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City of Hamilton vs City of Ottawa: who pays more?

City of Hamilton had 3,382 people on the 2025 Sunshine List with a median of $127,716, City of Ottawa 5,181 with a median of $117,638 — that is 9% more at the median for City of Hamilton, and City of Ottawa lists 1.5× as many people.

On the list

City of Hamilton
3,382
City of Ottawa
5,181

employees paid $100K+, 2025

Median salary

City of Hamilton
$127,716
City of Ottawa
$117,638

salary paid, 2025

Average salary

City of Hamilton
$133,050
City of Ottawa
$125,013

salary paid, 2025

Listed payroll

City of Hamilton
$452.6M
City of Ottawa
$651.5M

total compensation, 2025

Median salary by year
19962025

  • City of Hamilton
  • City of Ottawa
City of Hamilton and City of Ottawa, 1996–2025City of Hamilton: $112,301 in 1997 to $127,716 in 2025. City of Ottawa: $113,399 in 1996 to $117,638 in 2025.$0$50K$100K$150K1996200620152025

Median salary paid on each employer’s Sunshine List filing. A gap is a year the employer filed nobody under this name.

Year by year

City of Hamilton and City of Ottawa by year: people on the Sunshine List and median salary
YearCity of HamiltonCity of Ottawa
PeopleMedianPeopleMedian
20253,382$127,7165,181$117,638
20242,991$123,4134,686$116,555
20232,588$118,5743,913$115,592
20222,208$119,9174,150$116,643
20212,105$117,2093,285$113,172
20202,042$115,7343,375$116,411
20191,849$118,5063,251$112,390
20181,761$117,2572,484$110,567
20171,569$112,4562,115$111,625
20161,235$111,6111,666$110,708
20151,651$113,1971,885$110,367
2014973$111,5471,153$111,505
2013849$111,4121,149$110,967
2012819$110,902820$110,300
2011751$109,574781$110,248
2010868$111,061691$110,813
2009335$106,695722$110,103
2008310$107,771980$113,067
2007259$109,318195$110,585
2006140$117,456241$108,920
2005115$114,629191$107,169
2004134$111,780124$107,920
2003101$109,573192$107,317
200264$113,342123$111,099
200138$107,20680$110,700
20006$127,86323$109,334
199911$112,65414$110,072
19988$114,821
19979$112,3018$105,591
19965$113,399

Related questions

Method. Medians and averages are salary paid; listed payroll is total compensation (salary plus taxable benefits), as filed. Both sides come from the same Ontario Sunshine List, which covers only public-sector employees paid $100,000 or more — so this compares the shape of each employer’s six-figure payroll, not its whole workforce, and an employer with more low-paid staff simply lists fewer of them. A side with fewer than five people keeps its count but shows “<5” instead of a median, average or payroll figure, since any of those would be that handful of people’s own numbers. Sector: Municipalities & Services. Data runs through 2025.