Photo: Authentic Alberta · CC BY-SA 4.0Nanton is older than 91% of Canadian towns: a median age of 52.8
The figure for residents with no religion is 48% in Nanton and 35% across Canada’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24 account for 8.1%. Few places have as many households in single-detached houses: 82% here, more than in 76% of Canadian towns. The 2021 Census found 955 households in the town; by July 2025 the population was about 2,522.
What stands out about the people of Nanton
Older than most towns
Nanton’s median age is 52.8; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 31% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
−1% since 2016, a pace below 82% of Canadian towns
The 2021 Census is the source of every figure here unless a date says otherwise. 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 16%.
Nanton sits above 94% of Canadian towns for residents aged 65 and over (31%)
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
The share of children under 15 trails just over three quarters of Canadian towns: 14%. On average, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Nanton, 52.8. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 92 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 74% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
With one-parent families at 5.8%, Nanton is behind 85% of Canadian towns on that count. The share of one-person households stands at 29%.
A larger share of married residents 15 and over than 63% of Canadian towns: 50%
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Single and never married: 18% of adults, against a typical 27%. Across Canada’s towns, 46% of residents 15 and over are married. Common-law partners account for 11%.
Below 63% of Canadian towns: 19% of households rent their home
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
Newer homes outnumber old: 26% date from 2001 or later, 23% from before 1961. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Renter households: 25% across Canada’s towns, for comparison.
Households here have a median income of $77,000 a year
The census asked about income in 2020: a pandemic year, with CERB and other emergency benefits counted in. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
The middle household in Nanton had $77,000 before tax, 10% below the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The figure for Alberta’s towns: $92,200. In 2020, 24% of income recipients drew a COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefit; the typical town had 28%.
In Nanton, 13% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, more than in 70% of Canadian towns
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
Immigrants here were most often born in Europe (68%), then in Asia (21%). Lower than in 63% of Canadian towns: 11% of residents are immigrants. Most recent wave: 30% of immigrants arrived in 2011–2021 (Canada’s towns: 27%).
Indigenous residents make up 6.4% in Nanton, more than in 76% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Across Canada’s towns, the share of visible minority residents is 15%; Nanton has 3.3%. The share of Indigenous residents across Canada’s towns is 2.8%.
English is the mother tongue of 91%, and 3.1% speak French as well
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
Nanton sits close to the norm on residents whose mother tongue is French: 0.9%, about the same as across Canada’s towns. On bilingual residents, Nanton sits lower than 93% of Canadian towns: 3.1%.
Fewer degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 88% of Canadian towns: 13%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
A job for 58% of residents aged 15 and over
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
The employment rate of 58% is close to the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
The 10th oldest of 41 towns of 2,500 to 2,588 people
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
Median ages here range from 32.7 in City Commercial Core to 61.6 in North Frontenac. Next to Nanton on this scale come Rimbey (50), East Preston (50.7), Roberval (53) and Macassa (53.2).
Among its 5 nearest neighbours, 2 are older than Nanton
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. Nanton has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 27–44 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nanton | 2,522 | — | 52.8 | 31% | 11% |
| High River | 15,508 | 27.1 km | 44.8 | 25% | 19% |
| Vulcan | 1,922 | 36.8 km | 60.8 | 43% | 7.3% |
| Claresholm | 4,242 | 38.0 km | 56.8 | 36% | 10% |
| Vulcan County | 4,465 | 42.9 km | 39.2 | 17% | 9.2% |
| Okotoks | 33,482 | 44.2 km | 39.2 | 15% | 13% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Against Alberta’s towns and Canada’s towns. Provincial and national yardsticks: Alberta’s towns and neighbourhoods of at least 2,500 residents, and all Canadian towns of that size. No whole city and no First Nations reserve is in either median.
- 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.
- The census’s own words. “Visible minority” is the census’s term from the Employment Equity Act: people, other than Indigenous peoples, who are non-white in colour or race. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are as residents answered. The page compares them with other towns and never labels a town by them.
Questions about Nanton’s residents
What is the population of Nanton?
About 2,522, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 2,167 people in Nanton, about the same as 2016.
What is the average age in Nanton?
The median age is 52.8, older than 91% of Canadian towns. 14% are under 15 and 31% 65 or older.
Is Nanton bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 3.1% are. Another 0% speak only French and 97% only English, and French is the first language of 0.9%.
How diverse is Nanton?
Immigrants: 11% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 3.3%. Indigenous identity: 6.4%.
What religion are people in Nanton?
48% said they have no religion and 49% that they are Christian; 3.5% named another faith.
Is Nanton good for families?
14% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 57% of households and one-parent families 5.8%. Schools near Nanton are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Nanton?
Half of Nanton’s households had more than $77,000 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
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).