Every price range on Know Your Quote is built from published Canadian prices, checked against at least three independent sources, shown in Canadian dollars and dated with the month we verified it. We tell you what each range includes, whether sales tax is in the figure, and where the number came from. If we can’t find enough reliable sources to support a range, we don’t publish one.
This page explains how that works, so you can judge our numbers for yourself before you rely on them.
Last reviewed: October 2026. We review this methodology and the figures behind it every quarter.
What a price range on this site means
A price range on this site shows what homeowners in a province or city are typically quoted for a given job. Your own price depends on the size and layout of your house, the condition of your ductwork and venting, the equipment you choose and the contractor doing the work.
We publish ranges instead of single numbers, because a precise figure without a current source looks more useful than it is.
Where our numbers come from
We rank sources by how directly they reflect what Canadians actually pay. From most to least weight:
- Installers who publish their own prices in writing. A Canadian contractor’s price list or published installed-cost range is the strongest evidence we can find.
- Canadian retailers. Useful for equipment prices, and for installation packages when the retailer spells out what’s included.
- Official bodies, for anything measured or regulated. Natural Resources Canada for efficiency ratings and standards, Environment and Climate Change Canada for climate data, and gas and electricity distributors and their provincial regulators for energy rates.
- Cost guides from other Canadian sites. We read them to cross-check our ranges, but never use one as the only support for a number.
- Quotes shared by homeowners, for example on Reddit. These are real data points, so we use them, but we always label them as user-reported quotes.
The three-source rule
We publish a price range only when at least three independent sources support it. Independent means three different businesses or organizations, not three pages repeating the same figure.
If we have two sources plus a real quote that falls in the same range, we may publish it and explain exactly what supports it. With less than that, we don’t publish a number. Instead, the section explains what drives the price and what to ask a contractor.
What every price on this site tells you
Each price we publish comes with the context you need to compare it with a quote:
- Currency. All prices are in Canadian dollars (CAD). We never convert prices from US sources.
- Sales tax. Whether the source’s figure includes GST, HST or PST. If the source doesn’t say, we say so rather than guess.
- What’s included. Equipment only, or equipment and installation. Whether removal of the old unit, electrical work, new ductwork, a thermostat or permits are part of the price.
- The date. The month we verified the figure.
- The source. Where the number came from, so you can check it.
Sales tax: GST, HST and PST
Sales tax on heating and cooling work depends on where you live. Some provinces charge a single harmonized sales tax (HST); others charge the 5% GST plus a separate provincial sales tax, or GST alone. The Canada Revenue Agency publishes the current GST/HST rates by province.
Because sources don’t always state whether tax is included, we report what the source says and flag it next to the figure.
Local data for province and city pages
Every page about a specific province or city uses figures from that place, never a national average with a regional multiplier:
- Installer prices from contractors who work in that area.
- Energy rates from the local gas or electricity distributor, with the month we captured them. Rates change on each distributor’s own schedule, so a date matters.
- Climate, measured in heating degree-days from Environment and Climate Change Canada’s climate data. Heating degree-days count how far, and for how long, the daily mean temperature stays below 18 °C. They’re the standard way to compare how much heating a home needs in Calgary versus Toronto.
Efficiency ratings and standards
When we compare equipment, we use the ratings used in Canada: AFUE for furnaces and boilers, SEER2 for cooling and HSPF2 for heat pump heating. Before we write about minimum efficiency requirements, we check the current standard with Natural Resources Canada. For product-level ratings, we refer to NRCan’s list of ENERGY STAR certified heating equipment and its guide to heating and cooling with a heat pump.
Rebates and incentives
Federal, provincial and utility programs open, change and close, sometimes without much notice. When we mention one, we give the date we checked it and link to the official program page. We never subtract a rebate from a price range: confirm your eligibility with the program before you count it in your budget.
Sources we don’t use
- US cost guides. Prices in US dollars reflect a different market, and converting them doesn’t make them Canadian.
- Pages built to sell a rebate or a financing offer. They tend to mix list prices with campaign discounts.
- One-off promotions presented as typical prices. A “$99 duct cleaning” offer, for example, isn’t what the full job usually costs. When a promotion helps explain how a quote is put together, we label it clearly.
Keeping numbers current
Prices, energy rates and incentives move. Every figure we publish is recorded with its source and the date we captured it. We recheck our price ranges and this methodology every quarter. When a figure has changed, we update both the number and the date shown on the page.
Between reviews, if an energy rate or a program changes, we update the affected pages as soon as we notice, and the date on each page shows when it was last verified.
You can read more about how we write and review our pages in our editorial policy.
Why your quote might not match our range
Our range describes the market; your quote describes your home. If a quote comes in well above the range, ask what’s pushing it up: equipment size or efficiency, ductwork or venting changes, electrical upgrades or access problems. If it comes in well below, ask what’s been left out. Either way, get more than one quote, and compare them line by line before you compare the totals.
Our independence
No installer, manufacturer, utility or rental company pays to appear on this site or to influence our ranges, and we don’t recommend specific contractors. Know Your Quote is funded by display advertising. Advertisers have no say in what we publish.