Photo: Kayoty · CC BY-SA 3.0Older than 98% of Canadian towns: half of Barriere is over 58.4
Across Canada’s towns, the share of Indigenous residents is 2.8%; Barriere has 9.7%. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 1,913 residents; the 2021 Census found 760 households. 6.5% of residents are aged 15 to 24. On renter households, Barriere sits lower than 86% of Canadian towns: 11%.
What stands out about the people of Barriere
Older than most towns
Barriere’s median age is 58.4; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 34% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
+3% since 2016, a pace below 57% of Canadian towns
Unless a figure says otherwise, it is from the 2021 Census. How the population moved between the last two censuses, and since.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across British Columbia’s towns, +6%. Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 8% higher again.
A higher share of residents aged 65 and over than 97% of Canadian towns, at 34%
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
In Barriere, just over one in ten residents are under 15, beside 16% across Canada’s towns. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Smaller households than 74% of Canadian towns: 2.2 people on average
Households by family type and by the number of people in them.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Against a figure of 8.2% across Canada’s towns, the share of one-parent families in Barriere comes in at 5.3%. Here, 30% of households are one person living alone.
A larger share of married residents 15 and over than 63% of Canadian towns: 51%
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
18% of adults are single and have never married; the typical town has 27%. The usual figure: 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns. The share of common-law partners stands at 12%.
81% of households live in a single-detached house, a share 74% of Canadian towns don’t reach
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
Nearly one in ten homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%. The usual figure: 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns.
Household income at the median: $66,500 a year
Census incomes cover 2020, when emergency benefits like CERB lifted many households’ totals. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
Half of Barriere’s households had a total income below $66,500, 23% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). $87,000 is the median household income across British Columbia’s towns. COVID-19 benefits went to 20% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
6.9% of residents are immigrants
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 20%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns, against 6.9% in Barriere. The census found that 2.1% of residents are not Canadian citizens locally.
Residents with no religion make up 63% in Barriere, more than in 97% of Canadian towns
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Where 15% of residents belong to a visible minority across Canada’s towns, Barriere has 4.5%. The usual figure: 35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns. Among other religions: Buddhist (2.1%).
94% have English as their mother tongue; 2.3% also speak French
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
Compared with 7.5% across Canada’s towns, 2.3% of residents speak English and French here. In Barriere, 1.4% of residents have French as their mother tongue.
Below 99% of Canadian towns: 4.9% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Some 17% have no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%. On average, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
An employment rate of 40%
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
At 40%, fewer residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns, and 34% are 65 or over.
The towns around Barriere are all younger
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page. No closer places have figures: these lie 16–47 km from Barriere.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barriere | 1,913 | — | 58.4 | 34% | 6.9% |
| Electoral Area O (Lower North Thompson), Thompson-Nicola | 1,653 | 16.2 km | 55.2 | 30% | 8.6% |
| Sun Peaks Mountain | 1,546 | 37.5 km | 40 | 12% | 19% |
| Electoral Area P (Rivers and the Peaks), Thompson-Nicola | 4,540 | 42.2 km | 50.4 | 24% | 7.5% |
| Electoral Area A (Wells Gray Country), Thompson-Nicola | 1,766 | 46.7 km | 55.2 | 28% | 8.7% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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. 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 British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns. For each measure we take the median of British Columbia’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, then the median of all Canadian towns. Neither counts whole cities or reserves, and every percentile is a Canadian one.
Questions about Barriere’s residents
How diverse is Barriere?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 6.9%. A visible minority makes up 4.5% and Indigenous residents 9.7%.
What religion are people in Barriere?
Most often Christian (33%) or no religion (63%); other religions make up 4.3%.
Is Barriere good for families?
Children under 15 are 11% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 55% of households and one-parent families 5.3%. Schools near Barriere are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Barriere?
Median total household income in Barriere was $66,500 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Barriere?
The latest figure is an estimate: 1,913 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Barriere counted 1,765, 3% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Barriere?
Half the residents are older than 58.4 and half younger; 11% are children under 15 and 34% are 65 or over.
Is Barriere bilingual?
2.3% of residents can speak both English and French (typical across Canada’s towns: 7.5%); 0% speak French only and 98% English only. French is the mother tongue of 1.4%.
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).