A heated discussion: Who uses air conditioning in Canada in 2025?

In 2025, just over two-thirds (68%) of Canadian households reported using air conditioning or similar cooling equipment (e.g., heat pumps) to offset the summer heat. This represents a slight increase from 64% in 2021, as measured by a previous survey.

This release uses data from the Canadian Social Survey (CSS) – Quality of Life and Energy Consumption Behaviours, which collected information on heating, cooling, water use, electricity and energy-saving vehicles from February 14 to April 6, 2025.

While access to household air conditioning can offset some of the health and safety impacts of heat waves, it is increasingly important to understand how Canadians may choose to conserve energy by turning their air conditioning down when no one is home. This release describes the characteristics of households that reported having air conditioning, as well as related energy-saving behaviours that may help reduce the energy footprint of Canadians.

More than four in five Ontario households rely on an air conditioner in the summer

Although 68% of households in Canada reported having an air conditioner in 2025, this percentage varied across regions of Canada and by period of dwelling construction, tenancy and household income.

Ontarian households (83%) were the most likely to report having an air conditioner, while households in British Columbia (45%) were the least likely. This may, in part, reflect differences in regional climate, with the most densely populated areas of Southern Ontario reaching higher average summer temperatures than other regions of Canada.

Unsurprisingly, people living in more recently built homes were more likely to report having an air conditioner: 80% of homes originally built in 2001 and later had an air conditioner, compared with 58% of homes originally built before 1960.

Access to an air conditioner was also more prevalent among homeowners (76%) than renters (52%). Furthermore, air conditioners were more likely to be reported by households with higher incomes (82% among households earning more than $150,000 before taxes) than by households with lower incomes (55% among those earning less than $50,000 before taxes).

There were no differences in the presence of an air conditioner by age group.

Table 1: Percentage of households with air conditioning in Canada, by selected characteristics 

Among households with air conditioning, the average thermostat temperature set during warmer months (May to October) was 21.3°C. Canadians living in the Atlantic Region preferred their indoor temperatures slightly cooler than other regions, at 19.8°C. Both of these temperatures are slightly cooler than the recommendation from Natural Resources Canada, which suggests an indoor thermostat range of 22°C to 25°C.

Just over half of Canadians with an air conditioner turn it off or down when they are away for one week or longer

Turning air conditioning down or off while away from home has been identified as an effective way to conserve energy. As of 2025, just over half (51%) of Canadians with an air conditioner reported turning it off or down when they go away on vacation for one week or longer. However, residents of some regions were more likely to turn down the air conditioning, with households in the Prairies (56%) and British Columbia (56%) being the most likely to do so.

Less than one-third (28%) of households with air conditioning reported turning their air conditioner off or down while away for a weekend. Adults aged 30 to 44 years (33%) were the most likely to report turning their air conditioner off or down during a weekend absence, compared with people aged 60 years and older (24%).

Similar to the proportion of households that turned their air conditioner off or down for a weekend absence, about 26% of people aged 15 to 64 years (i.e., working aged) reported turning their air conditioner off or down during a typical day at work or school.

About one in five Canadian households with air conditioning (21%) turned it down or shut it off for short absences of an hour or longer. However, this percentage was higher among households in British Columbia (29%) and Quebec (25%) than those in Ontario (18%). People aged 75 years and older (25%) were also more likely to turn down their air conditioner for these short absences, compared with those aged 45 to 59 years (18%).

The vast majority of people who turn down their air conditioner do so to avoid wasting energy

Aside from saving on energy bills, there are many possible reasons to turn down the air conditioning when not at home. In the CSS – Quality of Life and Energy Consumption Behaviours, Canadians were asked what their primary reason is for turning down their air conditioner when they're not home, aside from financial savings. The vast majority (82%) of Canadians answered that they wanted to avoid wasting energy.

The second most-cited reason for turning down the air conditioning was to prolong the lifespan of the cooling equipment (7%). This answer was more prevalent among people aged 30 to 59 years (10%) than those aged 60 years and older (4%).

A further 5% of Canadians mentioned that their main reason for turning down the air conditioning was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, an answer that was more commonly cited among people aged 30 years or younger (7%) than those aged 60 years and older (3%).