Photo: Andrawaag · CC BY-SA 4.0Big Lakes County sits above 99% of Canadian towns for Indigenous residents (43%)
Across Canada’s towns, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier; in Big Lakes County, 7.2%. Here, 4.6% of residents are immigrants. With a median age of 45.6, Big Lakes County is older than 71% of Canadian towns. This Alberta town had about 5,106 residents in July 2025, by Statistics Canada’s estimate, and 2,005 households at the 2021 Census.
What stands out about the people of Big Lakes County
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
An Indigenous identity is reported by 43% of residents, more than in 99% of Canadian towns. 16% are Registered or Treaty Indians and 7.8% grew up speaking an Indigenous language. Identity & religion ↓
Fewer people than before
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses, Big Lakes County went from 5,625 to 4,986 residents (−11%), slower growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
From 2016 to 2021, 99% of Canadian towns grew faster than Big Lakes County: −11%
Every figure here comes from the 2021 Census unless it carries another date. Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 2%. Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across Alberta’s towns, +1%.
18% of residents are under 15, more than in 73% of Canadian towns
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
Set against 11% across Canada’s towns, just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24 in Big Lakes County. On the census count, nearly a fifth of residents are 65 or over.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Big Lakes County, 45.6. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Big Lakes County sits above 82% of Canadian towns for one-parent families (11%)
Who shares a home: household types and sizes.
Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
A household here has 2.5 people on average; across Canada’s towns, 2.4. One-person households: 27% of the total. As a yardstick, nearly one in ten households are one-parent families across Canada’s towns.
Big Lakes County ranks below 58% of Canadian towns on married residents 15 and over: 44%
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
In Big Lakes County, just over one in ten residents 15 and over live common-law, beside 11% across Canada’s towns. 31% of adults have never married and don’t live common-law (typical: 27%).
77% of households live in a single-detached house, more than in 69% of Canadian towns
Houses and apartments, owners and renters, older and newer homes. Prices, rents and shelter costs are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Owners and renters · share of households
When homes were built · share of homes
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Across Canada’s towns, households in single-detached houses come to 64%. 24% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 9.2% built before 1961. Against a figure of 25% across Canada’s towns, the share of renter households in Big Lakes County comes in at 21%.
Median gross household income: $76,000 a year
The census asked about income in 2020: a pandemic year, with CERB and other emergency benefits counted in. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
Household incomes run lower in Big Lakes County: half had less than $76,000, 12% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Alberta’s towns the median is $92,200. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 31% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
4.6% of residents are immigrants
Immigrants by continent of birth and when they arrived, citizenship, and who moved in recently.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 30%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Here 2.7% of residents are not Canadian citizens, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 5.8%. Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (48%), then in Europe (28%).
In Big Lakes County, 37% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 56% of Canadian towns
Residents’ own answers on visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Where 15% of residents belong to a visible minority across Canada’s towns, Big Lakes County has 3.1%. Set beside that, 35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
Above 66% of Canadian towns: 2.5% of residents have French as their mother tongue
English, French and the other languages people grew up with or speak at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
Bilingual residents: 3.6%, below 90% of Canadian towns. Elsewhere, 1.5% of residents have French as their mother tongue across Canada’s towns.
9% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, below 97% of Canadian towns
The highest diploma or degree of adults of working age (25 to 64).
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
26% have no certificate, diploma or degree (typical: 9.5%). As a yardstick, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 48% of adults
Census day was in May 2021, mid-pandemic: some of these rates are lower than in a usual year. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
With 19% of residents 65 or over, the employment rate of 48% sits under the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
The 15th oldest of 41 towns of 5,029 to 5,187 people
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
They run from River-Osborne, at 31.6, to Saint-Donat, at 60.4. Nearest to Big Lakes County in age: Coverdale (44.8), Didsbury (45.2), Capilano (45.9) and Twin Brooks (46.7).
Every neighbour of Big Lakes County has a younger population
Places nearby, shaded by median age, each linked to its page. Big Lakes County has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 22–71 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Lakes County | 5,106 | — | 45.6 | 19% | 4.6% |
| High Prairie | 2,607 | 21.6 km | 37.2 | 16% | 15% |
| Falher | 1,084 | 67.2 km | 44.4 | 25% | 8.9% |
| Smoky River No. 130 | 1,941 | 71.5 km | 44.4 | 18% | 3.2% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. These are self-reported answers: Indigenous identity, immigrant status, religion. The census’s “visible minority” comes from the Employment Equity Act (non-white in colour or race, Indigenous peoples aside), and the page sets each beside other towns without labelling any.
- Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns. The middle of Alberta’s towns of 2,500 or more comes first, the middle of all Canadian towns second; cities as a whole and First Nations reserves stay out, and percentiles are within Canada.
- What these tables don’t give. Unpaid care, car ownership and internet access aren’t in the Census Profile, nor is the change by age since 2016. Ethnic origins other than visible minority and Indigenous identity are left out of the charts.
Questions about Big Lakes County’s residents
What religion are people in Big Lakes County?
Christian: 60%. No religion: 37%. Another religion: 3.5%.
Is Big Lakes County good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 18%. 51% of households are couple families and 11% one-parent families. Schools near Big Lakes County are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Big Lakes County?
$76,000 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Big Lakes County (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Big Lakes County?
Statistics Canada estimates 5,106 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 4,986 in Big Lakes County, 11% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Big Lakes County?
45.6 is the median age, older than 71% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 18%. 65 and over: 19%.
Is Big Lakes County bilingual?
English and French: 3.6% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 96%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 2.5%.
How diverse is Big Lakes County?
Immigrants make up 4.6% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 3.1% are members of a visible minority, and 43% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population · Statistics Canada, population estimates for 1 July 2025 (table 17-10-0155). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).