Canada Interior Design Market Size, Share, Growth and Forecast, 2025-2035

Housing, office refits and hotels shape design demand

The Canada interior design market was valued at USD 4.92 billion in 2025 and is projected to increase from USD 5.11 billion in 2026 to USD 7.11 billion by 2035, registering a CAGR of 3.74% during 2026–2035. Spending follows housing completions, office refits and hotel renovations, and Statistics Canada counted nearly C$4.7 billion of specialized design revenue in 2024, of which interior design took 45.3%. Ontario held the largest regional share, 50.8% in 2025, because Toronto concentrates head offices, hospitals and condominium towers, while the Prairie Provinces are the fastest-growing region at 4.50% a year as Alberta construction outpaces the rest of the country. Residential projects lead demand, yet hospitality is the fastest-growing project type because the national hotel pipeline reached 45,429 rooms at the end of 2025. Return-to-office rules at the big banks from September 2025 and in the Ontario Public Service from Jan. 5, 2026 are pushing employers to rework floor plates, which lifts space planning work across downtown cores.

What does the interior design industry in Canada include?

The estimate counts fees and design-managed contract value for interior design consulting, space planning, decoration, lighting and color work, and furniture and fixture selection across homes, offices, hotels, clinics, stores, schools and public buildings in Canada. Buyers include homeowners, corporate occupiers, developers, property managers and public owners, who hire designers directly or through architects and general contractors.

Furniture and finishes bought at retail without a designer, construction labor and base-building architecture fall outside the estimate. The value chain runs from design studios and multidisciplinary firms through dealers, millwork shops and trades, and Ontario reserves the title interior designer for registered members of its provincial association.

Residential work leads while hospitality grows fastest

Why do residential projects lead design spending?

Based on project type, the market is categorized into residential, commercial, hospitality, healthcare, retail, educational and public buildings. Residential led with 38.0% of 2025 value because the country started more than 259,000 homes in 2025, and Statistics Canada put multi-unit residential investment at C$98.4 billion that year. Commercial offices follow as employers refit floors for fuller attendance. Hospitality is the fastest-growing project type at 4.66% a year, as hotel pipeline data counted 119 renovation and brand-conversion projects with 16,432 rooms at the end of 2025. Healthcare and educational work rises with institutional building investment, as Alberta alone added C$1.1 billion of institutional investment in 2025.

Which design services earn the most fees?

Based on service type, the market is categorized into interior design consulting, interior decoration, space planning, furniture and fixture selection, lighting design and color consultation. Interior Design Consulting led with 30.0% of 2025 value because code-compliant commercial and institutional work needs qualified designers, and ARIDO counts more than 1,800 registered and intern members while the ARIDO Act reserves the title interior designer for registered members in Ontario. Space Planning is the fastest-growing service at 4.59% a year, as BMO, RBC and Scotiabank moved head-office staff to four office days a week from September 2025 and the Ontario Public Service followed with five days in January 2026.

How does project complexity shape fees?

Based on project complexity, the market is categorized into simple refurbishment, major renovation, new build and high-end luxury work. Major Renovation led with 36.0% of 2025 value because single-family building permits dropped to C$29.6 billion in 2025, the lowest annual level in the Statistics Canada series, which steers owners toward reworking existing homes. New Build work is the fastest-growing type at 4.29% a year, as the new federal housing agency favors factory-built and mass timber homes. The luxury residential segment depends heavily on Toronto condominium buyers, where new condo sales sank to their weakest level since 1991 in 2025.

Rental starts and office mandates keep designers busy

Record rental starts keep residential design pipelines full

Housing construction remains the largest source of residential design work, because every new suite and amenity floor needs finishes, lighting and furniture plans. According to CMHC, Canada recorded 259,028 housing starts in 2025, up 5.6% from 2024, and rental units made up just over half of urban starts for a second record year. Montréal starts jumped 58% to 27,777 units, and Calgary rose 14% to 27,684, which spread work beyond Toronto. Statistics Canada also reported that multi-unit residential investment rose C$11.2 billion to C$98.4 billion in 2025. As a result, Residential projects held 38.0% of 2025 value, and purpose-built rental owners now commission durable, repeatable suite packages and shared amenity spaces from design firms.

Four-day office mandates trigger workplace refits

Return-to-office rules are pushing employers to rethink layouts that were cut back during hybrid work. BMO, RBC and Scotiabank moved head-office staff to four office days a week from September 2025, according to BNN Bloomberg, and TD said in July 2025 that it would follow. The Ontario Public Service moved to five office days by Jan. 5, 2026, after a step to four days on Oct. 20, 2025. CBRE reported 1.2 million square feet of positive national office absorption in the second quarter of 2026, the fourth positive quarter in a row, and downtown Toronto trophy Class A vacancy fell to 2.6%. In turn, occupiers are ordering new office furniture, meeting rooms and collaboration zones, which supports space planning demand across downtown towers.

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Hotel pipeline and brand conversions widen hospitality work

Hospitality owners are spending on new hotels and on repositioning older properties, and both need full interior packages. Hotel pipeline data reported by Link2Build counted 332 projects and 45,429 rooms in Canada at the end of 2025, with fourth-quarter construction starts up 60% to 2,254 rooms. Renovation and brand-conversion projects covered 119 hotels and 16,432 rooms, while 49 hotels with 5,501 rooms are forecast to open in 2027. Ontario held 189 pipeline projects and Toronto alone had 74, which concentrates guestroom and lobby work in the province. Because flagged conversions require brand-standard rooms, operators buy contract furniture, lighting and finishes through designers, and hospitality grows at 4.66% a year.

Public housing and institutional budgets add steady contracts

Public owners are adding design work that is less exposed to private sales cycles. Build Canada Homes launched on Sept. 14, 2025 with C$13 billion in initial capital and a mandate to use factory-built, modular construction and mass timber methods on public land. Statistics Canada reported that institutional building investment rose in eight provinces in 2025, with Alberta adding the most. Healthcare interiors also earn national recognition, as Interior Designers of Canada gave its top 2025 Value of Design award to the Calgary Foothills Primary Care Network on Oct. 30, 2025. As a result, healthcare and educational projects gain share, and repeatable public housing suites favor designers who can standardize finishes for factory production.

Healthcare and amenity offices redefine design briefs

Shift toward evidence-based healthcare interiors

Healthcare clients are asking designers to show how layouts affect patients and staff before they approve plans. Interior Designers of Canada named the Calgary Foothills Primary Care Network, by Holland Licensed Interior Design, as its 2025 Excellence winner for healthcare innovation. The SickKids Patient Support Centre in Toronto by B+H won an honorable mention from the national association and a 2025 ARIDO award in the Work category. Perkins&Will listed the Toronto Metropolitan University School of Medicine in Brampton among its Ontario projects in a March 11, 2025 release. Statistics Canada counted institutional building investment up 5.7% to C$23.1 billion in 2025, which funds hospital and clinic programs. In turn, healthcare projects grow faster than the market, and firms with infection-control, wayfinding and accessibility expertise win a larger share of public commissions.

Rise of the amenity-rich head office

Employers that ask staff to return more often are turning headquarters into amenity floors with hospitality-grade finishes. The 2025 ARIDO awards, presented in Toronto on Sept. 17, 2025, honored workplace projects such as PwC Toronto, Scotiabank North Flagship, RioCan Head Office and TD Terrace. In Calgary, Kasian delivered four floors of the Manulife Tower for South Bow on an eight-month schedule from award to occupancy, and the project won a 2025 Shaw Contract best-of-region award for Canada. IDS Toronto, held Jan. 22 to 25, 2026, also built a series of immersive installations around the future of the office. As a result, Space Planning grows at 4.59% a year, the fastest rate among service lines.

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Opening in Prairie and Quebec housing markets

Design firms based in Toronto and Vancouver have an opening in faster-growing housing markets outside their home cities. CMHC data show Quebec starts in larger centers rose 32% to 54,220 in 2025 and Alberta starts rose 14% to 53,184, while Ontario starts fell 13% over the same year. Job Bank rates the 2025 to 2027 outlook for interior designers as good in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, which points to steady hiring by local practices and their clients. Atlantic provinces also posted a 20% rise in starts to 16,856 units in 2025. As a result, the Prairie Provinces gain share through 2035, and firms that open Calgary or Edmonton studios can reach developers and public owners early in the planning cycle.

Opening in lighting and product specification services

Specification services offer designers a fee stream that is less tied to construction starts. IDS Toronto 2026 gathered more than 250 exhibitors and added an ILLUMINATE lighting section curated by ThinkL Lighting Studio, according to Reno & Decor. The same show added new Portuguese and Italian pavilions, widening the European sourcing options open to Canadian specifiers. Statistics Canada, which reported a 4.3% rise in specialized design revenue for 2024, also expects digital and AI tools and web-based design demand to shape the industry in 2025, which favors firms that offer remote specification and virtual sampling. U.S. tariffs of 25% on upholstered furniture and cabinets since Oct. 14, 2025 also push Canadian clients to compare suppliers before they sign furniture packages. In turn, lighting design and fixture selection become a larger part of each commission.

Margins, condo slump and tariffs test design firms

Rising costs squeeze design-firm margins

Costs are rising faster than fees for many practices, which limits hiring and investment. Labor is the largest cost line, and Statistics Canada reported that salaries, wages and benefits rose 3.8% to C$1.1 billion in 2024, or 30.6% of specialized design operating expenses. That pay bill leaves little room to absorb fee cuts on residential work, which hurts small studios most. As a result, many now bill fixed fees for scoped phases and charge separately for revisions.

Toronto condo slump thins presale fit-out work

The Toronto condominium slowdown has removed a large source of model-suite and amenity design work. New condo sales in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area fell 60% to 1,599 units in 2025, the weakest result since 1991, according to ConnectCRE, and developers cancelled 7,243 units across 28 projects. CMHC data show Toronto starts fell 31% to 26,087 in 2025. As a result, designers tied to Toronto developers are shifting toward rental, renovation and institutional clients to replace lost presale work.

U.S. furniture tariffs unsettle millwork supply chains

Trade measures are adding cost and planning risk to furniture and millwork packages. U.S. Section 232 tariffs of 25% on upholstered wooden furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities took effect Oct. 14, 2025, according to customs broker GHY International, and higher rates of 30% and 50% are now scheduled for Jan. 1, 2027. Canadian makers that sell into the United States face lower volumes, which can unsettle lead times and pricing for domestic projects. Designers are responding by holding alternates in specifications and confirming supplier prices before tender.

Crowded labor pools in the largest provinces hold down fees

Labor supply is uneven, and oversupply in the largest provinces holds down fees and wages. Job Bank rates the 2025 to 2027 outlook for interior designers and decorators as limited in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, the three provinces that generate most design revenue. The national median wage for interior designers is C$28.85 an hour on Job Bank, which signals modest pricing power for junior staff. As a result, new graduates compete for fewer openings, and firms face pressure to discount fees on residential work.

Ontario dominates as the Prairie Provinces grow fastest

Ontario leads on head offices and registered designers

Ontario held 50.8% of 2025 value and grows at 3.50% a year, the largest regional base by a wide margin. Statistics Canada reported that Ontario generated 51.3% of specialized design revenue in 2024 and grew 4.8% that year, helped by Toronto head offices, hospitals and hotels. The province also holds 189 hotel pipeline projects, the most in Canada. However, Ontario housing starts fell 13% to 62,561 in 2025, which slows residential growth compared with western provinces and Quebec.

Quebec gains from Montréal's housing surge

Quebec held 19.6% of 2025 value and grows at 4.00% a year as Montréal construction recovers. CMHC data show Montréal starts rose 58% in 2025, the highest total of any Canadian city, and Quebec starts in larger centers rose 32%. Quebec produced 19.6% of specialized design revenue in 2023, according to Statistics Canada. Downtown Montréal office vacancy also fell 90 basis points in the second quarter of 2026, according to CBRE, which supports workplace refits in the city core.

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British Columbia leans on hotels and corporate workplaces

British Columbia held 17.1% of 2025 value and grows at 3.60% a year. The province produced 17.2% of specialized design revenue in 2023, according to Statistics Canada, and its hotel pipeline reached 69 projects and 10,171 rooms at the end of 2025, a large share of national guestroom work. Vancouver alone had 34 hotel projects with 5,966 rooms in that pipeline. However, Vancouver housing starts slipped 3% to 27,185 in 2025, and suburban office vacancy rose 190 basis points in the second quarter of 2026, which tempers residential and workplace demand.

Prairie Provinces grow fastest on Alberta construction

The Prairie Provinces held 10.5% of 2025 value and are the fastest-growing region at 4.50% a year. Alberta alone produced 8.5% of specialized design revenue in 2023, according to Statistics Canada, and Calgary recorded the second-highest city housing starts in 2025. Alberta also led institutional building investment gains in 2025, which supports clinic and school interiors. Calgary firms Holland Licensed Interior Design and Way of Normal earned 2025 Value of Design recognition, which shows growing local design capacity in the region.

Atlantic Canada posts fast revenue gains from a small base

Atlantic Canada held 2.0% of 2025 value and grows at 4.10% a year from a small base. Statistics Canada reported that specialized design revenue rose 17.1% in Prince Edward Island and 12.0% in Nova Scotia in 2024, the only double-digit provincial gains reported. CMHC data also show Atlantic housing starts in larger centers rising 20% to 16,856 units in 2025. Job Bank rates the Nova Scotia outlook for interior designers as moderate, which is stronger than in the three largest provinces.

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Awards, leadership moves and IDS 2026 marked the year

Digital tools and factory-built homes change workflows

• Digital and AI tools are reshaping concept and documentation work, and Statistics Canada named them among the forces shaping the design industry in 2025.
• Factory-built housing requires designers to fix finishes and layouts earlier, because the new federal housing agency favors factory-built and mass timber methods.
• Connected home systems are now part of suite planning, as buyers expect lighting, climate and security controls that designers coordinate with smart home devices and wiring plans.
• Architectural lighting has become a show-floor theme, as IDS Toronto 2026 gave a full ILLUMINATE section to lighting curated by ThinkL Lighting Studio.

Multidisciplinary firms compete with local studios

Competition mixes multidisciplinary architecture and engineering firms, global workplace specialists and Canadian independent studios. Stantec acquired Vancouver firm Ashley Pryce Interior Design, which made its Vancouver interior team the largest in the company. Gensler designed Warner Music Toronto, which earned a 2025 Value of Design honorable mention, while Toronto-based Figure3 won 2025 ARIDO Work awards for RioCan Head Office and its own studio. Kasian delivered the South Bow headquarters in Calgary on an eight-month schedule, and B+H won awards for The Post in Vancouver and the SickKids Patient Support Centre in Toronto. Perkins&Will named Cecily Eckhardt managing director of its Toronto and Ottawa studios in March 2025. Independent firms such as Holland Licensed Interior Design compete on healthcare expertise and local relationships, while DIALOG and Diamond Schmitt Architects win education interiors through architecture contracts. Pricing rests on fee proposals, sector references and registered staff.

Companies profiled and their roles in this market

Growth follows rentals, hotels and public projects

Credence Research's view is that the Canada interior design market will grow steadily rather than quickly, because housing and office cycles are moving in opposite directions by city. Rental construction, hotel conversions and four-day office mandates support demand, while the Toronto condo slump and tighter margins hold back residential fees. Firms that win public, healthcare and hospitality work will outgrow those tied to presale condominiums. Ontario keeps the largest share to 2035, but the Prairie Provinces and Quebec add work faster as their housing starts outpace Ontario's. Pricing power stays modest in the largest provinces because Job Bank sees limited openings for designers there.

How Credence Research built the 2025 estimate

The report uses 2025 as the base year and forecasts the market from 2026 to 2035. Market values come from the Credence Research model, which carries forward the earlier edition's series and was checked against Statistics Canada revenue for specialized design and architectural services, CMHC housing starts, building permit and investment data, and hotel pipeline counts. Regional, project type, service and complexity splits are Credence Research estimates built from provincial revenue shares, housing starts and project evidence. Sources include government statistics, professional association releases, company announcements and trade press. No interviews or surveys were conducted for this edition of the report.

Hospitality and western growth shape demand to 2035

By 2035 the market reaches USD 7.11 billion, with growth tied to rental housing completions, hotel renovations and public building programs more than to condominium presales. Hospitality and healthcare interiors should gain share as hotel conversions and institutional projects continue. Space planning grows fastest among services because employers keep adjusting layouts as attendance rules settle. Regional growth leans west and east of Ontario, led by the Prairie Provinces. Risks include a longer Toronto condo downturn, tariff swings on furniture and millwork, and thinner margins, which together could hold growth below the 3.74% base case in some years.

Note: The depth of individual sections depends on data availability for this market. Volume, capacity, trade and other unit-based metrics are included where applicable.