Canada’s used vehicle market crossed a notable threshold in August, with average prices falling below year-ago levels for the first time in 17 months.
The average used vehicle sold for $33,752, according to Clutch’s latest Used Car Pricing Report, down 0.1 per cent from July and 0.5 per cent from August 2025. That followed 16 consecutive months of year-over-year increases.
The decline becomes more pronounced when changes in the vehicles Canadians are buying are removed from the equation. Comparing the same model at the same age, Clutch found used vehicles were 2.2 per cent cheaper than a year earlier.
A shift toward newer and larger vehicles has helped keep the overall average elevated. The median transaction, meanwhile, fell three per cent year over year to $28,999, roughly $900 below August 2025.
The market is also moving more slowly. Last August and September were the fastest-selling months in Clutch’s records, with more than one-third of vehicles selling within two weeks. This August, fewer than three in 10 did so, with selling times returning to roughly August 2024 levels.
There were significant regional differences. Alberta’s average price fell 3.5 per cent year over year to $36,621, while Quebec’s increased 1.9 per cent to $30,097. However, comparable same-age vehicles declined 3.1 per cent in Alberta and 1.7 per cent in Quebec.
SUVs represented a record 65 per cent of used sales, while cars slipped to a record-low 20.7 per cent. Trucks accounted for 14.3 per cent.
