a cut if markets expected more. Our weekly rate report tracks both.
The Bank's quarterly forecast for growth and inflation, published with the January, April, July and October decisions. Those announcements come with a 10:30 a.m. press conference by the Governor, and the forecasts often move markets more than the decision itself.