Canada may be the world’s second-largest country by size, but its population is surprisingly small. But the nation’s population is growing fast, and in 2025 it’s over 41 million.
The sort of rapid population growth that Canada is seeing brings with it some social and demographic changes. At Remitly we’re keen to help you understand these changes so you can plan your own future in the country. So in this article, we’ll take a look at Canada’s historic population growth, its future targets, what drives all this growth, and the practical implications for both residents and newcomers.
Canada population statistics 2025: the numbers that matter
It’s safe to say that the population of Canada is rising. It hit the 40 million milestone in June of 2023 and the upward trend continues. As of April 1, 2025, Statistics Canada reports that the estimated Canadian population is 41,548,787 people.
In total, the population increased by 20,107 people in the first three months of the year. This gets reported as a 0% increase from the previous quarter at the end of 2024. However, statistics can be misleading, so don’t let that 0% fool you—it’s a bit of a blip in the overall trend.
From July 2021 to June 2022, the population growth was 1.8%. And from 2022 to 2023, Canada experienced the highest increase since 1957, where the population rose by over 1,150,000 people (around 3%).
There was a slight dip in the population growth over the 2020–2021 period, mainly due to COVID-19 restrictions in 2020. The rate fell to 0.55% for that period. Over the longer term, the population is unquestionably rising.
Where do most people live in Canada?
In general, the population in Canada lives near the border with the US, and the most densely populated areas include:
- Southern Ontario
- Metro Vancouver
- Greater Montreal
Canada is such a large country that there are only 4.2 people per square kilometre, which makes it one of the least densely populated countries in the world, and the areas with the lowest population density are nowhere near that overall figure.
Some of these regions, including the Northernmost provinces (the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut) and the prairie provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta) have a few tens of thousands of people in millions of square kilometres of territory.
Why Canada’s population is growing so fast
It was back in the late 1990s that immigration became, for the first time, the main driver of Canada’s population growth. Before that the numbers had been climbing more naturally after the initial post-war “baby boom” from 1946 to 1965.
Immigration
Historically, Canada has been a very welcoming country for immigration, but targets are on the decline. New permanent resident goals are 21% lower than those of 2024. What does that mean in terms of totals? Well, in 2025, the aim is to grant this status to 395,000 new permanent residents.
The impact of immigration on Canada is huge—it accounts for two-thirds of the overall population growth. The goal is to align the immigration statistics with the country’s demographics and economic strategy, so they use the process to address any labour shortages and counterbalance the aging population.
Natural increases
Canada’s need for immigration to supplement its natural population growth is clear when you learn that in 2023, the birth rate was at an all-time low of 1.26 children born per woman. So the nation needs to look outside its borders to meet its population needs.
Its population is aging, too. In 2015, for the first time, Canada had more people aged 65+ than under 15. This will mean an increase in the death rate from 2025 and beyond as “baby boomers” reach 80+ years old. So there’s another reason that immigrants are needed.
Temporary residents
Another way Canada’s population grows is through temporary residents like foreign workers and students. Combined, these categories account for over 670,000 of the targeted newcomers to Canada in 2025.
Students and workers mostly boost the population of Canadian major cities, like Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. And to put this in perspective, at the end of 2024, Canada had nearly one million international students.
So overall, although Canada is welcoming fewer immigrants in 2025 than 2024, the numbers remain quite high:
| Immigration type | 2025 | % change from 2024 |
| Permanent residents | 395,000 | -21% |
| New students | 305,900 | -10% |
| New foreign workers | 367,750 | -16% |
Where Canadians are living: provincial and territorial demographics
According to the most recent data available from Statistics Canada, here’s where the country’s population are living:
| Province | Population in Q2 2025 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 545,464 |
| Prince Edward Island | 180,029 |
| Nova Scotia | 1,080,418 |
| New Brunswick | 859,839 |
| Quebec | 9,110,616 |
| Ontario | 16,176,977 |
| Manitoba | 1,507,330 |
| Saskatchewan | 1,253,569 |
| Alberta | 4,980,659 |
| British Columbia | 5,719,961 |
| Yukon | 47,111 |
| Northwest Territories | 45,242 |
| Nunavut | 41,572 |
As you can see, there’s a huge difference in the numbers between provinces like Yukon and somewhere like Ontario. This illustrates what we said earlier, about how few people live in some very large regions, with populations concentrated in the areas with major cities.
Canada’s fastest-growing provinces
If you’re thinking about making the move to Canada, you may be curious to know which spots are growing and which are losing people. In the most recent census in 2021, the Yukon was the fastest-growing province, with a population increasing by 12.15% since the previous census in 2016. However, that’s mostly because with such a small population, any change makes a big difference.
In the same period, British Columbia grew by 7.59%. Ontario—home to both the capital Ottawa and the most populous city, Toronto—grew by 5.77%, and Québec by 4.13%. Meanwhile, the Northwest Territories actually saw a decline of 1.71%, and Newfoundland and Labrador also declined by 1.76%.
What drives these changes? There are several factors, and immigration is one of them, but so too is internal movement of the population within Canada.
Interprovincial migration
Just like many other countries, Canada’s own population moves around within the country. The biggest beneficiary of this internal migration is Alberta, home to Canada’s oil industry. Its high-paying jobs attract people from other provinces where maybe the economies aren’t doing so well. For example, from 2023 to 2024, over 43,000 more people came to Alberta from other parts of Canada than moved away.
British Columbia has also been a popular destination for Canadian migrants in the past. In recent years, though, that trend has been reversing, with the last figures showing the area’s population shrinking very slightly.
The real impact of population growth
These changes affect Canada’s native population and immigrants alike. Immigration helps grow a country’s economy, which is one reason why lobby group Century Initiative has said Canada should be looking to bring its population up to 100 million by 2100.
But population growth can especially have a negative effect in bigger cities, where there are already millions of people competing for housing and jobs, and which are historically where most immigrants end up.
Housing and cost of living
The more people there are looking for houses, the more it costs to buy or rent one. And it’s no secret that Canada’s major cities have been suffering for a long time from a housing affordability crisis. This is especially true in Vancouver, where the limited availability of land has caused housing prices to skyrocket over the last few decades.
Vancouver has a median multiple of 11.8. What does that mean? Well, the median house price is 11.8 times the median household income. That makes it one of the least affordable cities not just in Canada but in the world, behind only Hong Kong and Sydney.
Toronto’s median multiple is a slightly more manageable 7.7, but that still makes the city unaffordable for many of its population.
It’s not just about mortgages, either. Rent in major Canadian cities can be very high, too. Vancouver’s median household income, for example, is $90,000 before taxes. But the city’s average rent for a newly available two-bedroom apartment is $3,170 per month—that’s $38,040 a year. Of course some people who’ve been in the same place a long time pay less than that, but if you’re new to the city and looking for somewhere to live, that’s the sort of price you’ll find. So it’s easy for a household to find itself spending almost half of its before-tax income just on rent.
The situation is similar in Greater Toronto, with a median household income of about $84,000 before taxes, and average rent for a purpose-built, two-bedroom apartment costing $1,963 but a privately rented condo costing almost a thousand per month more than that.
As the cities grow, it’s impossible to build houses fast enough to keep up with demand. This not only raises prices but also limits availability. Vancouver’s rental vacancy rate is currently tiny, at just 2.1%, with Toronto not much better at 2.5%.
Employment and economic opportunities
A larger population also means more competition for jobs. This is especially true in the big cities where newcomers usually settle. Even so, many industries in Canada still report persistent skills gaps, with skilled tradespeople such as plumbers and electricians, healthcare professionals, and technology specialists always in demand.
According to the BMO Labour Market Report Card 2025, Saskatoon is currently the best city in Canada to find a job, with low unemployment and reasonably strong job growth. Calgary comes second.
On the other hand, Ontario, including Toronto, has been slipping; its unemployment rate of 7.8% is far higher than in the other heavily populated provinces.
Public services and infrastructure
Along with housing shortages, a growing population puts more strain on public services and infrastructure. People need all the services that make a city work:
- Hospitals to go to when they’re sick,
- Schools to educate their kids,
- Roads and public transport infrastructure to get to work.
One of the most striking examples of this is hospital wait times. Since 2020, every province has seen the time it takes to see a doctor in an emergency increase. Prince Edward Island has the worst increase, with the time to see a doctor rising by a worrying 114.5%. But British Columbia, Québec, and Ontario have all seen increases, too.
What this means for newcomers to Canada
When you’re considering moving to a new country, there’s so much to think about. You need to go where the jobs are, but you also need to consider the cost of living, because it can vary a lot between provinces and even between cities. Most people want to be somewhere that has hospitals when you need them, and good schools if they have kids.
You also need to consider community integration. In big cities like Toronto, Vancouver, or Calgary, you’ll find well-established immigrant communities and settlement services. In smaller towns and rural areas, it can be harder to find that familiarity.
Across Canada, newcomers do at least have access to a range of support services. These include language training, employment workshops, and housing assistance. Often funded by provincial governments, these services are designed to make your transition to a new life smoother.
Canada’s popularity as a place to live means the big-city competition for jobs, housing, and services can be intense. But with preparation and the help of local support services, you can make a new life in a place that works for you.
Understanding your place in Canada’s growing story
Canada’s population growth shows no sign of slowing down. This remains a vast and relatively underpopulated country, although it won’t always seem that way if you’re walking down Yonge Street in downtown Toronto or shopping in Vancouver’s busy Robson Street.
A fast-growing population presents both opportunities and challenges, and as every city in Canada is different, with a variety of employment opportunities, services, cultures, and climates, we hope the statistics we’ve provided will help you decide where your best opportunity lies. Good luck!
FAQs
What is Canada’s population in 2025?
As of April 1, 2025, the population of Canada is 41,548,787 people. To get to this number, Canada was the fastest-growing G7 country from 2016 to 2021—and a lot of that growth was down to immigration.
Which Canadian province has the fastest population growth?
The Canadian province with the fastest population growth is Alberta, mainly due to strong economic opportunities that attract both domestic and international migrants. Saskatchewan has also seen notable growth.
Where can I find the most accurate population statistics?
The best and most reliable source for population stats is Statistics Canada. They publish quarterly and annual reports on various population-related topics.