Who Sets the Number?
The landlord does. Ontario’s rule on tenant selection lets a landlord request credit references, rental history and authorization for a credit check, and use them alone or in any combination to select or refuse an applicant.1 The Residential Tenancies Act lets landlords use credit checks in the manner that regulation prescribes, and neither sets a score an applicant must reach.2
Any cut-off you see quoted online is a landlord’s or a website’s preference, not a rule. For context, Canadian scores usually run from 300 to 900, and Equifax Canada describes 660 to 724 as good, 725 to 759 as very good, 760 and up as excellent, and scores generally below 560 as poor.4,5 Those bands describe lending risk. Equifax itself says there is no “magic number” and that the score is only one of several pieces of information an organization uses.5
Why a Score Alone Is a Weak Test
A score summarizes what the applicant owes lenders and how they have paid them. It says little directly about rent, and bureaus and lenders use different formulas, so the same applicant can carry different numbers.4 Two applicants at 640 can look nothing alike once you read the file: one missed a phone bill three years ago, the other has two accounts in collection this year.
That is why the report underneath matters more than the number. How to Read a Tenant Credit Report in Canada walks through the payment history, collections and inquiries that drive it.
What Ontario Expects You to Weigh With It
Ontario limits how a landlord uses income. You may ask for income information only if you also ask for credit references, rental history or a credit check, and you may weigh income only together with what those requests returned.1 Read the score beside rental history, references and income, not instead of them. The rent-to-income side is covered in Rent-to-Income Ratio in Ontario.
Two Human Rights Code limits apply to any score rule you set:
- No credit is not bad credit. The Ontario Human Rights Commission says landlords cannot equate the absence of a credit rating with a bad rating and should not reject applications for a lack of credit history, because refusing applicants with little or no history may have a disparate impact on Code grounds.3
- Look past the number. Even with a bad rating, the Commission says there may be circumstances related to Code grounds that should be examined before rejecting the person, and credit history should only be considered as part of a genuine attempt to assess the applicant.3
Nothing in the regulation lets a landlord refuse an applicant because of a Code ground or because they receive public assistance.1 Where the credit file is weak or empty, the regulation also allows a landlord to require a guarantee for the rent.1
This page is general information about Ontario law, not legal advice. For a specific application, contact the Ontario Human Rights Commission, a paralegal or a lawyer.
Questions
Is 650 a Good Enough Credit Score to Rent in Ontario?
It depends on the landlord; Ontario sets no minimum. Equifax Canada calls 660 to 724 good and treats the score as one of several pieces of information, so a landlord should read the file and rental history behind a 650.5
Sources
- O. Reg. 290/98: Business Practices Permissible to Landlords in Selecting Prospective Tenants for Residential Accommodation
Government of Ontario, e-Laws, ss. 1, 2(1) and 4. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17
Government of Ontario, e-Laws, s. 10, selection of prospective tenants, consolidated from September 21, 2026. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Policy on human rights and rental housing, V. Identifying discrimination in rental housing
Ontario Human Rights Commission, s. 4.2.4 Credit history. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Credit report and score basics
Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, Credit score. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- What is a Good Credit Score in Canada?
Equifax Canada, Credit score ranges. Accessed October 22, 2026.
