Photo: Maclean25 at English Wikipedia · Public domainHousehold incomes in Chetwynd top those of 89% of Canadian towns
Of Chetwynd’s residents aged 15 to 64, 72% were employed when the 2021 census was taken; the middle of Canadian towns is 73%. 1,615 people have their usual place of work in Chetwynd, against 925 residents who travel to a job. The 2021 census put unemployment in Chetwynd at 7.1%, and the middle of Canadian towns sits at 9.9%.
Work in Chetwynd, in a few figures
Less unemployment than most towns
Unemployment was 7.1% at the 2021 census, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns. The Labour Force Survey for the wider area read 5.1% in October 2026. Unemployment ↓
Higher incomes than most towns
Half of households had more than $104,700 before tax in 2020, where the middle of Canadian towns is $85,900. Household income ↓
A local job centre
1,615 people work in Chetwynd and 925 residents commute to a fixed workplace; the middle of Canadian towns has 0.8 jobs per working resident. The daily tide ↓
Shorter trips than most towns
Commutes take 20.4 minutes on average, against 26 in the middle of Canadian towns; 9.8% take an hour or more. The trip to work ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
Chetwynd grades A− for jobs and income
Better than 82% of Canadian towns on three measures together.
Its strongest measure is household income; its weakest, the share of 15-to-64s in work.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
The share of 15-to-64s in work in Chetwynd: 72%
Of the 7 other places of 2,500 people or more in the Peace River census division, one has a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
By October 2026, the Labour Force Survey had 65% of the wider area’s adults in work. Working or looking, 68% of everyone 15 and over was in the labour force. The census was taken on 11 May 2021, mid-pandemic, when lockdowns had pushed unemployment up and sent many to work from home.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
What households earned in Chetwynd: $104,700 in 2020
Against the middle of British Columbia’s towns ($86,900), Chetwynd’s median is 20% above. One of the 7 other places of 2,500+ in the Peace River census division has a higher median. Because 2020 was the first year of the pandemic, emergency benefits make up part of these before-tax incomes.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
Workers pour into Chetwynd: 70% more on a working day
For every resident who leaves Chetwynd for work, about 8 people come in.
People with no fixed workplace are in neither count.
Chetwynd has a quicker trip to work than the middle of Canadian towns: 20.4 minutes
Statistics Canada’s own average, timed exactly rather than by band, is 17.4 minutes. The middle of British Columbia’s towns averages 26.4 minutes. A quarter-hour or less for 65% of commuters, against 39% in the middle of British Columbia’s towns. An hour or more: 9.8% of commuters, above the 6.3% in the middle of British Columbia’s towns.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: commuting duration in five bands; our average uses each band’s middle (75 minutes for an hour or more), so it runs about two minutes above Statistics Canada’s own.
786 people come into Chetwynd to work, most from Electoral Area E, Peace River and Tumbler Ridge
- Electoral Area E, Peace River25
- Tumbler Ridge20
- Vanderhoof10
- West Moberly Lake 168A (IRI)10
Of everyone working in Chetwynd, 49% come in from elsewhere; 570 make the 9 km trip from Electoral Area E, Peace River. Electoral Area E, Peace River is where the largest group of commuters out goes, 25 of them.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (98-10-0459): commuting flows between municipalities (census subdivisions), rounded to 5; linked names have their own pages.
Walking, cycling or transit: 14% of Chetwynd’s commuters
The car takes 84% of commuters here, under the 87% in the middle of British Columbia’s towns. Only 5.1% worked at home on census day, against 21% in the middle of Canadian towns. The middle of British Columbia’s towns has 2.3% on transit; here it is 4.5%.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
EI claims in the Peace River census division run 11% above their 2019 level
Roughly 4.4 in every 100 people aged 15 to 64 in the division draw EI. At its peak, in April 2021, 3,610 people were on EI, 2.4 times the 2019 average.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100). Nobody publishes EI beneficiaries for Chetwynd alone, so this card uses the figure for the Peace River census division.
Chetwynd on foot: a A− grade
Better than 77% of Canadian towns on two measures together.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
Work in the places around Chetwynd
The nearest places to Chetwynd with figures are 9–78 km away.
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chetwynd | 72% | 7.1% | $105K | 20.4 min | A− | A− |
| Electoral Area E, Peace River 8.9 km | 78% | 8.1% | $103K | 28.2 min | B+ | D |
| Hudson's Hope 47.6 km | 72% | 6.6% | $88K | 22.9 min | B | C+ |
| Tumbler Ridge 74.3 km | 73% | 7.7% | $100K | 29.9 min | C+ | A |
| Electoral Area C, Peace River 76.3 km | 76% | 7.6% | $124K | 22.4 min | A | D |
| Taylor 77.5 km | 70% | 12% | $105K | 25.2 min | B | B+ |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Chetwynd, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- Household income. The census median total income of households in 2020, before tax; a neighbourhood’s is estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups.
- Trip times. How long getting to work normally takes, averaged from the census’s time bands at their middles; expect it to read slightly high against the timed figure.
- Where people commute. Statistics Canada’s place-of-work table counts people with a usual place of work by the municipality they live in and the one they work in. Jobs here are people whose usual workplace is in the municipality, wherever they live.
- Employment Insurance. How many people in the census division drew Employment Insurance each month; it moves with layoffs and hiring, yet people who don’t qualify are absent from it.
- The Labour Force Survey. A monthly household survey by Statistics Canada, reported for metro areas and economic regions only. It supplies a recent rate next to the 2021 census figure.
- In work. Working residents per resident of working age (15 to 64), from the 2021 Census.
- Unemployment. A census-day figure: people without a job who were looking, divided by all those working or looking, ages 15 and up.
- Which towns we compare. Towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500 people or more, never a whole city and never a First Nations reserve. Middles are medians.
Questions about work in Chetwynd
Where do people in Chetwynd work?
Most stay: 90% work in Chetwynd. The rest go first to Electoral Area E, Peace River (25) and Tumbler Ridge (20).
How many jobs are there in Chetwynd?
Some 1,615 people worked in Chetwynd at the 2021 census: 1.8 jobs per working resident with a fixed workplace. In June 2026, 168 businesses with employees were on Statistics Canada’s count.
What is the unemployment rate in Chetwynd?
The 2021 census found 7.1% unemployed, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns; the Labour Force Survey’s latest, for the Northeast economic region, is 5.1% (October 2026).
What is the average household income in Chetwynd?
The census puts Chetwynd at $104,700 for 2020, before tax and at the median, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in Chetwynd get to work?
Driving takes 84% of commuters to work, 4.5% take public transit, 8.5% walk and 0.9% cycle, and on census day 5.1% of those in work were at home.
How long is the commute from Chetwynd?
About 20.4 minutes on average, with 65% under a quarter-hour and 9.8% at an hour or longer.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, tables 98-10-0458 and 98-10-0459 (commuting) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. 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).