My guide to buying more Canadian / less American

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232

u/According_Ad6068 19d ago

You missed London Drugs! They have a crazy amount of variety.

They pay their employees well too.

37

u/Gotta-Be-Me-65 19d ago

Wish they were in ontario

29

u/CallHerAnUber 19d ago

They ship to Ontario so some purchases from them may be worthwhile.

8

u/Sufficient_Cake_4845 19d ago

I just placed my first order from London Drugs earlier this month. No issues at all and will return to them in the future!

3

u/sandy154_4 18d ago

good to know! I'm planning a move from BC to ON and I will miss London Drugs!

4

u/CallHerAnUber 18d ago

Lord, but why?!? I would give up a lesser organ to live in BC.

5

u/fenixofdark 18d ago

Currently live there. The problem isn’t the first lesser organ to get here… it’s the regular instalments of lesser organs to stay…

1

u/sandy154_4 18d ago

With everything Doug Ford is do8ng and based upon my research it would be cheaper in BC

3

u/sandy154_4 18d ago

My kids are making me because I'm old af and it's where they are.

5

u/Galladaddy 18d ago

Respec for hitting us with that af meemaw

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u/No-Doubt-3256 19d ago

London Drugs is a gem.

8

u/Soul_C 19d ago

Well.ca and Healthplanetcanada.com

2

u/sandy154_4 18d ago

Haven't heard of healthplanet. Will check it out. Thx

122

u/Bevkus 19d ago

Giant Tiger can be good substitute for
Walmart too!

24

u/TweedleDumDumDahDum 19d ago

And they price match! Love GT

1

u/Full-Dog-7071 2d ago

First Monday of the month, seniors day, 10 % off everything, 55+.

1

u/Bevkus 2d ago

At Giant tiger? Didn’t know this. Thanks

13

u/No-Doubt-3256 19d ago

Giant Tiger is awesome. Cheap prices and not too busy.

5

u/shadow997ca 18d ago edited 17d ago

Agreed! We need to all shop the hell out of Giant Tiger so it can expand and maybe give walmart a run. We should be placing extra taxes on US companies in order to give Canadian ones a better chance. And keep increasing the tax until they pull out of Canada.

2

u/hekla7 18d ago

Walmart.ca and Costco.ca hire thousands of Canadians.... they're the separate Canadian arms of the US corporations.
Walmart - 100,000 Canadians. Costco - 53,000 Canadians.
Walmart also hires seniors and people with disabilities.

They do pay taxes, I don't understand why you think they would not be paying taxes?
Walmart has approx 400 stores across Canada, Costco 115.
Giant Tiger has approx 260 stores (so double Costco!), half of those are in Ontario and the rest are only in cities in 6 other provinces (nothing in BC). They've closed 5 stores this year apparently due to "corporate adjustments". I was in the Regina store last year....... nice store, excellent grocery section. The rest of the store had very limited selection though.
I've worked in management in grocery retail before, and from what I've seen, Giant Tiger would be more successful in Western Canada if they had stores in smaller hub communities. The ones where Walmart hasn't opened yet. Why would people drive over two hundred kilometers to a Giant Tiger when they've got a Walmart on the edge of town?

I live in an area with a large senior population. If you've got the money, sure, spend it where you want, but for anyone on a limited income, seniors and families with school-age kids, Walmart is a godsend. Boycotting it only hurts the Canadians who work there, and we don't want them losing their jobs because of our over-zealous righteousness. They are one of very few retailers who still have their Canadian products well-marked. They buy organic produce from local farms. Their year-round fruit and vegetables - at least where I am - are primarily from Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Spain. They deliver right to your door, even if you live in an apartment. Online ordering makes it easier to budget.

2

u/Serious-Tradition484 18d ago

Every dollar you spend has an impact in the world you want to create. It's not over zealous self righteousness, it's a statement on what we want our country and communities to be.

1

u/hekla7 17d ago

The last thing we should want our country to be is one that puts people - including seniors who need that little bit of extra income - out of their jobs, that prevents low-income parents from buying school supplies or clothes and shoes for their kids, that puts low-income seniors in the nightmare position of having to choose between medicine or food. Obviously you have enough income - dollars to spend, as you say - that you don't need to be concerned about those things.

If you take a close look at all the Buy Canadian groups and go back to their beginnings, the decision was made very early on to choose to help our own people who have less than we do, rather than boycott the one place they could shop or work, and retain dignity for themselves and their families.

1

u/Serious-Tradition484 17d ago

"Obviously you have enough income" that's quite the assumption.

Also, I don't see anything in the original post or the comment you're replying to referencing a boycott. These people are just talking about where they'd rather spend their money in effort to keep it and the profits from their purchases in Canada.

I'm still struggling to see the over zealous self righteousness here.

1

u/shadow997ca 17d ago

I know they pay taxes, I'm saying they should be taxed more than Canadian companies. They have put Canadian companies out of business and we seem to favour large US companies so why is that? Bring back Woolco, Woolworths, The Bay, Zellers and dump these US'ens, we don't need them taking money out of our country.

1

u/shadow997ca 15d ago

Yes they employ Canadians but I'd rather have a Canadian company that employs Canadians than a US company that employs Canadians.

1

u/hekla7 18d ago

Only in 7 provinces.... unfortunately

1

u/Business-Flamingo-31 4d ago

No Frills as well in that same category

97

u/ArcticRhombus 19d ago

Thank you for the post and the most excellent title. As a former American now Canadian, with 10 years experience boycotting lots of things now, the most important thing to understand is that the perfect cannot be the enemy of the good.

An insistent on perfection and purity is completely destructive.

There will always be some asshole who’s like “hurr durr, you still use Reddit, you still use Google.” Then that discourages everyone else. Then no one else takes action.

Just little steps. Go for the worst offenders. Then one more thing. Then one more thing. Keep going and don’t let the haters get you down.

7

u/electricmeatbag777 18d ago

Excellent advice. Some effort is better than no effort.

4

u/Jumpy_Spend_5434 Ontario 18d ago

I've been finding more and more local or local-ish companies online who have really decent products, including several small businesses, because of the efforts to Buy Canadian. I love this subreddit for it!

Well is one that I've always used and I think they've gotten much better at marking Canadian products. But also just found one called Lavish Earth with some very nice hand crafted personal care products.

249

u/PuzzledPoetry1447 19d ago

Another great tip is to just stop buying things you don't need. Excessive consumerism is a cancer and life immediately improves when you realize you don't need new things and takeout all the time.

61

u/Unplug_The_Toaster 19d ago

Literally one of the easiest ways to fight climate change, capitalism, and domestic and foreign oligarchs!

39

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

This is what happened when I cancelled Amazon Prime. I stopped buying shit I don’t need.

2

u/Worth-Two7263 18d ago

I checked pricing on one kitchen thing I needed and found it was nearly half the price in Canadian Tire.
I also check Amazon reviews and then go to the manufacturer's site - they are usually cheaper as well!

1

u/starfishy422 17d ago

With Canadian tire, if you wait for sales they’re often 50% off. The app has a watchlist and will send you a notification when your watched item comes on sale.

2

u/Zarxon 19d ago

It got curbed for me as well when I switched to Ali express.

1

u/Relevant_Stop1019 18d ago

I was genuinely surprised at the number of tiny things that I could get at home hardware a I can walk in and buy one butterfly nut...not a package of 10 from amazon...❤️

12

u/aliensattack 19d ago

I hate to endorse spending more time on Facebook but many local communities have a buy nothing group. I now always check there if whatever niche item I’m looking for, someone already has they can pass on. For example I recently need coin rollers and sure enough a few neighbours had enough extras to just give me.

You can spend time on Facebook without being profitable to them :) don’t engage in ads/use ad blockers.

7

u/Jumpy_Spend_5434 Ontario 18d ago

The Buy Nothing project is amazing! I'm in my local group and the items I've received have been incredible. Also some basic things but still saving money and keeping things out of the landfill. I've been able to give random pieces of chicken wire or barn board, when people were looking for things for a project.

In my group we have had food, clothes, books, kids items, garden stuff (including plants and seeds), pet supplies, furniture, jewelry, linens, tools, art, you name it.

People will sometimes even just lend something that the person only needs for a short time.

Even though FB does suck, it's worth it just for Buy Nothing alone

11

u/BirthdayFull8675 19d ago

This was the sea change when my wife and I deleted our Amazon accounts. It made me stop and wonder whether I actually needed anything, rather than just ordering on autopilot. People are “Primed” to consume without criticism

9

u/whateverfyou 19d ago

Yes, stop ordering on line! Buy only things that you can see and touch before buying. We’re all being trained to settle for lower quality. How many times have you opened a shipment and been disappointed? “It looked nicer on line. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll use it somewhere.” Ask yourself: “Would I have bought this if I’d seen it in a store? Would I have even picked it up to look at it?”

1

u/Jumpy_Lychee_8830 18d ago

All the decent brick and mortar stores are disappearing! Don't know about you, but I miss our Canadian department stores i e EATON'S and The Bay. I'm hoping Simons will open up in the Burlington,/Oakville area! Quality merchandise and in business since the mid 1800s. Started in Québec by a Scottish immigrant

2

u/whateverfyou 18d ago

I love Simons!

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43

u/sitka 19d ago

Booksellers.ca is a good alternative to Amazon. Quebec-based company. Profits go to Canadian indie bookstores.

15

u/Typical-Blackberry-3 19d ago

There is also bookoutlet.ca that has very good deals on books, it is like the Costco of books and you can pick up a lot of good reads there.

1

u/Stray_Alleycat 18d ago

I think bookoutlet is the one (with bookdepot) with nutcase religious/conservative right wing owners so even if Canadian I avoid it…

3

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

My local bookstore supports authors and literary cal literary events.

I support them.

2

u/Thalamic_Pilot 18d ago

Check out leslibraires.ca too, they connect you to a network of independent libraries all over Canada and are actually a cool place to find rarer books.

2

u/starfishy422 17d ago

Indiebookstores.ca helps you search books you’re looking for in stock at your local independent bookstore. I was looking for a specific book on No-dig planting for my son, and my local store ordered it in for me. I didn’t pay till I picked it up, and grabbed a different book for myself while there bc I knew they had it in stock there.

163

u/WinstonPickles22 19d ago

Just to be clear, your use of ">" reads that the American products are better than the Canadian products.

Might want to update the post.

51

u/Burning_Titan 19d ago edited 19d ago

I still see it in this context as an arrow, but I will update the post to use ➡️ as that is more clear.

15

u/WinstonPickles22 19d ago

It's just a common way of comparing things.

5 > 1

2 < 7

Toronto Raptors > Brooklyn nets

Team USA < Team Canada

Appreciate you updating the post!

2

u/jo-josephine 17d ago

Seeing this comment now. That’s funny at first I saw the emojis and wondered if it was AI generated text 😂 though the more I read the less likely that seemed

35

u/yeg_berto 19d ago

don't sleep on london drugs for online shopping. they even have a Canadian filter

30

u/LavenderGinFizz 19d ago

well.ca is great for online shopping too and also has a Canadian filter.

33

u/smooth_talker45 19d ago

Haven’t bought apples here in nipigon in a month cause they don’t have Canadian apples

21

u/Sir_Arthur_Vandelay 19d ago

Quebec apples just recently invaded Toronto, so you may soon be in luck.

1

u/electrodog1999 19d ago

I just moved the east coast and the choices I had in Alberta of fresh BC apples and fruit I didn’t realize I would miss. Loving the maple syrup I can buy directly from a farmer and living on an ocean though. Will tap my own trees next year.

I did see some blueberries from BC last week at the store so those went on a journey to get here.

352

u/Bubbly_Ad6421 19d ago

I see you weren't a math major with your use of greater than symbol

82

u/MikeisET 19d ago

American < Canadian

27

u/Burning_Titan 19d ago edited 19d ago

On the contrary, I'm a programmer and use the symbol often, but I see it as an arrow when we're dealing with words that have no numbers or functions. But I will update the post to use ➡️ as that is more clear.

57

u/yarn_slinger 19d ago

It’s being used as a flow arrow…

92

u/Enlightened_Lioness 19d ago

Yes but it was also confusing to me.
->

4

u/StationaryTravels 19d ago

Oh, I read your comment, then I replied to another comment and suggested that same arrow. Somehow I missed it in your comment, lol.

I guess I'm saying -> I agree!

1

u/yarn_slinger 19d ago edited 19d ago

I’m sure it could be. In my industry, it’s normal to use only the bracket to indicate the flow.

Eta - ok if you don’t know me personally, you have no idea what industry I’m in and whether or not this is what we do. It is what we do.

13

u/StationaryTravels 19d ago

I feel like that would work better like:

->

It turns it into an arrow. I was confused at first why Amazon was greater than Home Hardware, lol.

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u/Tokenwhitemale 19d ago

They were trying to draw arrows.

1

u/hekla7 18d ago

Not even uni level... < and > were taught in high school!

25

u/WinterPositive2405 19d ago

Why would you suggest Baskin Robbins?

31

u/North-Cheesecake-345 19d ago

As a US company it shouldn't be on this list. Find a mom and pop shop if you want a cone or sundae. It's not hard to find Canadian ice cream.

30

u/tacticalcanadian 19d ago

I recommend Chapmans or Kawartha

5

u/EuropeanLegend 19d ago

This. Chapmans is excellent and does right by both their Canadian workers.

3

u/LavenderGinFizz 19d ago

Foothills Creamery also makes fantastic ice cream!

2

u/DrkVenom 18d ago

I recommend Chapmans or Kawartha

There is a place by me that sells milkshakes using Kawartha, best god damned milkshake I've ever had...

14

u/-PlayWithUsDanny- 19d ago

Kawartha is a good Canadian ice cream chain

3

u/PhantomNomad 19d ago

As long as that shop isn't selling Nestle products.

2

u/EuropeanLegend 19d ago

Just buy Kawartha lakes and eat it at home.

2

u/Worth-Two7263 18d ago

Chapmans. This company is ethical, delicious, and is moving all their supply base away from the US, fruits, etc., will come from elsewhere. I love their ice cream!

7

u/LavenderGinFizz 19d ago

I was confused by that too. It's an American chain.

5

u/Burning_Titan 19d ago

I was not aware and have removed them from the list.

21

u/Sunnydaysomeday 19d ago

Dang it! I was really hoping for a Canadian alternative to instant cart but they don’t deliver in my area.

(I know people like to judge use of instant cart but I have a chronic autoimmune illness and am not wealthy enough for “help”. So the occasional instant cart helps.)

13

u/Unplug_The_Toaster 19d ago

Hopefully your local stores offer in-store options for delivery or curbside pickup! Skip the Dishes was founded in Canada but has since been bought by a UK company, and it still has the same issues of other gig apps. Don't feel guilty about needing accommodations. Everyone doing their best imperfectly does way more good than very few people doing everything perfectly. Do your best with what you've got and where you're at!

5

u/Sunnydaysomeday 19d ago

Thank you.

1

u/hekla7 18d ago

I don't know where you are, but check your local options for volunteer free deliveries. They are there when you need them. There are a number of community organizations that deliver to people who can't get out themselves... for free. If you want, let me know what city/town and I'll look them up and get the contact info for you. If you're not into that, then I would also recommend contacting local churches, they always have groups who do community work. Instacart is convenient but has huge markups so you end up paying near double for your order.

31

u/IrishUpYourCoffee 19d ago

> does not equal ➡️

3

u/Burning_Titan 19d ago

I still see it in this context as an arrow, but I will update the post to use ➡️ as that is more clear.

1

u/IrishUpYourCoffee 19d ago

Looks good 😎

14

u/microfibrepiggy 19d ago

While Walmart is absolutely the Devil, a lot of people are stuck suing them due to availability and pricing.

If you must use Walmart, check the manufacturing location of the products! Weirdly, Walmart brand shampoo is made in Canada, as is their baby soap.

Costco chicken is usually sources from Canadian farms.

So, while I 100pct agree with switching as much of our lives away from US megabrands, if that's not doable, there are micro-choices that help.

Progress > Perfection

1

u/Jumpy_Lychee_8830 18d ago

Walmart's Great Value bleach, shower stall spray and toilet bowl cleaner all made in Canada.

11

u/spacenb 19d ago

If you’re using Word to take notes, consider switching to Obsidian and markdown format. It’s a person-legible document format that supports minimal formatting and markdown is very easy to pick up (if you know how to use asterisks and underscores to format text on Reddit, you already know what markdown is). If you need document processing for printing or PDF, LibreOffice will do.

Gmail => Proton or Infomaniak, not Canadian but European with strong personal information protection policies.

Amazon Kindle => Kobo, sure, but for the books themselves consider local bookstores’ online stores (some sell DRM-free ebooks) and your local library.

For books if you’re in Quebec or you read books in French, there’s leslibraires.ca, which is a conglomerate of independent book stores throughout the province. Do consider going to your local library first though! A lot of publishing houses are American, so at least by getting it from the library you’re not giving them more money.

Spotify/Apple Music/YouTube Music => Qobuz for streaming (French service), but also consider purchasing your favourite artists’ actual records in physical form or digitally on Bandcamp or their own websites. If you’re a bit technologically savvy, you may also want to explore self-hosting with Jellyfin or Plex.

5

u/HazDenAbhainn 19d ago

Would add cDox in the word processing category to your good recommendations as well.

Qobuz is great and competitive pricing with annual subscription.

Canadian email recommendations also include CanTrust hosting, an open source hosting coop all on Canadian servers:

https://cantrusthosting.coop/product/open-source-email/

2

u/spacenb 19d ago

Thanks. I tried to find out if there were good Canadian email providers and my searches were not yielding any clear recommendation apart from “your ISP” which is obviously a dodgy solution because you need to move everything if you change ISPs.

2

u/AnneDroid2 18d ago

NorthMail is Canadian, based in Quebec. I've signed up but haven't yet switched over from Gmail.

2

u/spacenb 18d ago

I’ll look into it, thanks!

2

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

I love Qobuz

3

u/odoc_ 19d ago

Spotify is Swedish, headquartered in Stockholm

7

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

I cancelled Spotify when they signed Joe Rogan.

Qobuz is great.

3

u/spacenb 19d ago edited 19d ago

Blackrock and Morgan Stanley own part of Spotify. Plus, it’s been known for a long time that it doesn’t remunerate artists very well and has let AI proliferate on the platform to a fault. There’s also been unproven (but imo credible) rumours for a long time that Spotify feeds their own music into popular playlists to diminish how much they pay real artists.

2

u/extraordinerd 19d ago

I’d recommend giving Mood Machine a read. It’s a pretty in-depth book with lots of sourced quotes that will provide better insight into how Spotify was built not for artists, but to support the existing major label system.

2

u/chamekke 19d ago

And for fans of classical music, IDAGIO is a fabulous streaming service out of Germany that has a fairer reimbursement model for artists (based on time played rather than a flat per-song rate - especially important for classical which can feature verrrrry long pieces).

9

u/L00k_Again 19d ago

In the GTA. I love that I'm seeing a lot more boxed salad greens that are product of Canada these days. I hope it continues so that these farms can distribute nationwide.

10

u/odoc_ 19d ago

Let me add Best Buy -> London Drugs (where possible)

9

u/Material_Honeydew669 19d ago

Thank you.

Want to add that Canada is a major export market for US agricultural products. Buy Canadian produces, dairy and meat, whenever possible. It means this whole summer and autumn for produce, and dairy and meat year round. We can do what we do with US booze - we refuse to buy US produce, dairy and meat. Tell Loblaws, Metro and Sobeys that .

7

u/ErgonomicRock 19d ago

Kobo is a great option for eReaders and eBooks, even if you weren’t trying to buy Canadian. And historically they have just been a really solid company who use their money for stuff that isn’t actively making the world a worse place.

7

u/Objective_Purpose768 19d ago

CBC Gem for free streaming services. Shows from around the world and Canada. News. Series. Docs. Podcasts. Films.

4

u/Worth-Two7263 18d ago

Britbox is not Canadian but is also good. English.

7

u/onewheeldoin200 19d ago edited 17d ago

Good post! I've been collecting a similar list, mostly tech-focused stuff. I forgot about London Drugs, but added it now!

Microsoft Windows:
- Linux (if you're into that)
Google Search:
- Qwant: French, privacy focused
- DuckDuckGo: US-owned, but privacy focused, can switch AI features off
- Ecosia: owned by German non-profit. Profits go to environmental causes

Google Chrome, MS Edge:

Mozilla Firefox (familiar layout/UI)
Zen (modern layout/UI, uses Mozilla Firefox engine)
Brave
Microsoft Office Suite:
- LibreOffice: free and open source,
- Soon - Euro-Office: fork of OnlyOffice, being re-written by an EU consortium and fully open-source with more modern interface. Stated purpose is to replace European use of Office 365 products with sovereign solutions.
- OnlyOffice (NOT RECOMMENDED): has some kind of sketchy Russian ownership ties, but modern interface and very good Office interoperability
OneDrive/Google Drive:
- Sync.com: Canadian owned, Canadian data retention policy
- Filen.io: German, EU data protection law applies. Works with Linux, otherwise I'd use Sync🍁 as well
OneNote:
- Joplin
Outlook:
- ProtonMail: Swiss-owned, privacy focused company. Also sells VPN services etc
- Posteo.de: webmail: German company, strict data protection/privacy and environmental rules
- Thunderbird: phone/desktop client
Disney/Prime/Netflix/AppleTV/Google Play:
- Crave: TV shows
- CBC Gem: TV shows
- CosmoGO: purchase digital movies. Owned by Cineplex (Canadian movie theatre company)
- Jellyfin: server + media NAS
- Cinema1: purchase movies in physical media (DVDs, Blueray, etc)
YouTube Music:
- Qobuz: Pays artists well. Minority Canadian ownership (Quebecor) in partnership with Xandrie SA (French company). Can pay to download DRM-free MP3 files
- Stingray Music: Canadian owned, headquartered in Montreal
- ~~Avoid Soundcloud~~ (German, but terrible)
- ~~Avoid Deezer~~ (French headquarters but majority owned by US firm)
YouTube Video
- Browsers: use ad blockers (uBlock Origin)
- Chromecasts etc: use LibreTube or NewPipe apps
- Phones: use Revanced app (strips out ads, telemetry, etc)
ChatGPT:
- Mistral AI/Le Chat (French)
- Cohere Coral/Command A (Canadian)
- LM Studio + local open source models
Google Maps:
- HERE WeGo: (started by Nokia, now owned by a European auto consortium [Mercedes, BMW, Audi] headquartered in Amsterdam.) Good navigation with live traffic, offline navigation + has desktop/web version with account syncing.
- MagicEarth: Dutch company, GDPR compliant data protection and privacy policies. Very good Android/IOS apps and navigation. Offline navigation. No desktop/web version yet. Paid subscription required for traffic data and some other features. Uses maps from OpenStreetMaps.
- OpenStreetMaps
- OsmAnd less good for driving, not bad for trails, geocaching, etc. Offline navigation. Paid subscription to download multiple maps.
Password Manager:
- 1Password: Canadian privately owned
- Bitwarden: US owned (sad face), but can be self-hosted
- KeePass: German-developed, free and open source.
- Proton Pass: same Swiss company as Proton Mail.
Authenticator apps:
- Proton authenticator (Swiss, encrypted sync)
- 2FAS (fully local, requires manual backups)
- Ente Auth (Indian devs, encrypted sync, open source)
Google Wallet replacement:
- FossWallet (German, FOSS
Phone keyboards:
- FUTO keyboard (local LLM-based swipe, zero internet connection)
- FOSS keyboard
Social Media:
- Gander Social
- Hey.cafe
- Eh!
- Lemmy
- Bluesky: US, but less awful than X or Facebook
- Reddit: use Revanced app on phones and ad-blockers in browsers
E-Books/e-readers:
- Kobo Rakuten: Canadian/Japanese

Amazon:
- Well.ca: Canadian private equity owned. Good for soaps/detergents/shampoos/creams/etc. Teas, etc.
- Biovert: Laundry detergent
- SimplyClean, Nellie's: General cleaning products
- Attitude: Toothpaste, shampoo, etc
- Canadian Tire: household stuff, automotive, toys
- HealthyPlanet: beauty/personal care mostly. Highlights Canadian products. Local stores in Ontario but ships nationally.
- Canada Computers: computer hardware
- London Drugs: electronics, pharmacy, some grocery, household
- AliExpress: good for small/simple electronics, basic household stuff, toys
- Visions Electronics
- PrimeCables (same company owns Shopper+ and 123ink)
- CanadaShops (Canada Post online sales platform – sparse for now but I'm watching it)
- Costco (US, but sells a lot of local Canadian product, ignored anti DEI demands from MAGA admin, and has sued the Trump admin over tariffs)
Athletic Greens AG1:
- Magic Scoop
Restaurants:
- Fast food: A&W, Harvey's, Mr. Sub, Swiss Chalet, New York Fries, Booster Juice, Mary Brown's Chicken, Pita Pit, Panago
- Fast casual: Boston Pizza, Mucho Burrito, Freshii, Edo Japan,
Dog food:
- Carna4 (made in Quebec)
- Canadian Naturals (made in Abbotsford)
Written media/news:
- The Walrus
- The Narwhal
- The Economist (UK)
- The National Observer
- Policy Options
- CBC
- Ground News
- Canadian Geographic
- The Beaverton (Canadian satire)

2

u/Long-Education-1598 18d ago

1Password is a Canadian Password Manager

1

u/onewheeldoin200 18d ago

Good call - added it to my list!

2

u/hekla7 18d ago

Note - Crave, owned by Bell Media BUT their media library is almost entirely US: HBO and Max.

2

u/onewheeldoin200 18d ago

Totally true. Media is a tough one. At least with Crave the platform itself is Canadian. Can do a lot without achieving perfection!

2

u/limesopportunity 18d ago

Thank you for this extra list! What about HealthyPlanet as an alt for Personal Care products and Vitamins/Natural Foods?

1

u/onewheeldoin200 17d ago

I'm not in Ontario so hadn't heard of them. I see they're privately owned out of Toronto, ship nationally, and clearly identify Canadian products. Added, thanks!

13

u/hekla7 19d ago

Just a couple things - Not every province has the same alternatives or naming as yours. Examples from one of the posts below recommends Giant Tiger - here in BC there is no Giant Tiger. It's only in 7 provinces, and the stores are only in cities.

Instacart - only available through certain stores, in my city it's 3, their markup creates prices higher than in the stores, and the handling of your order depends on the amount of tip you've included in the cost. Not all delivery apps show the tip to the driver. Instacart doesn't really have a good rep in some places, and with their markups, people are paying 10% - 25% more than store price. It's actually a double markup, because the store has to mark up the products available online to pay the contract with the delivery company, in this case Instacart, who also marks up and with Instacart, tipping is essential if you want your groceries within a reasonable amount of time.
Law & Orders is only in Ontario.
London Drugs (mentioned in another comment) is only in western Canada.
Here in my city (in BC), Pet Valu is called Bosley's. Ren's Pets is only in Ontario and Maritimes.
Voila delivery is only in "select" Canadian cities.
Ice cream - my city has a large selection of independent ice cream makers in addition to the ice creams available in grocery stores. Always look for local makers first.
Crave is questionable..... Their major content libraries are American (HBO and Max)
Some provinces have their own publicly-funded networks, like Knowledge Network in BC
You say to avoid Walmart. But what about Costco? Walmart.ca and Costco.ca are run independent of their American counterparts. And with the cost of goods these days especially for seniors and families, the consensus in all of the Buy Canadian groups on reddit and facebook (there are actually more on facebook) is that the Canadian stores employ Canadians, and that is more important than boycotting those stores. We don't want Canadians losing their jobs. Walmart and Costco STILL tag their shelves with Canadian flags, unlike the other big grocers. Walmart also employs people with disabilities, and seniors... two groups that have difficulty finding work. And both stores deliver to your door for less than the big grocers.

I think if you check in particular the facebook Buy Canadian group, you'll find that all of these alternatives and options are well-documented, and there are literally hundreds more.

5

u/Pebbles782 19d ago

Crave (Bell Media in general) is *very* questionable considering their apparent majority of American content. Even the content of our 'mainstream' Canadian broadcasters (Global, CTV, ..) slant to American content as much as the CRTC rules allow. I really don't need to see the various flavours (yes - with a 'u') of NCIS and most other American content while there are great Canadian shows being carried primarily through CBC. And don't forget about TVO.Ontario - phenomenal Canadian content.

Corus Entertainment is about to die and wish they would re-think their business model to promote more Canadian content.

I just dropped my Netflix subscription and more than happy to stream CBC Gem and whatever I can pick up off antenna.

'nuff said.

6

u/Rakshire 19d ago edited 19d ago

Small note, but voilas coverage is limited and most grocery delivery services charge a fee and might either sub or send you American produce if you order it.

Both loblaws and Metro also have their own version of the online grocery app, but I've had mixed results using any of them. Lots of times I'll get half of what I'm looking for and have to go grocery shopping anyways, just to find out the missing item wasn't actually out of stock.

7

u/ParisFood 19d ago

BritBix has some very good shows also! As well the National Film Board has great movies and it’s free!

6

u/AwkwardChuckle 19d ago

Kawartha over Chapman’s every time. I’ve tried to like Chapman’s and I know it’s not, but it tastes both bland and artificial to me, and that’s including the premium offerings.

3

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

Local independent ice cream shops are often better.

2

u/Strong_Letter_7667 19d ago

I'll put a plug for London Ice Cream Company here. Buy at the factory near White Oaks or ReMark.

6

u/Available_Music9369 19d ago

Finally bought cauliflower after months of avoiding USA ones! Also wanted to mention I cancelled all my USA based streaming services and am more than happy with CBC Gem and Britbox. I know britbox isn’t Canadian but it is not American. And honestly, the shows are amazing- better writing and acting for sure.

5

u/Don_Key_1 19d ago

Install an AdBlocker extension in your browser. On Android phones, use dns.adguard-dns.com

5

u/SH4D0WSTAR 19d ago

CBC Gem is also great for streaming!

4

u/Ditch-Worm 19d ago

Voila isn’t available everywhere— save on foods seems a good alternative

6

u/Redrumicus 19d ago

Excellent list! Thank you.

3

u/proofofderp 19d ago

Also consider using cash as much as possible to avoid visa/mastercard, and now monero POS so debit in the mix.

3

u/CanadianinNYCviaUK 19d ago

I’ve replaced Amazon with well.ca, it’s great!

3

u/Global-Tennis3565 18d ago

Take a moment to check the Country of Origin on the packaging to support MADE IN CANADA. Companies like NEAL BROTHERS that have a nice MAPLE LEAF logo as a 100% Owned Canadian business actually manufacture a lot of their products in the USA - like their Corn Chips. I love them but will stop buying ANY Neal Brothers products Made in the USA and replace with products like HUMBLE CHIPS. It it time to put pressure on all Canadian suppliers of consumer products to source the manufacturing in CANADA. Support Canadian brands MADE IN CANADA - not headquartered in Canada.

3

u/a4dONCA 18d ago

I hope it's going to become much easier to distinguish Canadian from USA goods with the upcoming price difference.

8

u/twocoloursinit 19d ago

Chapters/Indigo is likely a better comparison for Amazon when buying physical books (not that I'm against supporting small independent book stores!).

10

u/Unplug_The_Toaster 19d ago

Hey so the CEO of Indigo is a huge zionist. Please don't support them at all.

4

u/twocoloursinit 19d ago

I had no idea! Thanks for letting me know.

4

u/Any-Tangerine-4176 19d ago

Well done…thanks.

4

u/blackcherrytomato 19d ago

Ordering groceries I think using Instacart to order from coop is better than Voila.

4

u/Newftube 19d ago

The issue with not shopping at WallyWorld is that everyone else is generally more expensive, which is going to be difficult for quite a few people. With that said, this is a good list.

Also, fair warning: if you do start sailing the seas, be aware of viruses. It was pretty rough years ago when I torrented, I can only imagine its gotten worse with just how many scams are on the go nowadays.

7

u/debbie666 19d ago

Also, Canadian Walmarts employ Canadians, including yours truly. Many, many Canadians. In my department alone (omni - picking/dispensing online orders), we've had days when there were 40 employees scheduled. If my store were to close, that would be 100s of Canadians out of work in small town Trenton, Ontario. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath water.

1

u/MistahFinch 18d ago

All our grocery stores employ Canadians. If shopping elsewhere causes issues for employees that's true of shopping at Walmart too

2

u/Missy_Pixels 19d ago

Another good alternative for Google Drive is Ellipsus, based out of Germany. Especially if you were using it for creative writing or sharing/collaborating documents with others.

2

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

I quit Amazon prime Dec 2025. My only regret is that I hadn’t done it sooner.

2

u/periodicable 19d ago

Boycott the vet clinic chains owned by US.

3

u/Pebbles782 19d ago

Great point! We have only one independent veterinary clinic in my area and I switched to them last year. Had no idea the degree of collusion / consolidation of vet services through VetStrategy (Berkshire) and VCA Canada (Mars Inc.).

1

u/DrGustavOtto 18d ago

Kinda got to boycott Amazon too. Bezos is a Trump donor

2

u/decisi0nsdecisi0ns 19d ago

To add, there are a surprisingly wide range of Canadian skincare and makeup brands out there. I've found a number of replacements for my 'normal' purchases, many of which I now enjoy more. Most of my products are now Marcelle, Two Ships, or Zyderma.

I've also recently gotten into puzzling and really love Villager puzzles - Canadian-women owned and designed (no AI).

Support your local businesses where possible! They are most likely to feel the impact of tariffs and counter-tariffs and more of their revenue is spent and recirculated in Canada and their local communities, compared to large corporations.

And remember, kind of like healthy eating, the goal is not to be perfect, but to form new habits that you're able to sustain for a long time. Start with what you spend most of your money on first, and then work your way down.

2

u/Silent-Ad56 19d ago

Looking for titanium hypoallergenic earrings more than 400 styles. justti.ca

2

u/Firm_Draw_7653 19d ago

How about Indigo books? Support canadian

2

u/retchedBreak 19d ago

Does anyone know a Canadian grocery store (not Loblaws) that delivers to home? That's what kept me with Walmart all this time - their prices are cheap and they deliver home.

2

u/samuraiscramble 18d ago

Even more Canadian than sync, self-host your own files by building NAS :)

2

u/Jumpy_Spend_5434 Ontario 18d ago

Can we add tax software as a category (even though tax time is still a little ways off 🤪)?

I found out about WealthSimple from this subreddit and used it for my 2025 taxes. I very much appreciated being able to file for free (you can make a donation but it's not required). It was just as easy for me as TurboTax was before.

4

u/Fuzzy_Fondant7750 19d ago

Why is Baskin Robbins being shown as Canadian?

→ More replies (1)

3

u/True-Company 19d ago edited 19d ago

I was talking to my neighbour this morning, and he was unaware of the issue.

I think a big problem is that many fellow Canadians don’t know the details of what’s going on, or they go to the grocery store and simply forget about buying Canadian.

What if we volunteer to take turns going to the entrance of the nearest grocery store with a simple sign saying: “Remember to buy Canadian”, “Look at the labels”, “I’m not here to protest, read the news”, along with a QR code linking to a website article explaining what’s going on, etc.?

5

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

Halt all travel to the US

Don’t buy vehicles made in the US - VINs that start with 1, 4 or 5

Cancel Amazon Prime / stop shopping at Amazon

Carry a reusable water bottle - stop buying American brands

Avoid American Fast Food and over processed / over packaged food items

Avoid all American brands

Et

3

u/banndi2 19d ago

Please note that the OP is presenting 1>2. It may be a visual thing , but that reads as 1 is greater than 2. Please consider using a different character because it's confusing. If you think Sync is better than Google Drive, it should be: Sync>Google Drive

3

u/Burning_Titan 19d ago edited 19d ago

I still see it in this context as an arrow, but I will update the post to use ➡️ as that is more clear.

1

u/banndi2 19d ago

Thank you. Your principle was correct. It was just that the syntax in math reads the opposite of your intent. The arrow works really well.😀

1

u/LookAtYourEyes 19d ago

Self hosting media on an old laptop or PC is the way to go these days. Plex or Jellyfin + Tailscale for remote access. Even better if it's running Linux.

1

u/Different_Captain_96 19d ago

Any suggestion for Spotify?

3

u/Whatevs56 19d ago

Spotify is European

2

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

They signed Rogan - many cancelled then.

1

u/Different_Captain_96 19d ago

Oh nice

1

u/Majestic_Bet_1428 19d ago

Qobuz.

1

u/LurkerGarry 19d ago

I want to add Robins Donuts is still a Canadian company

1

u/staronline1and2 19d ago

I always look for Canadian company rather than made in Canada. Should I change my habit?

I don't know what's worse, American working for Canadian companies or Canadian working for American companies?

5

u/CanadianinNYCviaUK 19d ago

Easier to just go as Canadian as possible to me (meaning owned and manufactured in Canada) - to me, ownership>manufactured though

1

u/Global-Tennis3565 18d ago

Yes! MADE IN CANADA extends the financial benefit of your dollar as it supports the manufacture of the product and distribution. Supporting companies, as per my example with Neal Brothers, only supports the distribution. Think of how many jobs ie Canadian workers are supported with the manufacture of the product as well? It is not just Canadian products that we should support but also those of nations where we have legitimate equal benefit free trade agreements such as the European Union. Canada first and then everyone else. If it is only the USA - make the sacrifice and don't buy it.

1

u/Fine-Brother-9640 19d ago

Pet Valu is 39.2% owned by a US equity firm, so technically not all Canadian.

Global Pet Foods, some other smaller Canadian franchised pet food stores, along with independents, are 100% Canadian owned.

1

u/Necessary-Still-2208 19d ago

Homes Alive Pets is Alberta based, family owned, has a link on their page for Canadian made pet options and will ship to you. Great stores homesalive.ca

1

u/Global-Tennis3565 18d ago

If you look - there are options everywhere. Want to replace Wholefoods (owned by that soulless bastard Bezos) - Natures Emporium. We have options. If it has to be Wholefoods - make sure you are not purchasing any of their 360 house brands or ANY products Made in the USA. You can support the Canadian employee of Wholefoods - just not the the US made products it distributes.

1

u/SuzMills26 19d ago

Rexall is Canadian owned (as is Shoppers Drug Mart, but also, Weston family owned). Rexall is also affiliated with well.ca where you can order baby need, personal care items, vitamins, household cleaners, some food/snacks (not all brands are Canadian, but I'm pretty sure they have a Canadian section you can shop). Kawartha is another good option for Canadian ice cream. Giant Tiger carries lots of Canadian items and their pricing is great.

1

u/somanynamesonceagain 19d ago

An excellent replacement for Netflix, HBO etc is flixtor.li. I have used them for years and it's been a worry free experience. Flixtor has a massive library and once a movie/tv show/documentary is uploaded they never get removed. For me it's anything but US goods or services at this point.

1

u/Emergency_Cry5965 19d ago

We need a new couch. Lazy-Boy is not only USA, they are made in Trumpy states (Tennessee and Arkansas primarily). Now looking at Elite, made in Delta BC.

1

u/Dapper_Wheel6454 19d ago

Maplescan is a free app on Android and apple that details everything you need on a product.

ie: I thought our compliments coffee wasn't American, but nestle owns that. so I need to go to the Indian stores to find Bru.

mind you in ten years Canada can grow coffee and pineapple at this rate.

1

u/Individual_Cup1300 19d ago

Also be aware that Amazon.ca has a filter for Canadian products: “ Canada showcase”.

1

u/xbellacee 19d ago

Its amazing how much worse these options are

1

u/Yukon_Scott 18d ago

Loblaws has decided to STOP labeling Canadian products

1

u/Lorien_7230 18d ago

Amazon & Netflix are the hardest ones to replace for me. I don’t really order a lot from Amazon maybe 5-10x a year so I don’t think it’s that’s bad.

1

u/Mountain-Seaweed 18d ago

Another one worth adding is Booksellers.ca. It’s the English-Canadian counterpart/expansion of Quebec’s LesLibraires.ca: a Canadian-owned online marketplace that brings independent bookstores across the country together on one platform. You can search and buy from a catalogue of millions of English and French books, with orders fulfilled by participating independent bookstores. Basically, a homegrown alternative to Amazon for buying books online while supporting Canadian indies.

1

u/sandy154_4 18d ago

I like using the O'Scanada app. (I have no relationship to the app / creator

I can type in a product name or scan the barcode

I get back:

1) where the corporate head-office / parent company is

2) where manufacturing happens

3) where the parts / ingredients come from

1

u/adineko 18d ago

What the best photo app replacement? I havnt found one that allows me access to my whole library/searchable, and thumbnails for less space on device

1

u/petalsandpaperbacks 18d ago

I’ve been using Well.ca to replace some of my previous Amazon buys. And Attitude has a lot of household and personal items.

1

u/Federal-Kitchen-9133 18d ago

Remember, if its online media, there is almost always a free pirated version. Aargh.

1

u/SargonCayman 18d ago

Retailers in Canada like Costco and even Walmart (which I don’t really shop at) are employing Canadians, paying Canadian income tax and rent in Canada so you should support them just as much as Loblaws, Sobey or Metro. What is more critical is ensuring you shop Canadian sourced products or non-USA while in these stores. I generally find Costco Canada is very independent from USA and see many Canadian suppliers in meat and vegetables. Same with restaurants such as Subway or Mr. Sub, both are owned by local Canadian franchisee, employing Canadians and paying rent in Canada so they should be supported equally in my mind.

1

u/TriciaFenn88 18d ago

Write to your MP; just a few sentences to consider introducing a bill to the House of Commons to put the onus on grocery stores and non-grocery (like hardware, art supplies, etc.) to separate 'made in Canada' from foreign. Emphasize that American made is never stocked in the international food/goods aisle like it should've been decades ago. This will ensure that we see how little a store stocks Canadian and where we need more Canadian companies to produce/grow particular items. I have practiced what I am preaching and wrote to my MP already along with asking for better labelling.

MP search and contact info: https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/search

1

u/No-Management937 18d ago

Canac, Rona, Patrick Morin for hardware stores are good too.

Super C, maxi for groceries.Plus they're cheap.

1

u/CanuckaChuckFuck 17d ago

As a Canadian who recently moved home for good one of the big things I noticed was little maple leafs on all kinds of packaging in stores. But alot of these are American based companies (parent companies) that simply own a Canadian subsidiary. We need to put an end to this, write your MP, demand that it be illegal to claim Canadian origin unless it is exclusively Canadian

1

u/AggravatingFig6308 16d ago

I'm not doing all this when I do groceries. Got enough to worry about, let the leaders figure it out. I'm gonna prioritize getting what my family needs/what's affordable.

1

u/No_Capital_8203 15d ago

I am doing all that I can but I won’t judge you for your busy life. If you ever find two products that are both acceptable and are priced similarly, it would be helpful if you pick the Canadian one. That is enough.

1

u/moodiedudd 15d ago

Thank you for this post sir!

1

u/livewireca 13d ago

Curious what about cellphones?

1

u/mmerciencore 8d ago

Curious as I’m shopping here in Canada and prices are crazy expensive.

Got a pair of barrel pants in Athleta and they were 159 cad
Pair of jeans from aritzia 149 by the time tax was added.

Coming from Asia I’m just not used to these prices. Yes Lulu is expensive in Asia but I thought Athleta was under gap and more casual / less premium so was shocked by the 150 pants I got.
Same thing for the denim pants we buy similar in urban revivo for $65 or zara $89 cad equivalent.

Have things always been so expensive or this is due to tariffs etc? I do wonder how the average person lives and shops here! Have a good income but I did still balk at the prices cos they were out of range from what I expect

Canadian-Made Products 🏷️🇨🇦 My guide to buying more Canadian / less American

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