Training

Security guard training in Quebec: every school's price compared

From $0 to $600: the price shown by every public centre and every private school recognized by the BSP, what it includes and the traps to avoid.

October 7, 2026 · Lire en français

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Training

How much does security guard training cost in Quebec? Depending on where you go, from $0 to about $600 for the course that leads to the licence. On October 7, 2026, we recorded the price shown by every public centre and every private school recognized by the Bureau de la sécurité privée (BSP), Quebec's private security regulator. Here are the figures, as written on each institution's website.

No school paid to appear in this article. Schools are listed in alphabetical order and none is recommended. A price can change without notice: always confirm it with the school before you pay.

Before you compare prices: four traps

Two schools that show "$450" are not necessarily selling the same thing. Check these four points.

54 hours or 70 hours. The BSP requires at least 70 hours: 54 hours of security guarding and 16 hours of workplace first aid. Several schools sell the 54 hours alone. First aid is then paid separately.
Taxes included or extra. A "plus tax" price costs about 15% more at checkout. Some public centres show a non-taxable price.
The recognized format. The BSP list states, for each private school, whether the training is recognized in person, live online (synchronous) or online at your own pace (asynchronous). Before paying for an online course, check that this format is on the list for that school.
The recognition date. Private training is accepted only if it was taken after the date it was recognized by the Minister.

The public network: from $0 to $600

School service centres give the short training required for the licence. The prices below come from each centre's website, unless stated otherwise. The site agent-de-securite.ca, to which the BSP refers, lists 17 centres, but several of its pages show past dates: we kept the centres whose price is published on their own website.

Centre	Price shown	What the price includes	Format and schedule
CSS de Laval (IPIQ, Laval)	Free	70 hours	In class, on weekends, over about one month
CSS des Affluents (Terrebonne)	Free	70 hours	In class, daytime, 2 weeks
CSS de la Région-de-Sherbrooke (SAE Estrie)	$385, non-taxable	60 hours, without first aid	In class, on weekends
CSS Marguerite-Bourgeoys (Verdun)	$420, taxes included	54 hours, without first aid	Online, daytime, evenings or weekends
CSS de Montréal	$475 (taxes included according to agent-de-securite.ca)	70 hours ($420 for 54 hours)	62 hours virtual and 8 hours in class, daytime
CSS Marie-Victorin (Nova Formation, Longueuil)	$495, taxes included	54 hours, without first aid	Online, evenings
CSS du Chemin-du-Roy (Trois-Rivières)	$580, non-taxable	72 hours, first aid and course notes included	Daytime, full time
CSS des Portages-de-l'Outaouais (Gatineau)	$600, non-taxable	70 hours	In class, daytime, 2 weeks

Two details. In Laval, on October 7, 2026, one group was full and another, from November 7 to December 12, 2026, still had places. At the CSS des Affluents and the CSS de Montréal, the last dates shown had passed (June 2026 and May 2026): call the centre to find out when the next group starts.

The 390-hour AEP: from $100 to $192 in French

The Attestation of Vocational Studies (AEP) "Sécurité privée – Gardiennage" (program 4239) lasts 390 hours, about three months. Funded by the government, it costs less than many short courses. Here are the costs shown by Inforoute FPT for the open groups.

Centre	Cost shown	Next group shown
CSS des Chênes (Drummondville)	$100	February 22, 2027
CSS Marguerite-Bourgeoys (Verdun)	$100, plus $180.50 for the BSP licence	To be determined
CSS des Découvreurs (Quebec City)	$105, taxes included	February 15, 2027 (the October 13, 2026 group is full)
CSS du Chemin-du-Roy (Trois-Rivières)	$130, taxes included, for supplies and materials, according to the centre's website	October 19, 2026
CSS de la Pointe-de-l'Île (Montreal)	$192	Group started on October 5, 2026
Lester B. Pearson (Lachine), in English, program 4739	$685	To be determined

The trade-off is time: three months full time, during the day. For the details of the program, read what to expect from the training.

Recognized private schools: from $345 to nearly $600

The BSP recognizes 16 private training programs in security guarding. Nine show a price on their website. The other seven show none, or their website was not responding on the day we checked.

School	Price shown	What the price includes	Format, schedule and location
Académie de sécurité du Québec	$557.63	The website does not say whether taxes or first aid are included	In class, daytime or weekends, in Montreal
Académie de sécurité I.G.S.	$475, "no taxes, all included"	70 hours, first aid included	In class, daytime, evenings or weekends, in Montreal. In French and in English
Académie Perceptage	$345 plus tax	54 hours, without first aid	In class, daytime, in Mont-Royal
Archer Guards	Not shown	54 hours, without first aid	Interest list only, no date
Centre 2000 de formation professionnelle	Not shown	Not shown	Montreal. Information request form
Corps canadien des commissionnaires (Quebec division)	$395 plus tax	54 hours and the customer service course, without first aid	Live online, daytime or evenings
Detekaction sécurité inc.	$495 plus tax	70 hours, first aid and manual included, according to a notice on the website dated 2025	In class in Mirabel, or virtual according to the website
Gardium sécurité inc.	Not shown	Training reserved for its future employees, according to the BSP	Online
Groupe de Sécurité Garda SENC	$499 plus tax	70 hours, first aid included ($385 for 54 hours)	In class in Montreal (Saint-Laurent) or in a virtual classroom. In French only
Groupe Sûreté inc.	Not shown	Not shown	Website unreachable on the day we checked
Mika Protection	$500	70 hours, first aid included. Taxes not specified	In class, evenings, 3 weeks, in Montreal (Saint-Léonard)
Montréal Élite Sécurité	$500, taxes included	70 hours, first aid included	In class, daytime, evenings or weekends, in Mont-Royal. In French and in English
Securitas Canada Limitée	Not shown	No public page about this training	Not shown
Sécurité Xguard inc.	$449, taxes included	54 hours. First aid is paid separately: $147.17, taxes included	In class in Montreal and Quebec City, or live online. Daytime, evenings or weekends. In French and in English
Service professionnel de formation en sécurité et enquêtes (SPFSE)	Not shown	Not shown	Website under maintenance on the day we checked
Stéphane Boucher	Not shown	Not shown	No website found

At Montréal Élite Sécurité, the English page shows $435 plus tax instead, which comes to roughly the same total, and the last course dates shown were from 2025. At the Commissionnaires, a complete 74-hour package is also advertised at $500 plus tax, but no session was offered on the day we checked.

The real cost for 70 hours, taxes included

To compare like with like, here is what the complete 70-hour training costs, taxes included, where the website makes the calculation possible. When the price is "plus tax", we added the GST and the QST (14.975%). These totals are our calculations, not prices shown.

Institution	Total for 70 hours, taxes included
CSS de Laval and CSS des Affluents	$0
Académie de sécurité I.G.S.	$475
CSS de Montréal	$475
Montréal Élite Sécurité	$500
Detekaction sécurité inc.	About $569
Groupe de Sécurité Garda SENC	About $574
CSS du Chemin-du-Roy (72 hours)	$580
Sécurité Xguard inc. ($449 and $147.17)	$596.17
CSS des Portages-de-l'Outaouais	$600

Schools that sell only the 54 hours are not in this table, because the price of first aid depends on the organization you choose. The Académie de sécurité du Québec and Mika Protection are not in it either: their websites do not specify everything the price includes.

What these figures show

Public training can be free. Two school service centres show the 70-hour training at no charge. In Laval, one of the two groups shown was already full.
Private schools range from $475 to $600 for complete training. The gap between schools is smaller than the gap between public and private.
Private schools offer more schedules. Evenings, weekends and, in several schools, start dates almost every week: that is their main advantage for someone who already works.
For seven schools out of sixteen, we found no price online. In that case, ask for the total price in writing before you sign up.

On top of the training comes the licence: $188.50 for a first application to the BSP. The details are in our article on licence fees.

Five questions to ask before you pay

Does the price include the 16 hours of first aid recognized by the CNESST, Quebec's workplace safety board?
Are taxes and course materials included?
Is the format I am choosing (in class or online) the one the BSP recognizes for this school?
What happens if I fail the exam or have to cancel?
On what date will I receive the attestation required by the BSP?

Getting your training paid for

If you are unemployed, Services Québec may pay for the training and pay an allowance during the course, depending on your situation. Apply before you sign up. The conditions are explained on our page about security guard training.

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Frequently asked questions

How much does security guard training cost?

In Quebec, from $0 to about $600 for the course that leads to the licence, according to the prices shown on October 7, 2026. Two school service centres showed the 70-hour training at no charge, and private schools ranged from $475 to $600 for complete training. The BSP licence is extra: $188.50 for a first application.

What is the best training to become a security guard?

We do not rank schools. In Quebec, any training from a school service centre or from a school on the BSP list, taken after its recognition date, leads to the same security guarding licence. To choose, compare the total price with taxes, whether first aid is included, the format the BSP recognizes and the schedule.

What is the cheapest security guard training?

On October 7, 2026, the 70-hour training was shown as free at the CSS de Laval and the CSS des Affluents. The 390-hour AEP cost from $100 to $192 in five school service centres.

Can you take security guard training online?

Yes, in some institutions, for the 54 hours of security guarding. The 16 hours of first aid include a practical part and are given in person. Check on the BSP list that the online format is recognized for the school you choose.

Does the cheapest training lead to the same licence?

Yes. Any training from a school service centre or from a school on the BSP list, taken after its recognition date, leads to the same security guarding licence.

Why do some schools not show their price?

We do not know. Some mainly train their own employees, others work by information request. The BSP does not set the price of training.

What do you pay in total for security guard training?

In Quebec, the complete 70-hour training costs from $0 to $600, taxes included, where the institution's website makes the calculation possible, according to our calculations from the prices shown on October 7, 2026. Several schools sell the 54 hours of security guarding alone, and the 16 hours of first aid are then paid separately. The totals by institution are in the section "The real cost for 70 hours, taxes included".

Is there free training to become a security guard?

Yes. In Quebec, the CSS de Laval and the CSS des Affluents showed the 70-hour training at no charge on October 7, 2026. In Laval, one of the two groups shown was full, and at Les Affluents the last date shown had passed: call the centre to find out about the next group. If you are unemployed, Services Québec may also pay for the training, depending on your situation.