The security guard industry doesn't want you to read this article. But here are the numbers.

The Guard Math

A licensed security guard in Ontario costs $20-30/hour. For 24/7 coverage, you need approximately 4.2 FTEs (accounting for breaks, sick days, and turnover). At $25/hour average: $25 × 24 × 365 = $219,000/year. And that's one guard at one location. A large property might need two or three.

The Monitoring Math

Live video monitoring for the same property: 8-16 cameras professionally installed ($8,000-15,000 one-time), plus monthly monitoring ($1,500-4,000/month depending on hours and camera count). Annual cost: $18,000-48,000/year plus the first-year installation. That's 78-92% less than guard service.

Coverage Comparison

A guard can physically be in one spot. Cameras cover everywhere simultaneously. A guard gets tired at 3 AM. Cameras don't. A guard might not confront an armed intruder (and shouldn't — it's a safety risk). A monitoring operator dispatches police from a secure centre. A guard might fall asleep, scroll their phone, or simply not see a breach on the far side of the property. Cameras with monitoring operators have verified detection rates above 95%.

Where Guards Still Win

Guards are better for: customer-facing environments where a physical presence adds value (retail, hospitality), access control checkpoints requiring ID verification, and sites where immediate physical intervention is needed (crowd management, executive protection). For pure property security — yards, warehouses, construction sites, parking facilities — monitoring wins on every metric.

The Hybrid Approach

Many businesses are moving to a hybrid model: cameras with live monitoring for 24/7 coverage, plus a guard during business hours for customer-facing duties. This gives you the best of both worlds at a lower total cost than either solution alone.