Photo: Dwayne Reilander · CC BY-SA 4.0A median age of 38: Calgary is younger than 77% of Canadian towns
Immigrants make up 33%, against 17% across Canada’s towns. By contrast, 14% of residents are 65 or over, fewer than in 80% of Canadian towns. Calgary is home to some 1,612,834 people (July 2025 estimate), in 502,305 households at the 2021 Census. In Calgary, 41% of residents belong to a visible minority.
Calgary grew +6% from 2016 to 2021, faster than 59% of Canadian towns
Every figure here comes from the 2021 Census unless it carries another date. Two census counts, five years apart, and Statistics Canada’s newest estimate.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns the median change is +4%; across Alberta’s towns, +1%. By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 23%.
A larger share of children under 15 than 71% of Canadian towns: 18%
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
The largest age band is 35–39: nearly one in ten residents, 1.3 times the share across Canada’s towns. Just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24, a higher share than in 63% of Canadian towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Larger households than 67% of Canadian towns: 2.6 people on average
Households by family type and by the number of people in them.
Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The share of one-parent families stands at 7.8%. 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns, against 26% in Calgary.
8.9% of residents 15 and over live common-law, fewer than in 66% of Canadian towns
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns, against 49% in Calgary. Common-law partners: 11% across Canada’s towns, for comparison.
More households in buildings of five or more storeys than 77% of Canadian towns: 8.1%
Occupied homes by type, by owners and renters, and by when they were built. 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
A quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns, against 31% in Calgary. In Calgary, 55% of households live in a single-detached house.
Household income, middle of the range: $98,000 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 high in Calgary: half had more than $98,000, 14% above the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Alberta’s towns the median is $92,200. Emergency and recovery benefits reached 33% of those with an income, beside a typical 28%.
Calgary ranks above 76% of Canadian towns on residents without Canadian citizenship: 12%
Immigrants, newcomers and movers.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 40%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (61%), then in Europe (16%). Residents who moved in within the year are more common here than in 72% of Canadian towns. Across Canada’s towns, 5.8% of residents are not Canadian citizens. Recent arrivals, from 2011 to 2021, are 38% of immigrants (typical: 27%); non-permanent residents add 2.1% of residents.
Calgary ranks above 62% of Canadian towns on residents with no religion: 39%
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Among other religions: Muslim (7.4%), Sikh (3.8%) and Hindu (2.6%). Across Canada’s towns, 35% of residents said they have no religion. Nothing unusual on Indigenous residents: 3.2%, close to the figure across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 64%, and 6.6% speak French as well
Knowledge of the two official languages, first languages, and the language of home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
19% most often speak a language other than English or French at home, and 2.5% speak neither official language. Fewer residents whose mother tongue is French than in 62% of Canadian towns: 1.2%.
Calgary ranks above 76% of Canadian towns on degree holders aged 25 to 64: 43%
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
With no certificate, diploma or degree: 7.6%, beside a typical 9.5%. To put it in context, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 61% of adults
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
61% of residents 15 and over have a job; across Canada’s towns the typical share is 58%.
From a median age of 32 in Cityscape to 54 in Palliser
The city’s 152 neighbourhoods, youngest first; each links its own page.
Palliser is the oldest area, with 36% aged 65 or over; Cityscape the youngest (median age 32). Redstone has the largest immigrant share, 63%. Downtown Commercial Core has the most renters: 91% of households.
Nearby, 2 of 6 towns have older populations than Calgary
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary | 1,612,834 | — | 38 | 14% | 33% |
| Beltline | 26,171 | 0.7 km | 33.3 | 7.9% | 32% |
| Mission | 6,329 | 0.9 km | 34.8 | 13% | 21% |
| Downtown Commercial Core | 9,286 | 1.1 km | 34.1 | 14% | 50% |
| Eau Claire | 3,733 | 1.3 km | 44.1 | 25% | 36% |
| Downtown East Village | 3,524 | 1.3 km | 38.7 | 18% | 35% |
| Lower Mount Royal | 3,136 | 1.5 km | 34.1 | 9.7% | 27% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What these tables don’t give. Missing from the census as published: unpaid care, cars and internet access, and the shift in each age band since 2016. Ethnic origins past visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
- 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. Two medians frame each figure: one for Alberta’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, one for all Canadian towns of that size, with whole cities and First Nations reserves left out. Percentiles rank the town within Canada.
Questions about Calgary’s residents
Is Calgary bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 6.6% are. Another 0.1% speak only French and 91% only English, and French is the first language of 1.2%.
How diverse is Calgary?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 33%. A visible minority makes up 41% and Indigenous residents 3.2%.
What religion are people in Calgary?
Most often Christian (45%) or no religion (39%); other religions make up 17%.
Is Calgary good for families?
Children under 15 are 18% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 52% of households and one-parent families 7.8%. Schools near Calgary are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Calgary?
Median total household income in Calgary was $98,000 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Calgary?
The latest figure is an estimate: 1,612,834 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Calgary counted 1,306,784, 6% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Calgary?
Half the residents are older than 38 and half younger; 18% are children under 15 and 14% are 65 or over.
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).