Retirement Home vs Long-Term Care in Ontario: Costs, Care and How to Get In

By Jatin Dua · Broker of Record, RE/MAX Quantum Realty · Updated 29 September 2026 · 11 min read — a side-by-side table of the two, what the law says a retirement home is, the 2026 long-term care co-payments and the low-income rate reduction, what retirement homes cost, how each one is entered, the wait for a long-term care bed, and the questions that usually decide it.

The short version: what each one is for

The Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority (RHRA) puts the difference in one line: “People who live in retirement homes generally need less medical care than long-term care home residents.” Ontario’s seniors guide describes retirement homes as privately owned residences where seniors rent a shared room, private room or apartment, usually with support services and personal care. The RHRA counts 776 licensed retirement homes in Ontario, and every one must be licensed.

Long-term care homes are for adults who need a level of care that is hard to provide at home or in a retirement home. Entry is by assessment, the province sets the price of accommodation, and there is a waiting list.

For families, the practical question is usually not which is better but which one fits the care your parent needs now, and what to do if that changes. If you are also weighing where in the region to live, my guide to the best places to retire in the GTA compares the cities.

Retirement home vs long-term care at a glance

What a retirement home is, legally

The RHRA’s plain-language guide to the Retirement Homes Act (published in 2018; check the current Act on e-Laws before relying on the wording) defines a retirement home as a building, group of buildings or part of a building occupied primarily by people 65 or older, occupied or intended to be occupied by at least six people not related to the operator, where the operator makes at least two care services available, directly or indirectly.

The same guide lists the care services the Act covers: nursing, medical service, pharmacy service, drug administration, help with feeding, bathing, continence care, dressing, personal hygiene and ambulation, plus meal provision, dementia care, and skin and wound care. The RHRA is clear that “Retirement homes decide what care services they will offer to their residents,” and that residents can buy the home’s services or arrange outside care providers.

Two more points from the regulator’s 2018 materials matter to families. A written plan of care is required within 21 days of moving in, and the resident can take part in making it. And the Act does not override the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, so a retirement home resident is also a tenant. The written tenancy agreement must set out care services, meals, accommodation and their cost.

What long-term care costs in 2026

The province sets the resident co-payment for accommodation. These rates took effect on 1 July 2026:

The rate reduction. A resident with low income can apply to pay less, but only for basic accommodation; “Regular semi-private and private accommodation are not eligible for a rate reduction.” The reduced monthly rate is annual net income divided by 12, minus a $149 monthly comfort allowance, minus any dependant deductions. Without dependants, the province says a resident would likely qualify if their income is less than $27,338 at the July 2026 rates. Assets, including owning a home, are excluded from the calculation.

An illustrative example: a resident with $24,000 of annual net income and no dependants would work out to $24,000 ÷ 12 = $2,000, minus $149, or $1,851 a month instead of $2,129.17. Apply within 90 days of moving in (the reduction can be backdated up to 90 days) and re-apply every year between 1 July and 28 September. Questions go to LTC.RateReduction@ontario.ca or 1-866-434-0144.

What a retirement home costs

There is no government rate. Each home sets its own prices, and the RHRA notes that “Retirement homes do not receive government funding and residents pay the full cost.” The last official survey is CMHC’s 2021 Seniors’ Housing Survey, which averaged $4,016 a month in the Toronto area and $3,354 across Ontario for a studio or private room with meals included. CMHC has since discontinued that survey, so there is no newer official figure, and 2026 quotes will not match it.

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada makes the point that matters most: “Typically, the more services and care you have, the more expensive it will be.” A home’s base rent and its care packages are separate conversations. I break this down, with the questions to ask, in how much a retirement home costs in Toronto.

How to get into each

Retirement home. You deal with the home directly. Shortlist licensed homes on the RHRA’s public database, visit, ask for the tenancy agreement and a written price list, and sign when you are ready. My retirement home visit checklist covers what to look for.

Long-term care. You must be 18 or older and an OHIP member. The steps, as the province sets them out:

1. Contact Ontario Health atHome at 1-833-515-1234, or find your local office through its office locator.
2. A care coordinator assesses eligibility.
3. You select up to five homes, in order of preference.
4. When a bed is offered, you have 24 hours to accept or refuse, and up to five days to move in.
5. If you turn the offer down or miss the move-in deadline, you are removed from every waiting list you are on and must wait 12 weeks before you can reapply.

That last rule is the one families most often do not know until it is too late. Choose all five homes as places your parent would actually accept.

The wait for long-term care

The province does not publish a current median wait on the pages I checked. The figures most often quoted come from the Ontario Long Term Care Association, an industry association rather than the government. It reports that more than 50,000 people were waiting for long-term care as of March 2026 (citing the Ministry’s client database), that half of people entering long-term care wait at least 165 days (citing Ontario Health), that the waitlist has doubled in ten years, and that there are 611 licensed long-term care homes with just over 78,000 spaces at full capacity.

Treat those as a sense of scale, not a forecast for your parent. Waits vary by home and by need. Some families look at a retirement home while the application is in progress; if you do, ask the home how its care package works alongside outside providers, since residents are allowed to arrange their own.

Which one fits: the questions that decide it

• How much help is needed day to day? Ask your parent’s doctor or care coordinator, not a sales office. Care needs drive everything else.
• Is the need stable or changing? A retirement home may suit today; ask what it can provide if needs increase and when it would say it can no longer help.
• What can the budget carry? A retirement home is paid in full by the resident; long-term care has a set co-payment and a rate reduction for low incomes.
• What happens to the house? A retirement home move is often funded by selling it; see selling the house to pay for a retirement home. For long-term care, see what happens to the house when a parent moves to long-term care.

None of this is medical or legal advice; talk to your parent’s doctor and your lawyer about the specifics. The downsizing money planner below estimates what the house frees up and the monthly cost of staying versus moving. If the house is part of the plan, book a call or phone 833-330-1925 and I will help you map the sale around the move.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• RHRA — Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority — 776 licensed retirement homes in Ontario
• RHRA — I’m looking for a home — licensing requirement, no government funding, care services, comparison with long-term care
• RHRA — Plain-Language Guide to the Retirement Homes Act, 2010 (2018) — definition of a retirement home, the care services, plan of care timing (2018 guide)
• RHRA — Key Facts to Know About Retirement Homes (May 2018) — written tenancy agreement contents, outside providers (2018 fact sheet)
• Government of Ontario — A guide to programs and services for seniors: Home and housing — housing options, retirement homes, rent increase guideline
• Government of Ontario — Paying for long-term care — co-payment rates from 1 July 2026 and the rate reduction
• Government of Ontario — About long-term care — eligibility and Ontario Health atHome contact
• Government of Ontario — Apply for long-term care — up to five homes, 24-hour acceptance, 12-week wait after refusal
• Ontario Long Term Care Association — The Data: Long-Term Care in Ontario — industry association wait-list and bed figures
• CMHC — Seniors’ vacancy rate and average rent, Ontario CMAs (2021) — 2021 rents for studio/private rooms with meals
• Financial Consumer Agency of Canada — Housing options for seniors — 2021 national average for standard spaces; more care costs more

Related reading

• Best Places to Retire in the GTA (2026)
• How Much Does a Retirement Home Cost in Toronto?
• Choosing a Retirement Home: A Checklist
• Parent Moving to Long-Term Care: What Happens to the House
• Selling the House to Pay for a Retirement Home
• How to Talk to Your Parents About Downsizing
• Moving a Parent In: Suites, Additions and Rules