Guides

Explainers

Guides to the data behind each ranking

Read these if you want a clear explanation before you open a city page or ranking.

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What Statistics Canada measures each month, how residential and non-residential value differ, and how to read a city permit page.

How mill rates and assessed values combine into a tax bill, and why comparing rates across provinces needs care.

Health Canada's 200 Bq/m³ guideline, how long-term testing works, and how community averages relate to your home.

Hardness classes, why pH is reported with hardness, and when a softener is useful.

What federal coverage maps measure, how that differs from speeds you get at home, and where fibre shows up.

How national hazard layers are built, and how they relate to insurance and building codes.

These guides explain official datasets. For recent local reporting on housing, outages, or hazards, the outlets below cover many Canadian cities.

These links open third-party sites. They are independent of OpenStats and may show their own ads or paywalls.