Canada’s population at the start of 2021 is 38 million people. Based on the most recent data, Canada is the 38th largest country in the world by population.

Canada is the second largest country in the world by area (after Russia) and, as a result, it is also one of the least densely populated countries in the world – just 8.3 people live in every square mile in Canada.

Cities in Canada

There are three cities in Canada with a population of over 1 million people. The table below lists the ten most populous cities. A list of all the cities with a population of more than 50,000 people can be found in our article on the largest cities in Canada.

CityProvincePopulation
TorontoOntario2,731,571
MontrealQuebec1,704,694
CalgaryAlberta1,239,220
OttawaOntario934,243
EdmontonAlberta932,546
MississaugaOntario721,599
WinnipegManitoba705,224
VancouverBC631,486
BramptonOntario593,638
HamiltonOntario536,917

Provinces and Territories

The table below lists the population of each province and territory in Canada.

Province / TerritoryCapitalPopulation
OntarioToronto13,448,494
QuebecQuebec City8,164,361
British ColumbiaVictoria4,648,055
AlbertaEdmonton4,067,175
ManitobaWinnipeg1,278,365
SaskatchewanRegina1,098,352
Nova ScotiaHalifax923,598
New BrunswickFredericton747,101
Newfoundland & LabradorSt John’s519,716
Prince Edward IslandCharlottetown142,907
Northwest TerritoriesYellowknife41,786
NunavutIqaluit35,944
YukonWhitehorse35,874

Population by year

The number of people living in Canada has grown between every single census since the first one was held in 1871. The table below lists the population of Canada at the time of each census, and the percentage increase in population. From 1871 to 1971, the census was held every ten years. Since 1971, the census has been held every five years.

YearPopulationIncrease%
18713,689,257N/AN/A
18814,324,810635,55317.20%
18914,833,2394,648,05511.80%
19015,371,315538,07611.10%
19117,206,6431,835,32834.20%
19218,787,9491,581,30621.90%
193110,374,1961,586,24718.10%
194111,506,6551,132,45910.90%
195114,009,4292,502,77421.80%
196118,238,2474,228,81830.20%
197121,568,3113,330,06418.30%
197622,992,6041,424,2936.60%
198124,343,1811,350,5775.90%
198625,309,331966,1504.00%
199127,296,8591,987,5287.90%
199628,846,7611,549,9025.70%
200130,007,0941,160,3334.00%
200631,612,8971,605,8035.40%
201133,476,6881,863,7915.90%
201635,151,7281,675,0405.0%

Latest Articles