You are trying to shortlist 3PL companies in Canada, and every website says the same three things. National coverage. Advanced technology. Tailored solutions.
None of that tells you whether a provider can actually run your orders.
So we checked five Canadian providers against what they publish. Where each one operates. What it handles well. Where it falls short.
You get warehouse cities, facility sizes, named systems and one clear limitation for every company, including ours.
The five run different models: national retail distribution, high-care final mile, ecommerce fulfillment, freight-led logistics and customized mid-market programs.
Editorial disclosure: QRC Logistics publishes this guide and is one of the five providers in it. Nobody paid for inclusion or placement. All five were held to the same criteria, using information published as of July 2026.
TL;DR
- No provider wins across the board. These five run different operating models. Pick the one built for your orders, not the one with the biggest website.
- Ask where their warehouses actually are. Many 3PLs list the cities they deliver to, not the cities where they store your inventory.
- Send every provider the same numbers. Same volumes, same SKU count, same delivery regions. Otherwise the quotes are not comparable.
3PL Companies in Canada: Quick Comparison
Use this to pick the two or three profiles worth reading in full. The order is not a ranking.
| Provider | Best for | Canadian footprint | Main limitation |
| McKenna Logistics Centres | National retail distribution | Two company-operated GTA warehouses: 105,000 sq ft Mississauga, 32,000 sq ft Etobicoke. Beyond Ontario runs on carrier partners. | No McKenna-operated warehouse outside the GTA that we could find. |
| QRC Logistics | High-care retail distribution and final-mile programs | A 300,000 sq ft company-operated warehouse in Halton Hills plus a Montreal terminal in Saint-Laurent, with asset-based LTL across Southern Ontario and Greater Montreal. Western and Atlantic markets run on partner carriers. | No company-operated inventory locations in Western or Atlantic Canada. |
| Hyperlink Logistics | Ecommerce and omnichannel fulfillment | 40,000+ sq ft across GTA sites in Vaughan, Woodbridge, Mississauga and Toronto. Montreal also promoted. | A small published footprint next to the larger GTA providers. |
| GX Transport | Freight-led warehousing and transportation | Head office and dock in Mississauga. Company LTL into ON, QC, MB, SK, AB, BC, plus transborder. | Freight-led, with little public detail on order-level fulfillment or ecommerce integrations. |
| ILC Logistics | Customized mid-market programs mixing freight and fulfillment | One 35,000 sq ft ambient facility in Mississauga, serving Toronto, Montreal and the GTA. | Ambient storage only, with no published certifications or performance data. |
Why These Five Providers
They represent five different Canadian operating models rather than the five largest companies. The point is to match a provider to your requirements, not to crown a winner.
How We Evaluated the 3PL Companies
We ran all five through the same six checks, using company pages, facility and service information, case studies and certifications.
- Reliability and evidence. Published service levels, on-time and accuracy data, case studies, years in operation.
- Canadian coverage. Company-operated warehouses and terminals, provinces served, partner networks, cross-border capability.
- Services and channel fit. Warehousing, B2B, retail, ecommerce, transportation, returns, final mile, special handling.
- Technology and visibility. WMS, TMS, inventory visibility, reporting, APIs, EDI, ecommerce integrations.
- Specialization and customer fit. Industries, account size, order profile, product and retail requirements.
- Compliance and risk. Certifications, security, customs credentials, insurance, contractual service levels.
Where a provider publishes nothing on pricing, minimums, integrations, performance or facility ownership, we say so instead of guessing.
McKenna Logistics Centres: Best for National Retail Distribution
McKenna has been storing consumer packaged goods in the Greater Toronto Area since the 1950s, and it still runs as a family business. Retail is what it knows. If you sell shelf-stable food, electronics, housewares, hardware or sporting goods into Canadian chains, it belongs on your list.
Footprint. Two GTA warehouses, both McKenna-operated. Mississauga is the head office and main hub at 105,000 sq ft. Etobicoke adds 32,000 sq ft. Neither is a transportation terminal. The rest of Canada and the US move on carriers.
Capabilities and technology. Warehousing, cross-docking, pick and pack, kitting, returns and transportation management, built around one GTA inventory pool feeding large national retailers with strict routing, labelling and pallet rules. On systems, McKenna is unusually specific. It names Made4Net for the warehouse and Techdinamics for transportation, and publishes its EDI capability.
Evidence. An IWLA member with a published KPI page and case studies. One caution. The sizes above come from McKenna’s facilities page, and other pages quote different totals, so confirm capacity before you plan around it.
Limitation. Everything McKenna runs sits in the GTA, as far as we could find. So a Vancouver or Halifax promise means transit from Ontario. No white glove either. That rules out fragile and oversized goods.
Verify before requesting a quote: current available capacity, retailer routing-guide experience and how out-of-province shipments are handled.
QRC Logistics: Best for High-Care Retail Distribution and Final-Mile Programs
QRC pairs Ontario and Quebec warehousing with its own trucks and a final-mile team. It suits brands that have outgrown their own warehouse or a small 3PL and cannot afford a careless delivery. Presentation matters here. Common fits are consumer electronics, specialty retail, automotive parts and craft beer.
Footprint. Two company-operated locations. The 300,000 sq ft Halton Hills warehouse holds the inventory and anchors asset-based LTL and cartage across Southern Ontario. A Montreal terminal at 600 Rue McCaffrey in Saint-Laurent handles inventory, pick and pack, reverse logistics and cartage across Greater Montreal. Its size is not published. Everywhere else moves on partner carriers.
Capabilities and technology. Pick and pack, retail compliance including ASN formatting and pallet build, ecommerce fulfillment, LTL and cartage, returns, and final-mile delivery with appointment windows, inside delivery and white glove. Clients get a WMS portal from day one, EDI, and a monthly scorecard covering accuracy and fill rate.
Evidence. Operating since 1978, running 24 hours a day, CIFFA member and PIP-approved. QRC publishes a 98.9% on-time rate and a 99.5% inventory accuracy target. Those numbers are ours. No outside auditor has checked them, so weigh them the way you would weigh any provider’s own figures.
Limitation. Company-operated inventory sits in Ontario and Quebec only. Need stock in Alberta or Nova Scotia? You want a multi-node provider or a second regional facility. Outside those two provinces service runs on partner carriers, so confirm it lane by lane.
Verify before requesting a quote: which rollout legs move on QRC equipment, what inventory the Montreal terminal can hold, and what the written SLA covers.
Hyperlink Logistics: Best for Ecommerce and Omnichannel Fulfillment
Hyperlink has been fulfilling orders out of Vaughan since 1989. Ecommerce is the focus: marketplace orders, Amazon FBA prep and direct-to-consumer picking, alongside plain storage. Best for online sellers shipping from Ontario, and for importers who need containers unloaded and held. Pallet-heavy national retail is not its strength.
Footprint. More than 40,000 sq ft across GTA sites in Vaughan, Woodbridge, Mississauga and Toronto, including a high-cube building with 32 foot ceilings. Head office sits at 1 Keyes Court in Vaughan, and Montreal warehousing is promoted too. Anything beyond Ontario moves on courier and freight partners.
Capabilities and technology. Container unloading, storage, pick and pack, Amazon FBA prep, cross-docking, returns, cross-border shipping and same-day GTA delivery. RF scanning on the floor, plus a client login showing inventory and picking accuracy. The system behind that login is not named publicly, and neither is the connector list. Ask for both.
Evidence. Security is documented: 24-hour monitoring, video surveillance and swipe-key entry. We could not find named certifications, audited accuracy rates or public case studies.
Limitation. The published footprint is small next to the larger GTA providers. If you need real reserved capacity for peak, confirm available pallet positions and what room there is to expand.
Verify before requesting a quote: available capacity and pallet positions, supported integrations, and which location would hold your inventory.
GX Transport: Best for Freight-Led Warehousing and Transportation
GX Transport, formally GX Transportation Solutions, is a Mississauga trucking company. LTL, truckload, dedicated fleet and cross-border freight. Warehousing sits inside that broader transportation offering rather than leading it, which makes GX a fit when your problem is moving pallets rather than picking units.
Footprint. Head office and dock at 6495 Van Deemter Court in Mississauga. Published company LTL coverage runs into Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, plus transborder. Directory listings mention a Vancouver terminal, so ask which locations are staffed today.
Capabilities and technology. LTL and truckload, dedicated fleet programs, transborder with customs documentation support, road and rail, arranged air and ocean freight, and vendor consolidation. Warehousing comes with 24-hour camera monitoring and keypad entry. No WMS, portal, API or EDI capability is named publicly. Ask for a demo before you compare GX with the others here.
Evidence. Operating out of Mississauga since the late 1990s, and listed in the Toronto Trucking Association directory. We could not find published performance figures.
Limitation. GX is built for freight. Order-level picking, retail chargeback management and ecommerce integrations are not part of what it publishes, so check before you assume.
Verify before requesting a quote: available warehouse capacity and whether picking is order-level, which lanes run on GX equipment, and what customs credentials apply.
ILC Logistics: Best for Customized Mid-Market Programs
ILC pairs one ambient warehouse in Mississauga with freight forwarding by road, air and ocean. That combination suits importers and mid-market distributors bringing containers into Ontario and Quebec, especially when a manageable SKU count and a direct line to the operations team matter more than scale.
Footprint. One 35,000 sq ft Mississauga facility, described by ILC Logistics as ambient storage, serving Toronto, Montreal and the wider GTA. We found no facilities in Western or Atlantic Canada.
Capabilities and technology. Containers get devanned, received, inspected and scanned on arrival. From there: ambient storage, order-level picking, custom packing, labelling and kitting, then LTL, truckload, or air and ocean freight with customs clearance. One provider from port to customer door. ILC says clients get real-time inventory visibility through its WMS. The system is not named, and we found nothing published about API, EDI or platform connectors.
Evidence. Facility size and services come from ILC’s own site. We could not find certifications, service levels, on-time data or case studies.
Limitation. Ambient storage only. Refrigerated, frozen or other temperature-controlled products need a different solution unless ILC confirms more capability. Ask for recent accuracy, on-time and inventory-control results during the sales process.
Verify before requesting a quote: certifications and recent performance results, dedicated space available, and where overflow goes if volume doubles.
How Much Does a 3PL Cost in Canada?
Most 3PL companies in Canada price every account custom. Storage volume, orders, product size, receiving requirements, delivery regions and special handling all move the number.
That makes quotes hard to compare. So ask every provider for the same six categories: receiving, storage, fulfillment, packaging, transportation, and account or technology fees.
Then confirm monthly minimums, peak surcharges, carrier markups and inventory-removal costs. That is where cheap rates turn expensive. For the full breakdown, read our guide to the hidden costs of 3PL services in Canada.
One more thing. Send every provider the same volumes, SKU count, order profile, storage needs, delivery regions, integrations and service levels. Quotes built on different assumptions cannot be compared fairly.
How to Choose a 3PL Partner
Start with the thing that is breaking. Then find the provider built around it.
Name the actual problem. Late retail deliveries, picking errors, no inventory visibility and a lease you cannot fill are four different problems with four different answers.
Separate company-operated from partnered. Which buildings does the provider run, and which markets move on partner carriers? That one question explains most of the difference between the five above.
Ask for recent performance results. Request on-time, order-accuracy and inventory-accuracy figures with a date attached. A provider that cannot show you performance evidence leaves you guessing about operational risk.
Test the technology yourself. Log in to the portal during the sales process. Look for live inventory, order status and a report you can actually use.
Read the exit terms before the rates. Notice periods, inventory removal charges and data export fees decide how expensive a bad fit becomes.
Start with one program. Run a single product line or one region for a quarter before you move everything.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a warehouse and a service area? A warehouse is a building where your inventory sits. A service area is where a company can deliver, often through partner carriers. Many 3PLs call both “coverage.” Ask which is which. It changes your transit times.
Do I need a warehouse in Western Canada? Only if your delivery promise requires it. An Ontario-only inventory position makes a two-day Vancouver promise hard to keep without air service or stock held closer to the customer.
Can one 3PL handle both retail and ecommerce orders? Yes, and several here do it from a single inventory pool. Confirm it directly though. Retail purchase orders need routing guides, ASNs and pallet standards that ecommerce picking does not.
Choosing the Right Fit
The best 3PL for you depends on your inventory, your order channels, where your customers are and how the product needs to arrive. There is no single answer. An ecommerce brand weighs integrations and small-parcel rates most heavily. A retailer or manufacturer needs replenishment, appointment delivery and careful final-mile handling.
Build a shortlist of two or three from the table. Send them identical numbers. Then compare which facilities they operate, written service levels, technology, minimums, extra fees and limitations side by side.
If you are weighing warehousing, distribution or final-mile support in Ontario or Quebec, talk to us about what your operation actually needs.
