BC, Alberta and Ontario
How much deposit should you pay a contractor?
There is no single right deposit. What you can do in ten minutes is work out the percentage, ask what it pays for, read your province's consumer-protection page, and check the business before any money moves.
The free steps
1. Work out the percentage
Divide the deposit by the quote total. Jay's free deposit checker does it in your browser and keeps nothing you type.
2. Ask what the deposit pays for
Materials ordered on signing, a booking fee, or simply the contractor's cash flow are different answers. Ask when the next payment is due and what it is tied to.
3. Read your province's consumer-protection page
Alberta's prepaid contracting licence page, Ontario's home-renovation rights page and British Columbia's building-or-renovating pages each explain what the province requires of a business that takes money before the work is done. The page, not this guide, says what the rules are.
Official source: Your rights when starting home renovations or repairs (Government of Ontario; checked 2026-07-15).
4. Check the business before any money moves
The registry, the licence, the trade regulator and the insurance certificate are each a few minutes; the province pages on this site list the steps with the official source.
5. Put the payment stages in writing
A quote that names each payment and what triggers it is one you can compare and hold to. If the quote does not, ask for it in writing before you sign.
Questions people ask
Is a 50% deposit too much?
No guide can answer that for your job. Ask what it pays for, when the next payment is due, and read your province's consumer page. A deposit that mostly covers materials ordered on signing is a different thing from one that covers nothing yet.
Should I pay cash?
A payment you can trace, with a receipt that carries the business's registered name, is easier to stand behind later. Ask for the receipt either way.
Or ask Jay
Jay does these steps for you and writes up what the records show, with the source and date for each finding. The $39 Full Check (no tax added) also reads your quote and insurance papers, and a person reviews every Full Check before it goes out. The $19 Quick Check is opening soon.
Order a Full CheckSee a sample Full Check
Three quotes. One Jay check. Then the deposit.
Information, not a verdict. A record that is not found is not evidence of wrongdoing, and nothing here is legal, insurance or safety advice.
Published 2026-10-20; sources last checked on the dates shown beside each step.