How Much Are Winter Tires in Canada? What a Set of Four Costs, and the Recycling Fee on the Bill

A set of four new winter tires in a 16-inch size such as 205/55R16 runs $287.96 to $951.80 before installation and tax, and a 17-inch size such as 225/65R17 runs $391.96 to $1,023.80, across one Canadian online seller's full lineup of dedicated winter tires. Nine provinces have a recycling charge of $3 to $11.25 per covered car or light-truck tire, while Ontario leaves any eco fee to the store.

On this page

1. What a set of four winter tires costs
2. The recycling fee, province by province
3. Smaller winter wheels can cost less, if your car takes them
4. When to buy, and how to spread the cost
5. Questions people ask before buying winter tires

What a set of four winter tires costs

Those figures come from Quattro Tires, an online seller based in Quebec. It lists its winter range by size, with the price of four printed beside the price of one, so snow tire pricing is easy to read off the page. We went through every page of that list for three sizes. A second Quebec seller, 4Tires, lists the same top Michelin set at $951.80 too, and its cheapest 16-inch set is $295.96.

Prices at one Quebec-based online seller, before installation, recycling fees and tax:

"Middle of the list" is the median set price. Run-flat, pre-studded and police-pursuit tires are left out, and so are the all-weather tires the seller files under winter. A model listed in two versions counts once, at its lower price.

The cheapest set in each size is a budget model. Most mainstream winter tires sit around the median. Going from the 16-inch size to the 18-inch one adds $132 at the cheap end and about $243 in the middle of the list.

Tire prices change from week to week, and ours come from one online seller's listings this fall, so use them as a yardstick, not a quote.

Your tire size sets most of the price

You don't choose your tire size. The car did that at the factory, and it's written in two places. Transport Canada says the tire information label "is usually located on the edge of the driver's door or the door post". The same code is moulded into the sidewall of the tires you're driving on now.

It reads something like 225/65R17, which is the width in millimetres, then the height of the sidewall as a percentage of that width, then the diameter of the wheel in inches. The last number does the damage. In our three sizes, the tires for bigger wheels cost more at each price level in the table. Even at the top of the list, the 18-inch set costs $220 more than the 16-inch one.

Winter tires or snow tires, whatever you call them, the price of a set starts with the label on your door.

Budget for a set, never a pair. Transport Canada's advice is to "install winter tires in sets of 4", all of the same type, size, speed rating and load index.

What the price on the screen leaves out

Several costs can sit between a listed price and the bill.

Installation is the first. Costco says a tire purchase "includes installation at No charge" for members who buy from its tire centre. The online seller ships to partner garages and says "the installation is NOT included". If the tires are going onto the wheels already on your car, that's the off-rim job our changeover guide prices at $80 to $160 for four. You'll need one of the tire service shops near you to do it. Shipping is free in most of Quebec and Ontario, the seller says, and the cost elsewhere is calculated by postal code.

Pressure sensors are the second. If your car has direct TPMS, meaning a tire pressure sensor inside each wheel, take Costco's warning seriously: "TPMS service pack fees, may apply". A ready-to-install second set of wheels needs its own sensors as well. We cover both in our guide to what a changeover costs, and when a second set of wheels pays for itself.

Third comes any recycling charge. Sales tax goes on last.

None of that is a trick. It just has to be on both quotes before you compare them.

Six things to get in writing before you pay

1. The tire size on the quote matches the label on your driver's door, load index included.
2. The price is for four tires, and it says whether mounting, balancing and valve stems are in it.
3. What pressure-sensor service costs, per wheel, if your car has sensors in the wheels.
4. The recycling charge, per tire and for the set, and in Ontario, whether it's the store's own fee.
5. The sales tax, added to the total you're comparing between stores.
6. Any rebate: instant or mail-in, and the date you have to claim it by.

The recycling fee, province by province

One cost tied to a tire sale isn't the store's markup. In nine provinces, covered car and light-truck tires carry a set recycling charge that pays for collecting and recycling old ones. Find your province first.

We've left the territories out.

It goes by eco fee, environmental fee or recycling levy, depending on the province. On a set of four, the charge runs from $12 to $45. Where the province sets the amount, you can check it against an official number.

Nine provinces set it, and Ontario leaves it to the store

How the charge reaches the program varies. In several provinces, the store collects it from the buyer and remits it. Manitoba and BC instead say the store owes the program a fee on each covered new tire it sells. Ask whether it's a separate line or already inside the tire price. One date to know: BC's fee goes from $6.50 to $7 a tire on January 1, 2027.

You get something for the money. In New Brunswick you can drop off up to five used tires at any store that sells tires, and in Newfoundland and Labrador you can leave your old ones with the retailer at no cost when you buy new.

Ontario is the exception. Tires there moved to producer responsibility in 2019, which means tire producers pay for the recycling. The Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA), Ontario's recycling regulator, says it is "up to each business to decide whether to charge environmental fees" and how much.

Red flag: An Ontario tire fee is the store's number, not the province's. In Ontario, no government sets a tire recycling fee. RPRA says a store's environmental fee "is not a government tax and cannot be represented as mandatory, a regulatory charge, or a RPRA fee". If a counter calls it a provincial tire tax, ask for that in writing and compare stores. RPRA sends complaints to the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery at 1-800-889-9768.

So compare the fee line from store to store, starting with our list of tire stores in Toronto if that's where you are.

Used oil has a recycling program too, and we cover the recycling charge on an oil change separately.

Where a bigger rim means a bigger fee

Two provinces charge by wheel size. Prince Edward Island's Environment Tax is $4 a tire on rims of 17 inches or less, and $11.25 on anything bigger. Newfoundland and Labrador's levy is $3 and $9, split at the same 17-inch line. On a set of four, that's $16 against $45 in PEI and $12 against $36 in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Quebec draws its line differently. It goes by how tall the whole tire stands, and the break is at 33 inches. The three sizes we priced stand about 25 to 28.6 inches tall, so tires like those carry the $4.50 rate there.

Remember that 17-inch line. It's also where tire prices step up.

Smaller winter wheels can cost less, if your car takes them

There's one more lever on the price, and it's the wheel. If your car is approved for a smaller one, the winter tire that fits it usually costs less.

To measure it, we compared 225/65R17 with 225/60R18. They're the same width and they stand almost the same height, about 3 mm apart, because the 17-inch tire makes up for its smaller wheel with a taller sidewall. Only the wheel shrinks, by an inch.

The same winter tire on a 17-inch and an 18-inch wheel

Across all 25 winter models the seller lists in both sizes, the 18-inch set costs $35.96 to $189.32 more, with a median of $123.24.

Not one of the 25 was cheaper in the bigger size. In PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador, the recycling fee adds another $29 and $24 a set to the gap.

Now the condition, and it isn't optional. Use a different size only if your owner's manual or door label lists it for your exact model, or a tire shop confirms it clears your brakes and carries at least the original load index. Michelin Canada says keeping "the configuration set by the manufacturer is the safest approach". The tire retailer Blackcircles spells out the test: another size "may be acceptable only if the load index, speed rating, rolling diameter, rim fitment, clearance, and drivetrain compatibility are all suitable for your exact vehicle".

The catch is that a smaller tire needs a smaller wheel. So this works when you're buying winter wheels anyway, or when your car already sits on the smaller size. If you're pricing the cost of winter tires with rims, our changeover guide puts four steel wheels at about $300 and works out when a second set of wheels pays for itself.

When to buy, and how to spread the cost

Money is why people put this off. In the Tire and Rubber Association of Canada's survey last fall, about a third of drivers said they were less likely to buy winter tires that season because of what they cost. Among drivers outside Quebec with no winter tires, a quarter called them too expensive.

Two things bring the bill down: when you buy, and how you pay.

Beat the fall rush, and read the rebate

Statistics Canada says tire sales "have generally been highest in the fourth quarter, coinciding with the seasonal swap to winter tires". We'd shop before the first snow is in the forecast, while your size is still on the shelf and the installation bays aren't booked solid.

Fall is rebate season as well. Both sellers we checked were running set-of-four offers: Costco's as money off at the till on some brands, the online seller's as mail-in rebates worth up to $110 on some models. They aren't the same thing. An instant saving comes off today's bill. A mail-in rebate comes from the tire's maker, not the store. You buy four eligible tires, send in the form and wait as long as eight weeks for a prepaid card. The manufacturer alone decides whether you qualify.

Make one more call while you're at it. Some dealerships sell winter tire and wheel packages sized for your model, and their price is worth comparing before winter.

Quebec has a hard date. Winter tires are required there from December 1 to March 15, which makes late November a bad time to start. Our changeover guide covers when to book the swap.

Paying over time, and the insurance discount

In Manitoba, the public insurer will finance the set. Manitoba Public Insurance lends eligible customers up to $2,000 per vehicle at prime plus 2%, paid back over one to four years. The loan can also cover rims, mounting and pressure sensors. One rule changed on October 1, 2026: tires marketed as all-weather or all-season no longer qualify, even with the snowflake symbol on the sidewall. Our guide to which tires count as winter tires sorts out the labels.

In Ontario, the discount is the law. Every insurer has to offer one on private passenger policies for a car equipped with winter tires. The regulation sets no percentage, so the saving is whatever your insurer offers. Ask what it is before you renew.

Then do the sum. How much winter tires cost for your car comes down to your size, any recycling charge and the installation. Get all three in writing from tire stores near you.

Questions people ask before buying winter tires

Can I buy just two winter tires to save money?

Not safely. Transport Canada says to install winter tires "in sets of 4", and that handling improves when all four share the same type, size, speed rating and load index. Mixing tires makes the car less stable. If four is too much this fall, we'd buy four cheaper ones before two of anything.

When is the best time to buy winter tires in Canada?

Before the first snow forecast. Statistics Canada says tire sales are generally highest in the fourth quarter, so shopping in September or early October puts you ahead of the rush for stock and installation slots. In Quebec, the December 1 deadline makes late November the hardest time to start.

Do winter tires come with rims and sensors?

Not unless you buy a package. A listed tire price is for the tire alone. A tire and wheel package adds the wheels, and the online seller we checked ships its packages mounted and balanced at no charge. Sensors are an add-on. If your car has a pressure sensor inside each wheel, a ready-to-install second set of wheels needs its own.

Can I use smaller rims for my winter tires?

Only if your car is approved for them, and when it is, it usually saves money. The same winter tire cost $35.96 to $189.32 more per set in 225/60R18 than in 225/65R17. Use only a size your owner's manual or door label lists for your model, or one a tire shop confirms clears your brakes with at least the original load index.

Is there tax on the tire recycling fee?

In several provinces, yes. Manitoba's program lists its fee "+ GST & PST", Saskatchewan's lists it plus GST, and Recycle NB says HST is collected on New Brunswick's fee. We couldn't find a clear answer for the other provinces. Ask the store to show the fee and the tax on it as separate lines.

Is the tire eco fee in Ontario a government charge?

No, it's the store's own. Ontario sets no tire recycling fee. RPRA says each business decides whether to charge one and how much, and that it "is not a government tax". Compare the line between stores, and call 1-800-889-9768 if a store calls it a provincial tax.

How much more do studded winter tires cost?

At the online seller we checked, studding a studdable winter tire adds $29.95 a tire, or $119.80 for four. Whether you can run studs, and when, depends on your province. Check where studded tires are legal before you pay for them.