Square One tenant insurance review
Square One sells tenant insurance the way streaming sells TV: you pick the pieces. Instead of a preset bundle, you set your own limits for everyday belongings and add specialty items — a bike, jewellery, fine art — only if you actually own them. Here's how it holds up.
Square One Insurance — at a glance
Sold by Square One Insurance Services of Vancouver; home insurance underwritten by The Mutual Fire Insurance Company of British Columbia.
- From $15/month, online quote in about 5 minutes
- Fully customizable limits, coverages and deductible
- Comprehensive (all-risk) policies — the broadest type sold in Canada
- Replacement cost on belongings
- Deductibles from $250 to $5,000
- Monthly or annual payment, no fixed-term contract, cancel any time
- Serves BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec
- Also sells condo and home insurance
How the customization actually works
Every Square One tenant policy starts with personal property coverage for your everyday moveable belongings — appliances, electronics, furniture, clothing — at a limit you choose. Liability and additional living expenses are built in. From there, the difference from a traditional insurer: specialty property is opt-in. Bicycles and sporting equipment, jewellery and watches, fine arts and collectibles, and business property are separate categories you add — for an amount you pick — only when you own them.
Traditional policies bundle specialty coverage in whether you need it or not, which is how a renter with no bike and no jewellery ends up paying to insure both. Square One's model removes that, which is also how it reaches its $15/month starting price. The flip side is on you: if you own a $3,000 bike and don't add the category, it isn't covered beyond the base policy's treatment. The quote tool adjusts the price live as you change limits and the deductible ($250–$5,000), so you can see exactly what each choice costs before you buy.
What we like
Strengths
- No paying for coverage you don't need — specialty items are opt-in
- All-risk policies as standard, settled on a replacement-cost basis
- Transparent pricing — change a limit or deductible and see the price move
- No fixed-term contract — pay monthly or annually, cancel any time without penalty
- Fast, fully online quote, purchase and policy management
Watch-outs
- Only six provinces — no Atlantic Canada, no territories
- Customization cuts both ways — set a limit too low and you're underinsured; do the contents math first
- Online-first service — if you want a local agent in your town, a broker is a better fit
- The $15/month starting price buys a lean policy; most renters will land higher with realistic limits
Who Square One fits — and who it doesn't
A strong fit: renters in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario or Quebec who know roughly what their stuff is worth (our home page estimator takes two minutes), are comfortable buying online, and want the premium to reflect their actual belongings. Students and first-time renters with few specialty items tend to benefit most from the stripped-down base price.
Look elsewhere: renters in Atlantic Canada or the territories (Square One can't quote you at all), anyone who prefers an in-person broker, and owners of high-value collections who'd rather sit down with an agent over the details. For provincial price context before you quote anywhere, see tenant insurance cost by province.
How we reviewed
This review is based on Square One's published policy descriptions, coverage and deductible options, and pricing pages, checked in November 2026 — we haven't filed a claim with them, and no review can tell you how a claims department behaves on your worst day. What we can verify is the policy structure, and on structure Square One is genuinely different from the bundle model most Canadian insurers sell.