Today, I examine recent changes in consumer spending on the arts, culture, and heritage in Canada and each province. The analysis in this article starts in 2019, because the survey questionnaire was thoroughly redesigned in that year, making it largely not comparable to prior years.
The article focuses on changes in the following key indicators for each jurisdiction:
Average spending per household on artworks and arts participation
Spending on artworks and arts participation as a percentage of total consumption
Average spending per household on the arts, culture, and heritage
Cultural spending as a percentage of total consumption
My category of “artworks and arts participation” includes six items: 1) works of art, carvings, and other decorative ware; 2) books; 3) tickets to live performances; 4) movie tickets; 5) admissions to museums, zoos, and other heritage sites; and 6) art and craft materials. The 19 cultural goods and services include these six items, plus 13 others, all of which are listed at the end of this article.
These groupings include spending items that are available in the dataset. Given the limitations of Statistics Canada’s Survey of Household Spending, I would consider the resulting analysis to be a limited but reasonable approximation of consumer spending on the arts. I would consider the broader estimate of spending on culture (including the arts, culture, and heritage) to be a less-limited approximation, but still imperfect. Please refer to the notes at the end of the article for important methods and limitations.
Spending details for individual items that are included in arts spending and cultural spending are not provided in today’s article, due to space and time limitations.
Recap of national data from 2023
As I noted in a previous article, Canadians spent an average of $1,623 per household on cultural goods and services in 2023, for a total of $27 billion. This represents 2.1% of total consumer spending in the country (after taxes, pension contributions, and gifts are excluded). Canadian households spent an average of $531 on artworks and arts participation items, for a total of $8.8 billion, representing 0.7% of total consumer spending.
Recent changes in spending on the arts and culture
In Canada, consumer spending on artworks and arts participation changed very little between 2019 ($539 per household) and 2023 ($531). The estimate was lower in 2021 ($453), likely due to pandemic-related restrictions.
The broader category of consumer spending (arts, culture, and heritage) also changed very little between 2019 ($1,659 per household) and 2023 ($1,623). The estimate was slightly higher in 2021 ($1,703).
These estimates have been adjusted for inflation.
The second graph examines spending on the arts and culture as a percentage of household budgets, which is followed by an examination of changes in each province. Spending levels, and spending as a percentage of household budgets, vary between the provinces.
Spending on artworks and arts participation has remained close to 0.7% throughout the period, with a slightly lower estimate of 0.6% in 2021 (again, likely due to pandemic restrictions).
Cultural spending represented 2.1% of household budgets in both 2019 and 2023 but was slightly higher in 2021 (2.3%). Interestingly, the main reason for higher estimate in 2021 is that Canadians tended to spend less money overall in that year. In other words, a lower denominator raised the percentage, much more than a change in cultural spending (the numerator).
Provincial details of changes in consumer spending on culture
In this section, there are slight differences in the estimates for the Atlantic and Prairie provinces in 2023, compared with my analysis three weeks ago. This week, I simplified the imputation for all years, using national data rather than the only-sometimes-reliable regional data.
Most of the data has been adjusted for inflation, but I also report the unadjusted percentage changes in spending.
British Columbia
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
24% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
7% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $526 in 2019, $488 in 2021, and $564 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.6% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
5% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
9% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,764 in 2019, $1,703 in 2021, and $1,611 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.0% in 2019, 2.0% in 2021, and 1.9% in 2023
Alberta
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
7% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
7% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $667 in 2019, $497 in 2021, and $619 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
8% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
6% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,984 in 2019, $1,822 in 2021, and $1,860 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.2% in 2019, 2.2% in 2021, and 2.1% in 2023
Saskatchewan
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
2% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
12% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $511 in 2019, $453 in 2021, and $451 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.6% in all three years (2019, 2021, and 2023)
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
2% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
12% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,800 in 2019, $1,795 in 2021, and $1,589 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.2% in 2019, 2.4% in 2021, and 2.3% in 2023
Manitoba
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
7% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
7% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $502 in 2019, $416 in 2021, and $465 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
7% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
7% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,720 in 2019, $1,690 in 2021, and $1,593 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.3% in 2019, 2.4% in 2021, and 2.3% in 2023
Ontario
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
17% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
1% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $559 in 2019, $452 in 2021, and $567 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
22% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
6% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,644 in 2019, $1,765 in 2021, and $1,738 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.0% in 2019, 2.3% in 2021, and 2.1% in 2023
Quebec
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
28% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
11% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $424 in 2019, $442 in 2021, and $470 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.6% in 2019, 0.7% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
22% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
6% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,366 in 2019, $1,593 in 2021, and $1,446 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.0% in 2019, 2.5% in 2021, and 2.2% in 2023
New Brunswick
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
18% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
2% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $445 in 2019, $413 in 2021, and $456 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
17% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
1% increase after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,619 in 2019, $1,675 in 2021, and $1,634 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.4% in 2019, 2.6% in 2021, and 2.5% in 2023
Nova Scotia
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
4% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
10% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $455 in 2019, $391 in 2021, and $411 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.6% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
6% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
9% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,597 in 2019, $1,609 in 2021, and $1,460 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.3% in 2019, 2.4% in 2021, and 2.2% in 2023
Prince Edward Island
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
8% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
7% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $503 in 2019, $410 in 2021, and $469 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.8% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.7% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
3% increase in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
11% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,669 in 2019, $1,574 in 2021, and $1,493 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.5% in 2019, 2.4% in 2021, and 2.3% in 2023
Newfoundland and Labrador
Household spending on artworks and arts participation
2% increase in the unadjusted estimate of spending on artworks and arts participation
12% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $449 in 2019, $408 in 2021, and $397 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 0.7% in 2019, 0.6% in 2021, and 0.6% in 2023
Household spending on the arts, culture, and heritage
1% decrease in the unadjusted estimate of cultural spending
15% decrease after the inflation adjustment
Average spending per household (adjusted for inflation): $1,745 in 2019, $1,669 in 2021, and $1,490 in 2023
As % of overall household spending: 2.6% in 2019, 2.5% in 2021, and 2.2% in 2023
Notes about the survey
Links to the data sources
Statistics Canada. Table 11-10-0222-01, Household spending, Canada, regions and provinces, https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1110022201.
Statistics Canada. Table 18-10-0005-01, Consumer Price Index, annual average, not seasonally adjusted, https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1810000501. For simplicity, the national change in the Consumer Price Index was used for all jurisdictions.
What is included in cultural spending?
After a close examination of hundreds of line items available in the Survey of Household Spending dataset, I retained 19 items as “cultural spending” and grouped them into the five categories, which are listed in descending order of spending in Canada in 2023. (The individual items within each group are also listed in descending order of spending in Canada.)
1) Home entertainment:
TV services and satellite radio services (including installation, service, and pay TV charges, but excluding streaming services)
Televisions
Audio equipment and home theatre systems
Video game systems and accessories (excluding for computers)
Pre-recorded media, music downloads, and blank audio and video media
DVD players, Blu-Ray players, and other video equipment and accessories
2) Cultural events:
Live performing arts
Movie theatres
Admission fees to museums, zoos, and other sites
3) Reading material:
Books and e-books (excluding school books)
Services related to reading materials (e.g., photocopying, library fees)
Magazines and periodicals
Maps, sheet music, and other printed matter
Newspapers
E-book readers
4) Visual arts and supplies category:
Works of art, carvings and other decorative ware
Art and craft materials
5) Photographic services and equipment:
Photographic services
Camcorders, cameras, parts, accessories, and related equipment
Survey methods
The Survey of Household Spending (SHS) is a bi-annual questionnaire on the spending habits of individual Canadians. Regarding this survey, Statistics Canada notes that:
“The sample for the 2023 SHS consists of 36,320 households across the 10 provinces”.
Since 2010, “the SHS data have been collected using both a questionnaire and an expenditure diary. The questionnaire is generally used to collect expenditures for more expensive and less frequently purchased goods and services. The diary is used to collect expenditures for smaller, less valuable items and those purchased more frequently. These expenditures may be more difficult to recall.”
The questionnaire portion was self-completed via electronic means, while the “diary was sent to respondents by mail”.
The dataset for 2023 was released in May of 2025.
I have adjusted the spending estimates for inflation. For some cultural spending items in some provinces, the data were not reliable and were therefore missing from the dataset. In those cases, I imputed the values for the missing data by substituting national data. The imputed data represent around 12% of total spending on culture in the provinces in 2023, with a low of 7% in Ontario and a high of 16% in PEI. The only arts item that was imputed in 2023 is art and craft materials, which was imputed from national data in nine of the ten provinces.
Survey exclusions and limitations
Because it is a broad survey of overall spending habits, the Survey of Household Spending does not provide information about some types of cultural spending. For example:
Musical instruments, parts, and accessories
Arts courses
Tuition fees for arts-related post-secondary programs
Textbooks (which the survey includes with other school supplies)
In addition, only a rough estimate of spending on live performing arts can be gleaned from the dataset. Live performing arts are grouped in a line item that includes live sports. I estimated each of these two components to provide a rough estimate of spending on live performances. (Here’s how: I used a 52% portion for the performing arts, based on the most recent revenue estimates from another dataset, Supply and Use Tables. However, these revenue estimates have fluctuated over time, and a 52% portion may be a fairly conservative estimate for live performances.)
The dataset examines cultural spending, not all types of participation in cultural activities. Free cultural activities, by definition, are excluded from the data source.