Evanston has higher household incomes than 97% of Canadian towns
At the 2021 census, 76% of Evanston’s 15-to-64s were in work, and the middle of Canadian towns sits at 73%. A typical one-way commute from Evanston lasts 29.2 minutes, against 26 in the middle of Canadian towns. 31% of its workers worked at home on census day, against 21% in the middle of Canadian towns.
Work in Evanston, in a few figures
Higher incomes than most towns
Half the households here had more than $123,600 in 2020, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns. Household income ↓
Longer trips than most towns
The average trip to work is 29.2 minutes; the middle of Canadian towns is 26. Getting to work ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
Evanston grades B for jobs and income
Better than 63% of Canadian towns on three measures together, #169 of 474 in Alberta.
Its strongest measure is household income; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
What households earned in Evanston: $123,600 in 2020
Of the 166 other places of 2,500 or more in Census Division No. 6, 35 have a higher median. Set beside Alberta’s towns, where the median is $92,250, Evanston sits 34% above. Incomes here are 2020’s and include the pandemic payments, CERB among them, that propped up the lower end.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
Leaving the car at home: 6.1% of commuters in Evanston
Transit takes 4.3% of commuters, close to the middle of Canadian towns. The car is the way to work for 90% of commuters.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
How many in Evanston were working in 2021
Of the 166 other places of 2,500 people or more in Census Division No. 6, 123 have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
Participation, the share of residents 15 and over working or looking for work, came to 78%. The monthly Labour Force Survey, which covers the wider area, put its employment rate at 67% in October 2026. The figures are a snapshot of 11 May 2021, when pandemic rules still kept many people out of work or at home.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
35% more people are on EI in Census Division No. 6 than in 2019
The highest month was January 2021: 97,600 people, 3.2 times the 2019 level. That works out to around 4 beneficiaries per 100 people aged 15 to 64 across the division. In the twelve months to August 2026 the number fell by 1%.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. Area behind the EI beneficiaries figures: Census Division No. 6. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100).
The walkability of Evanston: A−
Better than 83% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #245 of 474 in Alberta.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
115th of 421: where Evanston ranks among Canadian towns of 15,000 to 29,000
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yellowknife Northwest Territories | 22,858 | 80% | 5.8% | $148K | A+ |
| 2 | Central Saanich British Columbia | 18,184 | 85% | 4.9% | $103K | A+ |
| 3 | Cap-Rouge Quebec | 17,139 | 81% | 4.3% | $126K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 7 | Canmore Alberta | 17,341 | 79% | 9.7% | $107K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 17 | Lloydminster (Part) Alberta | 21,267 | 75% | 11% | $98K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 32 | Cold Lake Alberta | 17,798 | 75% | 7.8% | $105K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 113 | Chutes-Montmorency Quebec | 16,273 | 78% | 6.4% | $73K | B |
| 114 | High River Alberta | 15,508 | 76% | 9.9% | $82K | B |
| 115 | Evanston Alberta | 21,483 | 76% | 9.8% | $124K | B |
| 116 | Springwater Ontario | 24,144 | 77% | 10% | $122K | B |
| 117 | Springfield Manitoba | 17,494 | 79% | 5.3% | $114K | B |
| … | ||||||
| 421 | South Parkdale Ontario | 21,663 | 64% | 17% | $57K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of Evanston, and others among Alberta’s towns.
How the places next to Evanston compare on work
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evanston | 76% | 9.8% | $124K | 29.2 min | B | A− |
| Kincora 1.8 km | 75% | 12% | $112K | 28.4 min | B | A− |
| Sage Hill 2.3 km | 76% | 9.1% | $112K | 29.1 min | B | B+ |
| Carrington 2.4 km | 73% | 9.6% | $118K | 30.1 min | B− | B− |
| Panorama Hills 2.5 km | 69% | 15% | $113K | 27.7 min | B− | A− |
| Hidden Valley 2.5 km | 72% | 12% | $127K | 25.8 min | B | B |
| Sherwood 3 km | 69% | 11% | $113K | 29.3 min | C+ | A |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Evanston, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- The Labour Force Survey. Sampled each month and released for regions rather than towns, so its rate describes the area around the town.
- In work. Why 15 to 64? Otherwise retirees would pull the rate down in older towns. The census can’t say how old a neighbourhood’s workers are, so the count of people in work takes every age.
- Unemployment. A census-day figure: people without a job who were looking, divided by all those working or looking, ages 15 and up.
- Household income. Before-tax total income of the middle household for 2020, from the census. Neighbourhood medians are worked out from bracket counts, since Statistics Canada publishes none of their own.
- Trip times. The census asks how long the trip to work usually takes, in bands; our average uses each band’s middle, so it runs a little above Statistics Canada’s timed average.
- Employment Insurance. A monthly count of Employment Insurance beneficiaries for the whole census division. It tracks the local job market, but it is not an unemployment rate.
- Which towns we compare. Medians over towns and neighbourhoods of at least 2,500 residents. Whole cities would swamp them and reserves sit outside the rankings, so neither is in.
- Neighbourhood figures. Evanston’s census figures are summed from its dissemination areas. Commuting flows and Statistics Canada’s timed averages are published only for the whole municipality, so they are on Calgary’s page.
Questions about work in Evanston
How many jobs are there in Evanston?
The census places jobs by municipality, so the answer is in Calgary’s figures, with the flows of its commuters.
What is the unemployment rate in Evanston?
On census day in May 2021, unemployment stood at 9.8% of the labour force (9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns). For a recent figure, the Labour Force Survey put the Calgary metro area at 6.6% in October 2026.
What is the average household income in Evanston?
The census puts Evanston at $123,600 for 2020, before tax and at the median, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in Evanston get to work?
By car: 90% of commuters, 4.3% take public transit and 1.8% walk; on census day 31% of those in work worked from home.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. 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).