Material Poverty

Material poverty exists where people lack the material and financial resources needed to thrive. In Canada, material poverty is measured by the Market Basket Measure, Canada’s official measure of poverty. The Market Basket Measure establishes the cost to purchase a basic basket of goods and services deemed necessary for a household to maintain an acceptable standard of living. Material poverty manifests itself in housing insecurity and homelessness, food insecurity, energy poverty, precarious employment and financial exclusion.

A Few Facts

  • In 2024, one-third of Canadians (34.8%) reported that it was very difficult or difficult for their household to meet its financial needs.

  • In 2021, 7.3% of the Canadian population was living in material poverty, a total of 2,717,615 persons. This included 621,235 persons in deep poverty (1.7% of the population) and 2,096,390 who were living in shallow poverty (5.7% of the population).

  • In addition, 6.9% of the Canadian population was living in households with incomes just above the poverty line, a total of 2,556,880 persons. Combined, a total of 5,274,505 Canadians were living either in or at risk of poverty, accounting for 14.3% of the total population.

  • According to Food Banks Canada, In March 2024, there was a record over 2 million visits to food banks in Canada. Statistics Canada reports that more than 1 in 5 Canadian households experienced some level of food insecurity in 2022.

  • The most recent national homeless counts reveal that over 40,000 people across Canada experience homelessness. Statistics Canada reports that 1,725,700 households across Canada are living in core housing need, 11.6% of the population.

Our Work

The Canadian Poverty Institute works to address various dimensions of material poverty through its research and convening with:

  • The Energy Poverty Roundtable: a provincial network of industry, government and non-profit stakeholders that work to coordinate efforts to reduce energy poverty and develop policy and strategy recommendations for government and industry.

  • The Fair Access to Insurance Roundtable: a multi-sector network of stakeholders from industry, government, academia and the non-profit sector that works to develop effective ways to provide affordable and appropriate insurance for low-income and barriered households.

  • The New Economy Roundtable: a pan-Canadian network of business, non-profit and government organizations working together to increase decent work and create a more inclusive economy.