Calgary economy
Jobs, wages, prices, oil and gas, construction and retail for Calgary, each with the month it describes and who publishes it. Pick a number to see its trend.
Wages and affordability
Living wage, minimum wage and wage growth for Calgary, and the gap between them.
Living wage
Hourly wage a full-time worker needs to cover basic costs in Calgary.
$26.50/hr▲ 8.4% yr/yr2025Minimum wage
Alberta's legal minimum hourly wage.
$15.00/hr– no change yr/yr2025Wage growth
Year-over-year change in average hourly wages, Calgary Economic Region.
-1.0%▼ 5.1 pts yr/yrSep 2026Living wage and minimum wage, per hour
Labour market
Unemployment rate, employment level and EI recipients in the Calgary Economic Region, monthly.
Unemployment
Share of the Calgary Economic Region's labour force looking for work and not finding it.
6.3%▼ 1.7 pts yr/yrSep 2026Employment
Employed people in the Calgary Economic Region, in thousands, full-time and part-time.
1,113.5▲ 5.7% yr/yrSep 2026EI recipients
Calgarians receiving Employment Insurance benefits each month.
22,080▼ 3.2% yr/yrAug 2026Unemployment rate
Labour Force Survey, three-month moving average, not seasonally adjusted.
Inflation, interest rates and money supply
Calgary inflation against the Bank of Canada's 2% target, and growth in Canada's M2 money supply.
Inflation
Calgary CMA inflation rate against the Bank of Canada's 2% target.
3.4%▲ 1.3 pts yr/yrSep 2026M2 growth
Year-over-year growth in Canada's M2 money supply, which tends to lead inflation by 18 to 24 months.
4.5%▼ 0.9 pts yr/yrAug 2026Inflation and the Bank of Canada rate
Oil and gas prices
WTI crude oil and Alberta natural gas prices, monthly averages, which move Calgary's energy economy.
WTI oil
West Texas Intermediate crude oil price, US dollars per barrel.
US$101.38▲ 66.5% yr/yrOct 2026Natural gas
Alberta natural gas spot price, Canadian dollars per gigajoule.
$1.45▲ 190.0% yr/yrSep 2026WTI crude oil, US dollars per barrel
Housing starts and building permits
Housing starts in the Calgary CMA and the value of City of Calgary building permits, monthly.
Housing starts
New homes begun in the Calgary CMA each month, counted in units.
2,535▲ 12.1% yr/yrSep 2026Building permit value
Total value of building permits issued by the City of Calgary each month.
$515M▲ 11.2% yr/yrSep 2026Housing starts, Calgary CMA
Retail sales and bankruptcies
Retail sales in the Calgary Economic Region and business bankruptcies filed in Alberta.
Retail sales
Total retail sales in the Calgary Economic Region.
$4.26B▲ 10.1% yr/yrJul 2026Business bankruptcies
Business bankruptcies filed in Alberta each month.
13▼ 48.0% yr/yrAug 2026