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McMaster First-Year Residences: Styles, Fees and Applying
McMaster houses first-year students in 14 buildings on its Hamilton campus: ten traditional halls, a suite building, an apartment building, the Peter George Centre and Lincoln Alexander Hall. The residence guarantee covers students coming straight from high school who meet a residence admission average and apply by the deadline. Every date and fee below is from the 2026 cycle; McMaster hasn't published Fall 2027 dates yet.
Sources checked September 29, 2026. View sources
Compare the 14 first-year buildings
Traditional halls have bedrooms off a shared corridor. The washroom set-up is the biggest difference between them: some floors share single-gender washrooms, some rooms have an ensuite, and some share single-user washrooms. Mary E. Keyes, Bates and some Lincoln Alexander Hall rooms have kitchens or kitchenettes, which matters when you choose a meal plan.
Capacities are McMaster's own figures. Lincoln Alexander Hall is listed as 1,365 beds on the buildings page and "more than 1300" on its room-types page. None of the building pages say whether rooms have air conditioning, so ask Housing if that matters to you.
| Building | Style | First-year room types | Size listed by McMaster |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Single, double, ensuite single or double, rooms sharing single-user washrooms | 557 students; tallest building on campus, with a tunnel to Centro |
| Edwards Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Single, double, ensuite single or double | Up to 98 students |
| Hedden Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Ensuite single or double, rooms sharing single-user washrooms, quad | Up to 389 students |
| Les Prince Hall | Traditional, co-ed, every room ensuite | Single or double with a double bed, single or double with twin beds | Up to 389 students |
| Matthews Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Single, double, ensuite single or double, triple | 258 students |
| McKay Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Ensuite single or double, rooms sharing single-user washrooms, triple | 272 students; home to three living learning communities |
| Moulton Hall | Traditional, co-ed with female floors (3rd and 4th) | Single, double, ensuite single, single-user washroom rooms, quad | 234 students |
| Wallingford Hall | Traditional, the only all-female residence | Single, double, ensuite single, triple, quad | 75 students |
| Whidden Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Ensuite single or double, rooms sharing single-user washrooms | 333 students |
| Woodstock Hall | Traditional, co-ed | Ensuite single or double, rooms sharing single-user washrooms | 295 students |
| Mary E. Keyes (MKR) | Suite, co-ed | Four-person suites with single bedrooms and a kitchenette | Up to 280 students; Bistro@MKR on the main floor |
| Bates Residence | Apartment, co-ed | Four- or six-person apartments with single rooms, or two-person doubles; kitchen and bathroom in each unit | Over 500 students |
| Peter George Centre for Living and Learning | Rooms with a connected shared washroom | Super-single, single, double and twin double | 500 beds on floors 4 to 10; opened fall 2019 |
| Lincoln Alexander Hall (LAH) | Pods and pod suites, all private bedrooms | Six pod types and two pod-suite types; no shared bedrooms | 1,365 beds; McMaster's newest and largest residence, at 1190 Main St. West |
2026-27 room fees
Fees cover the eight-month academic year, early September 2026 to the end of April 2027. They're charged to your Mosaic student account in two equal instalments, due September 25 and January 25. Your meal plan is charged separately.
McMaster's room pages label these as 2026-27 fees. Don't assume Fall 2027 fees will match.
| Room type | Where | 2026-27 fee |
|---|---|---|
| Pod suite, 2-person | Lincoln Alexander Hall | $13,990 |
| Pod suite, 4-person | Lincoln Alexander Hall | $13,700 |
| Pod, 1 to 5 people (private bedrooms) | Lincoln Alexander Hall | $11,840 to $13,340, depending on pod size and washrooms |
| Super-single or single | Peter George Centre | $11,950 or $11,850 |
| Suite, 4-person | Mary E. Keyes | $11,700 |
| Single with double bed, ensuite | Les Prince | $11,350 |
| Single with twin bed, ensuite | Brandon, Edwards, Hedden, Les Prince, Matthews, McKay, Moulton, Wallingford, Whidden, Woodstock | $11,200 |
| Single sharing a single-user washroom | Brandon, Hedden, McKay, Moulton, Whidden, Woodstock | $10,690 |
| Apartment room | Bates | $10,600 |
| Double or twin double | Peter George Centre | $10,350 or $10,100 |
| Traditional single | Brandon, Edwards, Matthews, Moulton, Wallingford | $10,220 |
| Double with twin beds, ensuite | Brandon, Edwards, Hedden, Les Prince, Matthews, McKay, Whidden, Woodstock | $9,900 |
| Double sharing a single-user washroom | Brandon, Hedden, McKay, Moulton, Whidden, Woodstock | $9,690 |
| Traditional double | Brandon, Edwards, Matthews, Moulton, Wallingford | $9,220 |
| Triple | Matthews, McKay, Wallingford | $6,750 |
| Quad | Hedden, Moulton, Wallingford | $6,550 |
- A $45 Health and Wellbeing Fee is added and isn't refundable.
- Student Property and Liability Insurance costs $85 plus tax.
- A mandatory meal plan adds $4,590 to $7,960 for the year. See the McMaster meal plan guide for which plan your room allows.
Who gets guaranteed residence
You need an offer of admission before you can apply for residence, but you don't have to accept the offer first. McMaster guarantees a first-year space to Ontario students coming directly from high school who meet the residence admission average. Out-of-province and international students coming directly from high school are also guaranteed.
McMaster doesn't publish the residence admission average in advance and says it may change each year. The 88% figure on its apply page is only an example of how the wait list is ordered, not the cut-off.
Miss the deadline and you lose the guarantee. Before the deadline, the wait list is ranked by admission average; after it, applications are ranked in the order they arrive. First-year students get priority.
How to apply, step by step
In the 2026 cycle the application and a $600 payment had to be received by June 1 at 4:00 p.m. ET. The $600 is a $500 deposit, credited to your first residence charge, plus a $100 non-refundable application fee.
- Open the residence application in McMaster's Housing Portal once you have an offer of admission.
- Complete the application and pay the $600 by credit card in the portal. Payments made to your Mosaic account aren't accepted for this.
- Add a roommate request if you want one. McMaster honours one request when both students are guaranteed, both apply by the deadline and both request each other.
- Apply for a living learning community on the same application if one interests you.
- Watch for your room self-selection time slot. Slots are assigned by lottery and give you about two days to choose. In 2026 the windows ran from June 15 to June 19.
- If you need an accessibility, medical, religious or dietary accommodation, send the supporting documentation by the accommodation deadline, which was June 5, 2026.
Living learning communities
McMaster currently runs five living learning communities (LLCs). You apply for them on the residence application. If you get an LLC spot, your room choice is limited to that community's building.
Open learning communities don't need an application. Housing also runs affinity groups that meet monthly: Shades of Strength, Queer Alliance and All Abilities Network.
| Community | Building |
|---|---|
| Entrepreneurs in Residence | McKay Hall |
| Health and Wellness | McKay Hall |
| Leaders and Influencers | McKay Hall |
| Wilson College (Leadership and Civic Studies I students) | Peter George Centre |
| Women in Leadership | Wallingford Hall |
What happens if you cancel
Plans change, especially if a better offer arrives in June. Check these rules before you pay.
- Cancel on or before July 22, 2026 and you get back half of the $500 deposit. The $100 application fee isn't refunded.
- Cancel after July 22, 2026 and there's no refund of the deposit.
- Once you move in, you're responsible for the full year's fee. If you withdraw, you join a refund waiting list; refunds are pro-rated daily, less a $350 administration fee.
- You're expected to live in residence for the full eight months, early September to the end of April.
International and exchange students
Students paying international tuition who come directly from high school, including MELD students, get a four-year housing guarantee. You have to apply by the first-year deadline, complete a Declaration of Intent and reapply each year. Cancelling or withdrawing from residence at any point ends the guarantee.
Exchange students apply separately. McMaster reserves 40 beds for them and allocated those by lottery in 2026, with a June 11 application deadline.
Keep exploring
Sources and updates
This independent guide summarizes the official information linked below. Availability, access rules and application cycles can change; check the relevant university page before making a decision.
- McMaster Housing: residence buildings
- McMaster Housing: residence fees
- McMaster Housing: how to apply and the residence guarantee
- McMaster Housing: residence FAQ
- McMaster Housing: room self-selection
- McMaster Housing: accommodation requests
- McMaster Housing: residence cancellation policy
- McMaster Housing: living learning communities
- McMaster Housing: affinity groups
- McMaster Housing: Lincoln Alexander Hall FAQ
- McMaster Housing: Lincoln Alexander Hall room types
- McMaster Housing: international four-year housing guarantee
- McMaster Housing: international exchange students
- McMaster Hospitality: residence meal plans