Summary
If you live in Toronto and have bad credit, you can apply once through CashGo and get matched with lenders that offer installment loans of $300 to $3,000, repaid over 90 to 120 days at typically 22% to 32% APR. Lenders check your bank account online instead of relying only on your credit score, and there's nothing to bring to a branch. Toronto also has many payday lenders: the City has licensed them since 2018 and capped their number, but a payday loan still costs up to $14 for every $100 for about two weeks. On $500, that's $70 due all at once, compared with about $25 spread over seven payments for a typical installment loan.
How it works if you live in Toronto
Everything happens online, so it doesn't matter whether you're downtown, in Scarborough, Etobicoke, North York, East York or York. You fill out one application on your phone or computer, and CashGo sends it to lenders in our network. A lender that can help contacts you by phone or email and asks you to verify your bank online, which is a read-only look at your recent transactions. You don't need to send ID or paperwork. If you're approved, the lender shows you the full cost, sends its contract and deposits the money into your account once you sign, often the same day.
CashGo is not a lender. Each lender sets its own rate, fees and schedule.
How Toronto regulates payday lenders
Payday lenders in Toronto need a licence from the City as well as one from the province. The City licence took effect on August 1, 2018, and the City capped the number of licences at the 212 payday loan outlets operating when the rules were set. By September 2020, the count had fallen to 178.
The cap also applies ward by ward, at the number of outlets each ward had on May 1, 2018. That ranges from one outlet in Don Valley North to 21 each in York South–Weston and Scarborough Centre. A lender can't move an outlet to a ward that's already at its cap, or to within 500 metres of Woodbine Racetrack. The City isn't accepting new payday loan licence applications.
These rules limit where payday lenders operate, not what they charge. The cost is set by the province: up to $14 for every $100 borrowed. Ontario's other protections, including a two-business-day cancellation right and no rollovers, are in our payday loan alternatives guide.
What a bad credit loan costs in Toronto
Lenders in our network typically offer $300 to $3,000 over 90 to 120 days at 22% to 32% APR (last reviewed November 2026). Here's how that compares with a payday loan at the Ontario maximum:
| Borrowing | Payday loan | Installment loan at 32% APR |
|---|---|---|
| $500 | $570 due in about 2 weeks $70 cost | 7 payments of about $74.98 About $24.86 cost |
| $1,000 | $1,140 due in about 2 weeks $140 cost | 7 payments of about $149.96 About $49.72 cost |
Installment payments every two weeks over 98 days, before any membership fees, which lenders must include in the total cost they show you. Estimate payments for your own amount, or see payments on a $1,000 loan.
By law, lenders in Canada can't charge more than 35% a year, including fees. Your rights as an Ontario borrower are on our Ontario installment loans page.
Who can apply in Toronto
- Be 18 or older
- Have a full-time job or steady self-employed income
- Not be in bankruptcy
- Be a Canadian citizen
- Have an online bank account you can verify
Bad credit doesn't rule you out, because lenders look mainly at your income and recent banking. Applying doesn't commit you to a loan; you only agree to one when you sign a lender's contract.
Free money help in Toronto
If you're borrowing to keep up with rent or other debts, talk to a non-profit credit counsellor before you take on a new loan. Counselling is free, and counsellors can help you build a budget and may arrange lower payments with your creditors.
- The Credit Counselling Society is a non-profit with an office in Toronto. Its counselling is free; a fee applies only if you join its debt management program.
- Credit Counselling Canada lists other accredited non-profit counsellors in the city.
- Consolidated Credit, a non-profit we work with, also offers free consultations in Toronto. Call 1-844-871-1426. CashGo may be compensated for referrals to Consolidated Credit.
- For City of Toronto services and programs, call 311.
Apply for a loan in Toronto
One application, matched with lenders in our network. The only check is an online bank verification, and there are no documents to upload.
Sources
- City of Toronto, Payday loan establishments (page updated January 16, 2026): City licence, city-wide and ward caps, relocation rules.
- Government of Ontario, Payday loan: your rights: the $14 per $100 maximum and borrower protections.
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, Personal loans: the 35% annual limit including fees.
- Credit Counselling Society, Toronto credit counselling: non-profit status, free counselling and fees.
- Typical network terms, last reviewed November 2026. Installment payments calculated with equal installments, interest per period = APR × days in period ÷ 365.
This page is general information, not financial or legal advice. Lenders set their own terms; check your contract before you sign.