There are 5 cities in Canada with a population of more than 1 million people (up from just 3 five years ago).
There are also 54 cities with a population of more than 100,000, and 100 cities with a population of more than 50,000 people.
This article provides a roundup of the ten largest cities in Canada by population.
At the end of the article is a table listing the 100 largest cities in Canada.
Largest cities in Canada
Montreal
Population: 1,762,949
Montreal is the second largest city in Canada, and the largest city in the province of Quebec.
Since the last census, in 2016, the number of people living in Montreal has grown by 2.9%.
Calgary
Population: 1,306,784
Calgary is the third largest city in Canada, and the largest city in the province of Alberta.
Calgary’s population increased by 5.5% between 2016 and 2021.
Ottawa
Population: 1,017,449
Ottawa may be Canada’s capital city, but it is only the fourth largest in the country and second largest in Ontario by population.
Ottawa is one of the fastest growing cities in Canada. Between 2016 and 2021 it grew by 8.9%.
Edmonton
Population: 1,010,899
Edmonton is the second largest city in Alberta, and the fifth largest in Canada.
It its growing almost as quickly as Ottawa – population growth was 8.3% between 2016 and 2021.
Winnipeg
Population: 749,607
Winnipeg is the sixth largest city in Canada, taking the position from Mississauga.
The capital of Manitoba grew by 6.3% from 2016 to 2021.
Mississauga
Population: 717,961
Despite being a part of Greater Toronto, Mississauga is also the seventh largest city in Canada.
Mississauga’s population has declined slightly – by 0.5% – since the last census in 2021, and it has dropped from 5th to 6th in the list of Canada’s largest cities.
Vancouver
Population: 662,248
Vancouver, the largest city in BC, is just the 8th largest city in Canada.
Known as one of the most lovable cities in Canada, Vancouver’s population is growing steadily – 4.9% since 2016.
Brampton
Population: 656,480
Like Mississauga, Brampton is a part of Greater Toronto. This doesn’t stop it being the 9th largest city in Canada, and the fourth largest in Ontario.
Brampton is also the fastest city in the top 10 – an impressive 10.6% since 2016.
Hamilton
Population: 569,353
Hamilton rounds out our top ten, and is also the 5th largest city in Ontario.
Hamilton has grown at a steady rate recently – its population increased by 6.0% between 2016 and 2021.
Top 10 largest cities in Canada
The table below lists the ten largest cities in Canada in a different format, so that they can be copied and pasted.
After Toronto (see section above for details) the next largest Canadian cities are Montreal (1,704,694), Calgary (1,239,220), Ottawa (934,243) and Edmonton (932,546).
Brampton may only be the 9th largest city in Canada, but it is the fastest growing among the top 36 Canadian cities.
Kelowna, ranked 37th is the next largest city that is growing faster than Brampton in 2021, growing at a rate of 13.5% between the 2016 and 2021 censuses.
| City | Province | Population |
|---|---|---|
| Toronto | Ontario | 2,794,356 |
| Montreal | Quebec | 1,762,949 |
| Calgary | Alberta | 1,306,784 |
| Ottawa | Ontario | 1,017,449 |
| Edmonton | Alberta | 1,010,899 |
| Winnipeg | Manitoba | 749,607 |
| Mississauga | Ontario | 717,961 |
| Vancouver | British Columbia | 662,248 |
| Brampton | Ontario | 656,480 |
| Hamilton | Ontario | 569,353 |
What is the smallest city in Canada?
The smallest city in Canada is Greenwood, in British Columbia.
The population of Greenwood is 702 (data from 2021 census).
At its height of its mining boom in 1901, Greenwood was home to 1,359 people, but this fell to just 171 in 1931, once the good times were over.
The number of people living in Greenwood today varies quite a bit from census to census, and has been bouncing between around around 600 and 900 since the 1950s.
100 largest cities in Canada
The table below is a full list of the 100 largest cities in Canada, sorted by population.
| City | Province | Population |
|---|---|---|
| Toronto | Ontario | 2,794,356 |
| Montreal | Quebec | 1,762,949 |
| Calgary | Alberta | 1,306,784 |
| Ottawa | Ontario | 1,017,449 |
| Edmonton | Alberta | 1,010,899 |
| Winnipeg | Manitoba | 749,607 |
| Mississauga | Ontario | 717,961 |
| Vancouver | British Columbia | 662,248 |
| Brampton | Ontario | 656,480 |
| Hamilton | Ontario | 569,353 |
| Surrey | British Columbia | 568,322 |
| Quebec City | Quebec | 549,459 |
| Halifax | Nova Scotia | 439,819 |
| Laval | Quebec | 438,366 |
| London | Ontario | 422,324 |
| Markham | Ontario | 338,503 |
| Vaughan | Ontario | 323,103 |
| Gatineau | Quebec | 291,041 |
| Saskatoon | Saskatchewan | 266,141 |
| Kitchener | Ontario | 256,885 |
| Longueuil | Quebec | 254,483 |
| Burnaby | British Columbia | 249,125 |
| Windsor | Ontario | 229,660 |
| Regina | Saskatchewan | 226,404 |
| Oakville | Ontario | 213,759 |
| Richmond | British Columbia | 209,937 |
| Richmond Hill | Ontario | 202,022 |
| Burlington | Ontario | 186,948 |
| Oshawa | Ontario | 175,383 |
| Sherbrooke | Quebec | 172,950 |
| Greater Sudbury | Ontario | 166,004 |
| Abbotsford | British Columbia | 153,524 |
| Lévis | Quebec | 149,683 |
| Coquitlam | British Columbia | 148,625 |
| Barrie | Ontario | 147,829 |
| Saguenay | Quebec | 144,723 |
| Kelowna | British Columbia | 144,576 |
| Guelph | Ontario | 143,740 |
| Trois-Rivières | Quebec | 139,163 |
| Whitby | Ontario | 138,501 |
| Cambridge | Ontario | 138,479 |
| St. Catharines | Ontario | 136,803 |
| Milton | Ontario | 132,979 |
| Langley | British Columbia | 132,603 |
| Kingston | Ontario | 132,485 |
| Ajax | Ontario | 126,666 |
| Waterloo | Ontario | 121,436 |
| Terrebonne | Quebec | 119,944 |
| Saanich | British Columbia | 117,735 |
| St. John's | Newfoundland and Labrador | 110,525 |
| Thunder Bay | Ontario | 108,843 |
| Delta | British Columbia | 108,455 |
| Brantford | Ontario | 104,688 |
| Chatham-Kent | Ontario | 103,988 |
| Clarington | Ontario | 101,427 |
| Red Deer | Alberta | 100,844 |
| Nanaimo | British Columbia | 99,863 |
| Strathcona County | Alberta | 99,225 |
| Pickering | Ontario | 99,186 |
| Lethbridge | Alberta | 98,406 |
| Kamloops | British Columbia | 97,902 |
| Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu | Quebec | 97,873 |
| Niagara Falls | Ontario | 94,415 |
| Cape Breton | Nova Scotia | 93,694 |
| Chilliwack | British Columbia | 93,203 |
| Victoria | British Columbia | 91,867 |
| Brossard | Quebec | 91,525 |
| Maple Ridge | British Columbia | 90,990 |
| North Vancouver | British Columbia | 88,168 |
| Newmarket | Ontario | 87,942 |
| Repentigny | Quebec | 86,100 |
| Peterborough | Ontario | 83,651 |
| Saint-Jérôme | Quebec | 80,213 |
| Moncton | New Brunswick | 79,470 |
| Drummondville | Quebec | 79,258 |
| Kawartha Lakes | Ontario | 79,247 |
| New Westminster | British Columbia | 78,916 |
| Prince George | British Columbia | 76,708 |
| Caledon | Ontario | 76,581 |
| Airdrie | Alberta | 74,100 |
| Wood Buffalo | Alberta | 72,326 |
| Sault Ste. Marie | Ontario | 72,051 |
| Sarnia | Ontario | 72,047 |
| Saint John | New Brunswick | 69,895 |
| Granby | Quebec | 69,025 |
| St. Albert | Alberta | 68,232 |
| Norfolk County | Ontario | 67,490 |
| Grande Prairie | Alberta | 64,141 |
| Medicine Hat | Alberta | 63,271 |
| Fredericton | New Brunswick | 63,116 |
| Halton Hills | Ontario | 62,951 |
| Aurora | Ontario | 62,057 |
| Port Coquitlam | British Columbia | 61,498 |
| Mirabel | Quebec | 61,108 |
| Blainville | Quebec | 59,819 |
| North Vancouver | British Columbia | 58,120 |
| Saint-Hyacinthe | Quebec | 57,239 |
| Welland | Ontario | 55,750 |
| Belleville | Ontario | 55,071 |
| North Bay | Ontario | 52,662 |
All data in this article is from the 2016 census, and will be updated in 2022 to reflect data from the 2021 census. Source: Statistics Canada.