Most Edmontonians are cutting back on spending as cost-of-living pressures persist: CityNews poll
Posted November 4, 2026 10:16 am.
A vast majority of Edmontonians say they have reduced their spending in the past year due to the increasing cost of living, a new poll has found.
The Canada Pulse Insights poll for CityNews found 81 per cent of Edmonton residents have cut their personal budget for at least one expense in the past 12 months.
Entertainment, groceries and food were cited by half of the survey respondents as the most common area where they reduced spending. That was followed by travel, at 42 per cent, and gifts, at 35 per cent.
“They’re really making cuts across the board,” said Will Daley, the senior vice-president of research and analytics with Canada Pulse Insights.
When asked which expenses they struggle with most, 72 per cent of Edmontonians pointed to groceries. Utilities were next at 53 per cent, followed by mortgage or rent costs at 53 per cent. Transportation and health-related expenses trailed significantly behind at 20 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively.
The figures were very similar in Calgary.
More than half of Edmontonians (57 per cent) living in households earning less than $50,000 annually gave their ability and opportunity to get ahead financially a grade of D or F. By comparison, only 19 per cent of those in households earning $100,000 or more rated their prospects that poorly.
Lower-income residents were also far more likely to report making spending cuts. The poll found nearly all Edmonton households (97 per cent) earning less than $50,000 reduced their budgets during the past year, compared with 68 per cent of households earning at least $100,000. Renters (93 per cent) were also more likely to cut back than homeowners (73 per cent).
Overall, 34 per cent of those living in Alberta’s capital graded their ability to get ahead financially as a D or F.
The survey also highlighted concerns about housing affordability.
Six-in-10 Edmontonians rated access to an affordable home to purchase as bad or terrible, while 59 per cent gave similarly negative ratings to the availability of affordable rental housing.
Among Edmontonians who do not own their homes, 70 per cent said they believe they will never be able to own a home in their community.
At the same time, the poll suggests that not all non-owners view homeownership as a goal. Thirty-nine per cent of Edmonton renters and other non-owners said they have no intention of ever owning a home and are satisfied renting.
The distinction was most noticeable among older residents. Among Edmonton non-owners aged 55 and older, 67 per cent said renting suits them and they have no plans to buy a home.
“Those are people who have cashed out of the market,” Daley said. “So they’re people who home ownership is something that they did in their earlier days, and they’re kinda through with it.”
Among those aged 18 to 34, the figure dropped to 36 per cent.
The poll also found Edmonton residents remain divided on efforts to address affordability, with 42 per cent giving the city’s plan to improve housing accessibility and affordability a grade of D or F.
“We know that the infill issue has been in play in Edmonton,” said Daley.
“Things are, certainly, up in the air in Edmonton.”
The online survey was conducted between Sept. 30 and Oct. 9 among 383 Edmonton residents and 401 Calgary residents aged 18 and older. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample of the same size is ±5.0 percentage points for Edmonton and ±4.9 for Calgary, 19 times out of 20.
