It appears more Canadians are listening to the warnings about carrying too much debt, according to a second annual RBC debt poll conducted by Ipsos Reid.

The results show 26 per cent of Canadians are personal debt free this year, compared to 22 per cent in 2011.

Despite the improvement in numbers, however, the weight continues to give Canadians headaches.

“One in three of them are saying ‘my debt levels cause me anxiety,” RBC’s Richard Goyder said, saying that’s a five per cent drop in the number of people who felt comfortable from the year before.

In total, Canadians owe $1.5-trillion in debt according to StatsCan, a figure which the Sprott School of Business’s Ian Lee said doesn’t tell the whole story.

“When you look at that number, people say ‘oh my goodness, that’s terrible,’ but we possess eight-trillion dollars in assets,” he explained.

Nonetheless, Lee pointed out that the rush to pay off debts leaves Canadians with less disposable income or money for savings. The poll found that 51 per cent of respondents believe it’s more important to eliminate debt than save for a rainy day, and more than a quarter plan on putting off a major purchase.

For those people, Goyder has some advice.

“Once you’ve established how much spare cash you have left over, take a look at the debts that you have. Make sure you pay off the ones with the highest interest rates first.”

On average, Canadians are carrying just over $13,000 in non-mortgage debt, a number which has only gone up $84 in the past year.