Photo: Northwest · CC BY-SA 4.057% of residents are immigrants, more than in 97% of Canadian towns
The figure for households in single-detached houses is 19% in Royal Oak and 64% across Canada’s towns. For Royal Oak, the census puts residents without Canadian citizenship at 22%. At 50%, the share of residents with no religion is higher than in 87% of Canadian towns. The neighbourhood had 18,364 residents in 6,850 households at the 2021 Census.
What stands out about the people of Royal Oak
More immigrants than most towns
Immigrants make up 57% of residents; the medians are 16% across British Columbia’s towns and 17% across Canada’s towns. Most immigrants were born in Asia (82%) or in Europe (9.4%), and 27% arrived from 2011 to 2021. Immigrants & newcomers ↓
A mix of backgrounds
77% of residents belong to a visible minority, more than in 96% of Canadian towns; 57% are immigrants. Identity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A lower share of children under 15 than 80% of Canadian towns, at 13%
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 share of residents aged 65 and over trails 69% of Canadian towns: 16%. 11% of residents are aged 15 to 24. The median age in Royal Oak is 39.5, lower than in two thirds of Canadian towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Royal Oak, 39.5. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women.
2.7 people per household, more than in 72% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
With one-person households at 24%, Royal Oak is behind 61% of Canadian towns on that count. The census found that 9.2% of households are one-parent families locally. Shared houses stand out: 6.8% of households are unrelated adults living together, more than in 85% of Canadian towns.
Common-law partners: 6.1%, a lower share than 85% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Here 51% of residents 15 and over are married, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 46%. The share of common-law partners across Canada’s towns is 11%.
33% of households rent their home, a share 64% 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
45% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 7.9% built before 1961. By way of comparison, a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are more common here than in 63% of Canadian towns.
$87,700 a year: the median household income
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
Royal Oak’s median household took in $87,700 before tax, about the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across British Columbia’s towns the median is $87,000. COVID-19 benefits went to 31% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
A larger share of residents who moved in within the year than 78% of Canadian towns: 15%
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 70%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Most immigrants were born in Asia (82%) or in Europe (9.4%). The wider picture: 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. Of the immigrants living here, 27% came between 2011 and 2021; across Canada’s towns the share is 27%.
Visible minority residents make up 77% in Royal Oak, more than in 96% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Other faiths: Buddhist (4.9%), Sikh (3.9%), Muslim (3.4%) and Hindu (3.2%). Few places have so few Indigenous residents: 1.1% here, fewer than in 79% of Canadian towns. Visible minority residents make up 15% across Canada’s towns.
Beyond English and French: 68% grew up with another language
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 49%, French 0.1%. Lower than in 79% of Canadian towns: 4.6% of residents speak English and French. Compared with 1.5% across Canada’s towns, 0.3% of residents have French as their mother tongue here.
More degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 83% of Canadian towns: 48%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate at all: 6.3%, against 9.5%. Measured more widely, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
A job for 58% of residents aged 15 and over
The census counted work in May 2021, mid-pandemic, so read these rates as a pandemic snapshot. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
58% of residents 15 and over have a job, in line with the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
Among 41 towns of 17,798 to 18,922 people, the 20th youngest
The Canadian towns closest in population, from youngest to oldest.
The youngest is Schmidtville (29) and the oldest Oak Bay (54.4). In age, Royal Oak keeps company with DT Fairview (38.9), Weston (39.1), Downsview (39.7) and Desmarchais-Crawford (40.3).
Older than Royal Oak: 5 of the 6 towns nearby
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Oak | 18,364 | — | 39.5 | 16% | 57% |
| Buckingham Heights | 8,794 | 1.7 km | 41.7 | 18% | 52% |
| Metrotown | 36,594 | 1.7 km | 38 | 17% | 61% |
| South Slope | 8,989 | 1.9 km | 45.3 | 22% | 44% |
| Edmonds | 34,805 | 1.9 km | 39.9 | 17% | 59% |
| Garden Village | 6,492 | 2.9 km | 42.9 | 19% | 52% |
| Deer Lake | 8,417 | 3.1 km | 45.8 | 22% | 45% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Neighbourhoods are sums of small areas. There is no census profile for a neighbourhood, so we add up the dissemination areas inside it. Each count is a sum of Statistics Canada’s rounded counts, the median age and income come from the published groups, and with 2016’s areas drawn differently there is no 2016 count.
- What these tables don’t give. Not in the Census Profile: unpaid care, cars, internet access, and how each age group has changed since 2016. We also chart no ethnic origins besides visible minority and Indigenous identity.
- The census’s own words. In the census, “visible minority” is the Employment Equity Act’s term for people who are non-white in colour or race and not Indigenous. Like immigrant status, Indigenous identity and religion, which residents reported themselves, it is compared with other towns, never turned into a label.
- Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns. The middle of British Columbia’s towns of 2,500 or more comes first, the middle of all Canadian towns second; cities as a whole and First Nations reserves stay out, and percentiles are within Canada.
Questions about Royal Oak’s residents
How diverse is Royal Oak?
Immigrants make up 57% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 77% are members of a visible minority, and 1.1% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Royal Oak?
Christian: 33%. No religion: 50%. Another religion: 18%.
Is Royal Oak good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 13%. 48% of households are couple families and 9.2% one-parent families. Schools near Royal Oak are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Royal Oak?
$87,700 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Royal Oak (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Royal Oak?
18,364, at the 2021 Census: Statistics Canada makes no later estimate for Royal Oak alone.
What is the average age in Royal Oak?
39.5 is the median age, younger than 67% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 13%. 65 and over: 16%.
Is Royal Oak bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 4.6% are. Another 0% speak only French and 87% only English, and French is the first language of 0.3%.
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).