Edmonton Retail Overview Fall 2025

Edmonton's retail market demonstrates resilience with a 4.9% vacancy rate (up 0.4% from 2024), 37.9 million square feet of total inventory (up 365,000 sf from 2024), 543,000 square feet under construction year-to-date 2025, and average base rent of $36.14 per square foot (up $3.88 from 2024), signaling ongoing recovery and stability following pandemic disruptions. The document identifies three key retail trends: Edmonton leads Canada in per capita retail expenditures driven by energy-sector employment and population growth; federal-provincial childcare funding has reshaped the market toward non-profit and preschool-only operators; and Competition Bureau enforcement has placed new scrutiny on exclusivity clauses and restrictive covenants in retail leases across all sectors.