Recently, we’ve published articles showcasing the priciest keywords in various English-speaking nations like the U.S., the U.K., Australia, and South Africa. Today, we’re focusing on Canada, revealing the top 25 keywords with the steepest cost-per-click (CPC) on Google Ads. The data from Canada highlighted some intriguing and expensive keywords, so let’s delve in!

Canada’s Allure

Insurance keywords are universally pricey, but our Canadian data revealed a particular subset: insurance for super visas, averaging a hefty $21.17 CPC. What exactly is a super visa? It’s a unique visa for parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens, allowing stays of up to two years without renewal. A prerequisite for this visa is proof of valid Canadian health insurance. Back in November 2016, the Boston Globe reported reported that a surge in “move to Canada” searches actually crashed the Canadian immigration website.

No surprise these keywords come at a premium!

Business is Booming

Perhaps all these newcomers are setting up shop? Many of Canada’s top 25 priciest keywords relate to business needs. For instance:

• Point of sale device: This competitive category, with keywords like “restaurant pos system” and “toast pos” (a restaurant POS brand), helps Canadians and tourists alike pay for their poutine and maple syrup pie.

Craving that cheesy goodness

• Calling software: Another top contender, with examples like “telemarketing software” and “cold calling software.” Navigating those stringent Canadian anti-spam laws must be tough – ensuring your software’s compliance is crucial!
• Merchant account: This bank account type facilitates credit card payments, proving useful for businesses keen on getting paid. You’ll spot more business keywords sprinkled throughout the list: “payment services,” “voice of the customer technology,” “business software”…do Canadians ever take a break? They’re also busy refining websites with “site search,” sourcing “stock music” for marketing videos, and seeking assistance with “social media marketing management.”

Buying a Canadian Home? Plumbing Help Might Be Needed

Searches for “plumber” and “hot water tank” were among the costliest. “Plumber” often signals an urgent “fix it now” situation, making it universally expensive. And in often-frigid Canada (where Winnipeg’s average winter high is a frigid 15 degrees), frequent water heater replacements are understandable.

“Moving services” also cracked the top 20, possibly indicating increased relocations to Canada. What Canadian keywords caught your eye?

Data Insights

Here’s how we curated this list: We analyzed anonymized AdWords Performance Grader reports from June 1, 2016, to June 12, 2017, spanning all industries. We identified the top 1,000 most expensive keywords and categorized them by core intent. For instance, we grouped “bail bonds” and “bail bonds los angeles” as their core intent is identical. Similarly, keywords involving different lawyer types (like “malpractice lawyer” and “injury lawyer”) or insurance were grouped. This methodology, consistent with our previous analyses, prevents an over-representation of specific long-tail or local keywords with limited broad applicability. We separated distinct services (like pest control vs. termites) whenever possible. Keywords with under 100 clicks were excluded. Only advertisers bidding in USD, GBP, AUD, CAD, and ZAR were considered, with separate analyses for each currency. Non-English ads and duplicates (identical keyword and CPC) were removed. This article presents the results in CAD. A huge thanks to our data analyst Josh Brackett, web team lead Meg Lister, and designer Kate Lindsay for their contributions to data compilation, analysis, and visualization.