How much does a receptionist cost in Ontario?

Updated November 12, 2026

A full-time receptionist in Toronto costs an employer about $45,000 a year before benefits, and covers about a fifth of the hours in a week. Here's how that number adds up in 2026, with the sources.

The wage

Ontario's general minimum wage is $17.95 an hour, from October 1, 2026. It goes up each October with inflation, and the new rate is published by April 1.

Most Toronto receptionists earn more than the minimum. Job Bank's figures for receptionists (NOC 14101) in the Toronto region are:

Job Bank's wage data comes from Statistics Canada surveys for 2023 and 2024, updated November 2025.

What you pay on top

Here's the median receptionist, full time ($41,600 a year), with the employer costs Ontario requires in 2026.

That's before anything you choose to add: health benefits, a computer and phone line, software seats, training, and the time it takes to hire. If the wage is higher, every line above goes up with it.

A part-time receptionist at 20 hours a week and the median wage costs about $22,300 a year with CPP and EI.

The hours it covers

A full-time receptionist is paid for 2,080 hours a year. Take away two weeks of vacation (the Ontario minimum for the first five years) and nine public holidays, and they're at the desk for about 1,930 hours. There are 8,760 hours in a year, so the desk is covered about 22% of the time.

That's fine for walk-ins and phone calls in business hours. It's the other 78% where enquiries wait: the email at 9 PM, the booking request on Sunday, the quote that needs a follow-up while your receptionist is on vacation.

What else you can do

• Do it yourself. No cost, but it's usually the owner doing it at night.
• A virtual assistant. Paid by the hour, working remotely in set hours. Read our comparison for published rates.
• An answering service. Live people answer your phone and take messages, usually priced by the minute. See AI receptionist vs answering service.
• AI office help, like StaffBox. It works through your inbox, messages, bookings and invoices around the clock, drafts replies for your OK, and gives you a daily brief each morning. Plans start at $250 a month, plus HST.

These aren't like-for-like. A receptionist greets people, handles the unexpected and uses judgment no software has. Many businesses keep their front desk and use StaffBox for the written admin around it, so their team spends less time on email and more with customers.