Best Mortgage Renewal Rates in Canada This Month (2026)

Quick answer: As of August 4, 2026, the lowest broker-exclusive 5-year fixed mortgage rate tracked by Ratehub.ca is 4.04%, with 5-year variable at 3.40%. Most renewal borrowers with an uninsured mortgage will see quoted rates closer to 4.29-4.49% fixed (WOWA.ca), since the lowest advertised rates aren’t available to every renewal file. Rates verified August 4, 2026 — confirm against a live source before you sign anything.

This page is refreshed on a regular cadence, not written once and left alone. Mortgage rates move within days as bond yields shift and the Bank of Canada meets roughly every six weeks — a “best rate” snapshot from even a month ago can already be stale. Treat every number below as a benchmark for comparison shopping, not a guaranteed quote for your file.

Last updated: August 2026 — rates verified August 4, 2026. The Bank of Canada held its policy rate at 2.25% for a sixth consecutive announcement on July 15, 2026 (Bank of Canada press release). The next decision lands September 2, 2026 and could move renewal pricing before your file closes, especially if you’re still weeks away from your renewal date.

What Are the Best Mortgage Renewal Rates in Canada Right Now?

As of August 4, 2026, Ratehub.ca lists its lowest broker-exclusive 5-year fixed rate at 4.04% and its lowest 5-year variable at 3.40%. Scotiabank’s advertised 3-year fixed sits at 4.04% and its 1-year fixed at 4.59% on the same date. Renewal borrowers with a conventional, uninsured mortgage typically see quotes closer to 4.29-4.49% on 5-year fixed (WOWA.ca, Aug 2026), since the very lowest published rates are often insured or broker-exclusive offers not every file qualifies for.

The gap between the “best” headline rate and what actually lands on your renewal offer comes down to whether your mortgage is insured, how much equity you have, your credit profile, and whether you’re renewing directly with your current lender or shopping through a broker.

Why Is There a Range Instead of One Number?

There’s a range because mortgage rates aren’t one price — they vary by whether your mortgage is insured or conventional, which lender or broker you’re quoting, and how much risk your file represents, and no single “best rate” applies to every renewal. A borrower with 35% equity and a 750 credit score can see a materially different offer than one with 10% equity, even on the same day at the same bank.

How Does the Stress-Test Qualifying Rate Differ From the Rate I’ll Actually Pay?

The stress-test qualifying rate is not the rate on your mortgage statement — it’s a higher, hypothetical rate lenders use to confirm you could still afford payments if rates rose, calculated as your contract rate plus 2%, or 5.25%, whichever is higher (OSFI, confirmed January 2026, no rule change). With 5-year fixed rates running roughly 4.29-4.49% right now, the real qualifying rate for most borrowers works out to approximately 6.29-6.49% — the contract-plus-2% math dominates at current pricing, which makes the 5.25% floor essentially academic today.

This distinction trips up a lot of renewal shoppers: seeing “4.29%” advertised and assuming that’s the number a lender will test their affordability against. It isn’t. If your income or debt load has changed since your last mortgage, run your numbers through the full breakdown in our mortgage stress test guide before assuming you’ll qualify for the rate you’re quoted.

Why Are So Many Renewals Seeing Rate Shock in 2026?

Renewal rate shock is widespread in 2026 because roughly 1.2 million Canadian mortgages renewed in 2025 at rates 200-300 basis points above their original contract (CMHC, 2026), and the wave continues into this year as more pandemic-era low-rate mortgages come due. If you locked in a rate in 2020 or 2021, even today’s comparatively moderate 4.04-4.49% fixed pricing can still mean a meaningfully higher payment than what you signed up for originally.

The scale of this shift is why shopping your renewal — rather than accepting whatever your current lender mails you — matters more this year than it did five years ago. Our renewal wall survival guide walks through the full picture if you’re trying to understand how you got here.

Should I Choose Fixed or Variable at Renewal Right Now?

Fixed rates offer payment certainty while variable rates are currently pricing lower — Ratehub.ca’s 5-year variable sits at 3.40% versus 4.04% for 5-year fixed as of August 4, 2026 — but variable payments move with the Bank of Canada’s overnight rate, which has held at 2.25% for six straight announcements (Bank of Canada, Jul 15, 2026) yet remains subject to change at the September 2, 2026 decision. Borrowers who can absorb payment swings and expect rate cuts ahead often lean variable right now; those who want a fixed number regardless of what the BoC does next lean fixed.

There’s no universal right answer here — it depends on your cash flow flexibility and how much a potential rate move would strain your budget. Our full fixed vs. variable comparison breaks down the tradeoff in more depth, including how each performed through the recent rate-hold cycle.

What Should I Do Before I Lock In My Renewal Rate?

Before locking in, get at least two to three competing quotes — your current lender, a broker, and one other bank at minimum — since renewal offers vary more than most borrowers expect and your existing lender has little incentive to volunteer their best number. It’s also worth checking whether switching lenders entirely makes sense given the rate spread available right now.

1. Run your specific numbers through the mortgage shock calculator rather than relying on the averages in this article.
2. Request your renewal offer early — most lenders send it 90-120 days out, and having it in hand gives you leverage to negotiate or shop elsewhere. See our renewal negotiation guide for tactics.
3. Compare switching lenders, not just renewing in place — the process and considerations are covered in switching mortgage lenders at renewal.
4. Check your qualifying rate, not just the contract rate, especially if your income or credit profile has shifted since your last approval.

Bottom Line

The best mortgage renewal rates in Canada as of August 4, 2026 run roughly 4.04-4.59% fixed depending on term, and around 3.40-3.70% for 5-year variable, sourced from Ratehub.ca and WOWA.ca — but the number that actually lands on your renewal offer depends on your equity position, credit profile, and whether you shop beyond your current lender. With the Bank of Canada’s next decision on September 2, 2026 able to shift variable pricing and bond-yield moves able to shift fixed pricing within days, treat every rate figure here as a snapshot that needs re-verification against a live source, not a number to act on weeks or months from now.