Quebec is the fourth-largest source of personal loan applications Smarter Loans receives, and the province where the pattern differs most from the rest of Canada. This report covers the year to July 2026, drawn from 5,221 Quebec applications, against the national figures over the same period. Lenders serving the province are on the Quebec personal loans page; this is the data behind it.
What Quebecers ask for
Across Smarter Loans personal loan applications from August 2025 to July 2026, Quebec against the national figure:
- Average request: $2,730. Against $2,604 nationally.
- Applications for $1,500 or less: 70 percent. Against 71 percent nationally.
- Consolidation request: $6,224. Against $6,659 nationally.
View as table
| Quebec | $2,730 |
| Canada | $2,604 |
Source: Smarter Loans personal loan applications, August 2025 to July 2026.
Quebec asks for more than the country and consolidates less, on a smaller sample than the larger provinces.
The closest credit split in Canada
Everywhere else, fair credit leads low by a wide margin; in Quebec the two are two points apart.
Across the 2,602 Smarter Loans personal loan applications from Quebec that recorded a credit band between August 2025 and July 2026:
- Fair: 37.7 percent.
- Low: 35.7 percent.
- Good: 10.8 percent.
- No credit or unsure: 10.8 percent. Among the highest in the country.
- Great: below the reporting floor.
A larger no-credit share and a nearly even fair-low split are what a thinner-file applicant base looks like, and it is consistent with Quebec’s distinct credit market, where the caisses populaires hold a larger share of mainstream lending than credit unions do elsewhere.
Consolidation and business
Across Smarter Loans applications from Quebec from August 2025 to July 2026, against the national figure:
- Consolidation request: $6,224. National: $6,659. Quebec consolidates below the country.
- Business request: $109,849 across 100 applications. National: $92,806. The highest reportable provincial figure in Canada, on exactly one hundred applications; read it as an indication rather than a measurement.
The rules that apply in Quebec
Quebec has no conventional payday lending. The Office de la protection du consommateur will not issue a lender permit where the credit rate exceeds 35 percent, and conventional payday pricing always exceeds it, so the product does not exist in the province in the form it takes elsewhere. Short-term borrowing in Quebec means instalment loans and lines of credit priced inside that ceiling. Quebec is also one of the four provinces, with Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Prince Edward Island, where TransUnion keeps a bankruptcy on file for seven years after discharge rather than six, according to the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.
What this means if you are borrowing in Quebec
If your credit is fair or low, you are with two thirds of Quebec applicants, and the lenders on the Quebec personal loans page underwrite both bands daily. If you have little credit history, you are in a larger group here than anywhere else in Canada; our guide to how to rebuild credit in Canada covers building a file from thin. With no payday product in the province, the short-term loan options guide covers what fills that gap. For businesses, the business loans page compares lenders that fund at the scale Quebec asks for.
Frequently asked questions
How much do people in Quebec borrow with a personal loan?
An average of $2,730 across 5,221 Smarter Loans personal loan applications from Quebec from August 2025 to July 2026, above the national average of $2,604.
What credit score do most Quebec loan applicants have?
Fair and low are nearly tied, at 37.7 and 35.7 percent, the closest split of any province. One in ten report no credit or are unsure, among the highest in Canada.
Are payday loans legal in Quebec?
Not in the conventional form. The Office de la protection du consommateur will not license a lender charging more than 35 percent, so payday lending does not operate in the province. Short-term borrowing means instalment loans and lines of credit inside that ceiling.
How much do Quebec businesses borrow?
An average of $109,849 across 100 Smarter Loans business loan applications from Quebec from August 2025 to July 2026, the highest reportable provincial figure, on a small sample.
About this data
Figures are drawn from Smarter Loans loan applications from Quebec between August 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026: 5,221 personal loan applications, of which 2,602 recorded a credit band, plus 100 business applications. National comparators use all provinces over the same window. Amounts are requested at application, not funded; credit band is self-reported. Averages are used throughout. More of our data is at Smarter Loans Research. Smarter Loans has connected more than 2 million Canadians with financing since 2016.
Written by:
The Smarter Loans Editorial Team produces in-depth, original content to help Canadians navigate borrowing, credit, and personal finance with confidence.
