Visible minority residents make up 56% in Oxford, more than in 88% of Canadian towns
Across Canada’s towns, households average 2.4 people; in Oxford, 3.1. The 2021 Census counted 4,460 residents in 1,445 households. On the census count, 14% of residents are aged 15 to 24. Compared with other places, residents who moved in within the year are scarce here: 7.4%, fewer than in 87% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Oxford
A mix of backgrounds
56% of residents belong to a visible minority, more than in 88% of Canadian towns; 37% are immigrants. Identity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Only 13% of residents are 65 or over in Oxford
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
The median age in Oxford is 38.1, lower than in 76% of Canadian towns. Here, 20% of residents are under 15. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. 10–14 is the most common age band: 7.5% of residents, 1.3 times the share across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Oxford, 38.1. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Oxford ranks below 83% of Canadian towns on one-person households: 18%
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Oxford has fewer one-parent families than 65% of Canadian towns, at 7.3%. The comparison figure for one-person households is 27% across Canada’s towns.
Oxford sits below 87% of Canadian towns for common-law partners (5.7%)
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Against a figure of 46% across Canada’s towns, the share of married residents 15 and over in Oxford comes in at 54%. Across Canada’s towns, the share of common-law partners is 11%.
14% of households rent their home, below 77% of Canadian towns
Dwelling types, tenure and age of the housing. 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
71% of households live in a single-detached house (Canada’s towns: 64%). The wider picture: a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns.
Household income, middle of the range: $113,100 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Income per household, before tax, with the groups it falls into.
Households by income · share of households
Household incomes run high in Oxford: half had more than $113,100, 32% above the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The median across Alberta’s towns is $92,200. COVID-19 benefits went to 36% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
A larger share of immigrants than 81% of Canadian towns: 37%
Where immigrants were born and when they came, and how recently residents moved in.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 45%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Of the immigrants living here, 25% came between 2011 and 2021; across Canada’s towns the share is 27%. Elsewhere, 17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns. Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (59%), then in Europe (15%).
Oxford ranks below 75% of Canadian towns on residents with no religion: 26%
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Other faiths: Muslim (22%), Buddhist (3.6%) and Hindu (2.9%). Across Canada’s towns, residents with no religion come to 35%. On Indigenous residents, 2.1% here is much the same as across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 56%, and 5.3% speak French as well
The official languages residents can speak, and the ones they learned first.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: English 70%, French 0.1%. Fewer bilingual residents than in 71% of Canadian towns: 5.3%. There is little gap on residents whose mother tongue is French: 1.1%, about the same as across Canada’s towns.
A lower share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 55% of Canadian towns, at 24%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Across Canada’s towns, 27% of 25- to 64-year-olds hold a degree; in Oxford, 24%, and 31% have a college or trades credential (typical: 29%). Those with no credential make up 7.9%, next to 9.5% in the typical town.
Employment: 60% of residents 15 and over had a job
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
At 60%, more residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
In its size band (4,379 to 4,542), the 12th youngest of 41 towns
The Canadian towns closest in population, from youngest to oldest.
Between Glenridding Heights (31.9) and Shelburne (54.4) lies the rest of the group. Next to Oxford on this scale come White City (36.8), Ormsby Place (37.1), Lorelei (38.2) and Inglewood (38.3).
Every nearby town is younger than Oxford
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford | 4,460 | — | 38.1 | 13% | 37% |
| Carlton | 5,502 | 0.8 km | 34 | 8.2% | 39% |
| Cumberland | 6,493 | 1.1 km | 37 | 8.6% | 37% |
| Albany | 3,015 | 1.4 km | 29.9 | 4.7% | 32% |
| Dunluce | 6,079 | 1.4 km | 38.1 | 15% | 25% |
| Caernarvon | 5,972 | 1.5 km | 36.4 | 16% | 36% |
| Hudson | 3,634 | 1.8 km | 36.8 | 11% | 45% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Neighbourhoods are sums of small areas. Statistics Canada reports the census by municipality; a neighbourhood’s figures are the sum of its dissemination areas, rounded counts and all, with medians estimated from age and income groups and no 2016 count, as the 2016 areas don’t fit.
- What these tables don’t give. The Census Profile has no unpaid care, cars or internet access, and no change by age since 2016; ethnic origins beyond visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
- The census’s own words. The census takes “visible minority” from the Employment Equity Act: anyone other than Indigenous peoples who is non-white in colour or race. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are what residents reported, compared here with other towns and never used as a label.
- 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 Oxford’s residents
What is the average age in Oxford?
The median age is 38.1, younger than 76% of Canadian towns. 20% are under 15 and 13% 65 or older.
Is Oxford bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 5.3% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 93% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.1% grew up with French.
How diverse is Oxford?
Immigrants: 37% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 56%. Indigenous identity: 2.1%.
What religion are people in Oxford?
26% said they have no religion and 43% that they are Christian; 31% named another faith.
Is Oxford good for families?
20% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 62% of households and one-parent families 7.3%. Schools near Oxford are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Oxford?
Half of Oxford’s households had more than $113,100 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Oxford?
4,460, at the 2021 Census: Statistics Canada makes no later estimate for Oxford alone.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population. 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).