In Canada, the best carrier depends on where you live. Bell, Rogers, and Telus, also known as the Big Three, have the largest nationwide networks, but their prices are high compared with smaller, regional competitors, like Freedom Mobile, Sasktel, and Videotron.
Here are the cellular coverage rankings, based on the amount of the country's land in their respective networks:
Canada's eight largest urban centres have better than 99.9% coverage on all three national networks. Most well-populated rural areas also feature extensive high-speed LTE service, but coverage varies throughout the country's sparsely populated wilderness.
If you want the best price, you need to know your options. Below, we've got coverage maps for every region of the country so you can learn who offers service in your neighborhood.
Canadian mobile coverage map
We've mapped the coverage for every Canadian network. Use the drop-down menu on the left-hand side to toggle between networks and check or uncheck the connection speed you'd like.
Western Canada and the Territories coverage
Bell and Telus cover much of Western Canada, with Rogers providing slightly less. SaskTel provides cheap, regional coverage in Saskatchewan, while BellMTS does the same for Manitoba.
Looking to get granular? Follow the hyper-specific coverage guides below to better understand the coverage in these particular areas of the country.
Western Canada Provincial and Territory coverage guides:
- British Columbia cellular coverage
- Alberta cellular coverage
- Saskatchewan cellular coverage
- Manitoba cellular coverage
- Yukon cellular coverage
- Northwest Territories cellular coverage
- Nunavut cellular coverage
Western Canada city coverage guides:
Ontario and Quebec coverage
Bell, Rogers, and Telus all provide coverage throughout this region, with 5G available in urban centres. Freedom Mobile provides low-cost plans for Toronto and Ottawa metropolitan areas, while Videotron offers competitive regional coverage for Quebec.
If you want to see a local's guide to coverage in these areas, read our guides below.
Ontario and Quebec provincial coverage guides:
Ontario and Quebec city coverage guides:
East Coast and Maritimes coverage
Bell and Telus provide the most coverage to this region, with Rogers a few steps behind. Videotron, meanwhile, provides cheaper coverage than the Big Three, though the coverage area is limited to coastal Quebec.
Learn about cell coverage in the Maritimes, island-by-island, by reading the coverage guides below.
East Coast provincial coverage guides:
- Quebec cellular coverage
- New Brunswick cellular coverage
- Prince Edward Island cellular coverage
- Nova Scotia cellular coverage
- Newfoundland and Labrador cellular coverage
East Coast Canada city coverage guides:
Telus coverage map
Credit: Telus
Telus has the best LTE network and the best combination of network coverage and performance from any of Canada's national carriers. Bell and Telus share the same towers, but Telus has better download speeds and reliability. Canadians on the Telus network take advantage of its 5G speeds, unlimited data, prepaid plans, and phone deals.
Interested in Canada’s fastest network? Check out how Telus' coverage compares with its competitors.
Bell coverage map
Credit: Bell
You can pick up fantastic service and network coverage from Bell, too. Sharing the same towers with Telus gives customers the same great coverage, though Telus is generally considered to be faster and more reliable.
Regardless, on Bell’s network, you can still expect solid 4G LTE and 5G coverage, along with plans for all kinds of data users. (You can also grab cheaper access to the Bell network via Virgin Plus.) Choosing one of Bell's unlimited data plan options is the best way to take advantage of this top phone provider's strong mobile coverage. Looking for a great carrier that offers a variety of services? Learn everything you need to know in our guide to Bell's coverage area.
Check out what Bell's network looks like in your particular neighborhood.
Rogers coverage map
Credit: Rogers
Rogers doesn't offer quite as much coverage or speed as Telus and Bell do, but the carrier partners with other carriers to provide extended coverage to its customers. Like Bell and Telus, Rogers offers 5G and 4G LTE connectivity to its customers. In fact, Rogers was the first Canadian carrier to launch 5G service.
Want to see if Rogers is the best bet for your neighborhood? See how it stacks up against the competition with our Rogers coverage guide.
Freedom Mobile coverage map
Credit: Freedom Mobile
When Freedom originally launched as Wind Mobile, its affordable prices disrupted the Canadian telecom market. This wasn't an act of philanthropy: to this day, Freedom keeps its costs so low because its coverage footprint is considerably smaller than its competitors. If you're in a major city centre, particularly in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia, you'll have reliable 4G coverage with Freedom. If you venture outside of its network, you'll still have coverage through one of its carriers, but you're likely to experience slower speeds.
Interested in Freedom’s cheap cell phone plans? Get the details over on our guide to the Freedom network.
Regional carrier mobile coverage maps
Some of the most affordable plans in Canada are available through regional carriers. Although their networks are smaller, regional carriers compete with the Big Three in price and service. Find some of the best regional carriers below.
Videotron
Videotron has some of the best cell phone coverage for Quebecers and residents of Northern Ontario. The coverage area is relatively large for a regional carrier and provides fast speeds and reliable connectivity.
Customers can take advantage of their plans, which offer cheap 5G data and great prices on the latest smartphones.
SaskTel
Saskatchewan is notorious for having very little coverage outside of major corridors, but SaskTel provides coverage to the southern half of the province. Through their partner networks, SaskTel affords its users coverage across the country–without roaming charges.
Want to see what SaskTel can offer you? Check out their unlimited data and family cell phone plans.
Other regional carriers
Curious to see what else is available in your neighborhood? Enter your address into the WhistleOut search engine to find the best service available to your location or check out some of the most popular regional plans below.
|
#1
|
SaskTel
totalSHARE Nationwide
$70/mth
+ $50 Upfront
|
|
#2
|
Fizz
Unlimited Minutes & Text Messaging + 3GB Data
$17/mth
+ $5 Upfront
|
|
#3
|
Videotron
25GB Canada Plan
$45/mth
+ $50 Upfront
|
|
#4
|
Eastlink
$50 Rollover Data 65GB Plan
$50/mth
+ $60 Upfront
|
How to improve your mobile service
If you're unhappy with your current plan, you've got a number of options for improving your situation. Below, we explain how to make a bad situation better by changing carriers, making the jump to 5G, upgrading your device, and investigating a new plan with your current provider.
Change carriers
Sometimes, swapping your phone plan is the best option, even if it's not the most attractive. Moving from a smaller cell phone carrier to a larger one can provide better coverage, speeds, and overall value.
Get a plan with 5G
Customers who use 5G plans receive significantly faster speeds. While not inherently more reliable than 4G LTE, 5G will give you get a much better experience using your mobile data.
Upgrade your device
Your smartphone plays a direct role in your service quality. An older phone could have hardware that isn't capable of taking full advantage of your carrier's service, even if you're in the heart of its coverage area. Devices older than a couple of years also won't be able to use 5G, limiting you to 4G LTE or 3G speeds.
If you're interested in a new phone, we recommend checking out the best cell phone deals in Canada.
Check-in with your current provider/plan
One of the biggest mistakes mobile customers make is embracing complacency. Many carriers offer options that vastly improve service and customer experience for only a few extra bucks a month. You could be able to change your plan to access 5G speeds, pick up a new phone, or just save some cash on your monthly bill.
Understanding Mobile Coverage in Canada
Before you sign up for a new plan, you must understand what it is you're buying. Below, we break down some of the more confusing aspects of the current telecom market so you can pick out your new plan with confidence.
3G vs. 4G LTE vs. 5G
Carriers offer various types of wireless services, with each "G" being a new generation of wireless technology. 4G LTE is the default for most carriers, which is fast enough to stream and game on the go. The newest technology, 5G, provides significantly faster speeds, but only available in select areas of the country.
Some discount and prepaid carriers cap their speeds at 3G to provide cheaper cell phone services. While 3G is more than fast enough for basic users primarily concerned with placing calls and sending messages, it should be avoided if you're looking to use your phone as a device for streaming or gaming.
Coverage is where the people are
Canada's wireless networks have been constructed in more populated areas. As a result, the under-populated regions of the Canadian wilderness have fewer cell towers, leading to spotty service. The CRTC has passed legislation meant to encourage more towers in the rural regions of the country, but significant improvements have yet to be seen.
Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs)
Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) are carriers that buy services from one of the main carriers in bulk and then resell these services at a lower price. MVNOs can do this as they aren't paying for things like new towers and other network infrastructure. Canadian MVNOs are slightly different from other parts of the world, where MVNOs are independent entities purchasing space on larger networks. In Canada, "MVNO" is a bit of a misnomer: Bell, Rogers, and Telus all own their own MVNOs, which effectively operate as budget brands, appealing to demographics who might otherwise ignore the Big Three.
The primary MVNOs are Koodo, Virgin Plus (formerly Virgin Mobile), and Fido. These carriers provide service from Telus, Bell, and Rogers, respectively, but at a much lower monthly price. The main trade-off with signing up with these cheaper carriers is that getting a new phone can be more expensive.
Bell, Rogers, and Telus also own their own prepaid brands in Lucky Mobile (Bell), Chatr Wireless (Rogers), and Public Mobile (Telus). You'll be limited to 3G data speeds on these carriers, but they offer some of the cheapest plans in the country.
You can find other Canadian MVNOs in our list of mobile carriers with their plans or check out some of the most popular plans below.
|
#1
|
Chatr Wireless
$15 Nationwide Talk & Text plan
$15
Per 1 Month Top-up
+ $10 Upfront
|
|
#2
|
Lucky Mobile
$15 100 Minutes Canada-wide Calling Plan
$15
Per 1 Month Top-up
+ $10 Upfront
|
|
#3
|
Koodo Mobile
$15 Prepaid Base Plan
$15
Per 30 Day Top-up
+ $10 Upfront
|
|
#4
|
Fido
$15 Basic Plan with 100 Minutes + 250MB
$15/mth
|
|
#5
|
Public Mobile
$15 Unlimited Canada-Wide Talk + Text + 250MB
$15
+ $5 Upfront
|
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