--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/what-explains-the-canada-u-s-software-investment-intensity-gap/" title: "What Explains the Canada-U.S. Software Investment Intensity Gap?" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T12:55:16+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T12:55:16+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "Canada" - "ICT investment gap" - "industry structure" - "measurement" - "productivity" - "software investment" - "United States" country_focus: - "Canada" - "United States" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Productivity and Economic Measurement" - "Technology and Innovation" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # What Explains the Canada-U.S. Software Investment Intensity Gap? Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/what-explains-the-canada-u-s-software-investment-intensity-gap/ # What Explains the Canada-U.S. Software Investment Intensity Gap? [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2014-04-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Sharpe, Andrew. 2014. “What Explains the Canada-U.S. Software Investment Intensity Gap?” CSLS Research Report 2014-04. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/what-explains-the-canada-u-s-software-investment-intensity-gap/ ## Author: - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2014-04 October 2014 96 pages ## Related research [Measuring the Appropriate Outcomes for Better Decision-Making: A Framework to Guide the Analysis of Health Policy Matthew Calver March 2016 | Report 2016-03 | 132 pages](https://csls.ca/research/measuring-the-appropriate-outcomes-for-better-decision-making-a-framework-to-guide-the-analysis-of-health-policy-2016-03/) [Living Standards Domain of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing Andrew Sharpe, Christopher Ross November 2011 | Report 2011-17 | 124 pages](https://csls.ca/research/living-standards-domain-of-the-canadian-index-of-wellbeing-2011-17/) [Productivity: Key to Economic Success Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) March 1998 | Report 1998-01 | 99 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-key-to-economic-success/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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The objective of this report is to deepen our understanding of the reasons for which Canadian businesses invest substantially less in software than their U.S. counterparts. The report reviews the state of the software investment landscape in Canada, discusses the views of industry experts obtained through key informant interviews, and assesses possible explanations for the software gap. About one-third of the gap can be assigned to differences in labour productivity, industry structure, and measurement methodologies between the two countries. The remaining two-thirds are more difficult to explain. En 2012, l’investissement en logiciels par travailleur du secteur des entreprises au Canada s’établissait à 40,7 % du niveau observé aux États-Unis. L’objectif de ce rapport est d’approfondir notre compréhension des raisons pour lesquelles les entreprises canadiennes investissent nettement moins en logiciels que leurs homologues américaines. Le rapport examine l’état du paysage de l’investissement en logiciels au Canada, présente les points de vue d’experts de l’industrie recueillis lors d’entrevues avec des informateurs clés, et évalue les explications possibles de cet écart. Environ le tiers de l’écart peut être attribué à des différences de productivité du travail, de structure industrielle et de méthodologies de mesure entre les deux pays. Les deux autres tiers sont plus difficiles à expliquer. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2014-04-1.pdf)