Photo: Kyle Wilson · CC BY-SA 4.0Above 97% of Canadian towns: 62% of residents said they have no religion
One-person households: 22% here and 27% across Canada’s towns. Colwood is home to some 22,794 people (July 2025 estimate), in 7,425 households at the 2021 Census. For Colwood, the census puts households in single-detached houses at 49%. Few places have so few residents aged 15 to 24: 9.8% here, fewer than in just over two thirds of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Colwood
Growing faster than most
Colwood went from 16,859 people in 2016 to 18,961 in 2021, +13%: faster growth than in 88% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A growing town: +13% since 2016, faster than 88% of Canadian towns
Figures are from the 2021 Census unless dated otherwise. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 20% higher again. Across Canada’s towns, half of towns changed by more than +4%; across British Columbia’s towns, by more than +6%.
Colwood is older than 52% of Canadian towns: a median age of 42.4
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
35–39 is the most common age band: 7.6% of residents. Among British Columbia’s towns, Qualicum Beach has the highest share aged 65 or over, at 56%. The share of children under 15 is 17%, against 16% across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Colwood, 42.4. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split.
2.5 people per household, more than in 58% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
In Colwood, 7.9% of households are one-parent families.
Colwood: 52% of residents 15 and over are married, above 67% of Canadian towns
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
23% of adults have never married and don’t live common-law (typical: 27%). As a reference point, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns. Common-law partners account for 12%.
Above 66% of Canadian towns: 2.5% of households live in a building of five or more storeys
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: 33% date from 2001 or later, 9.8% from before 1961. Set against 25% across Canada’s towns, 27% of households rent their home in Colwood.
$102,000 a year: where the middle household sits
Incomes are 2020’s, the census’s reference year, and include pandemic benefits such as CERB. Income per household, before tax, with the groups it falls into.
Households by income · share of households
Half of Colwood’s households had a total income above $102,000, 19% more than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). For British Columbia’s towns, the median household income is $87,000. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 21% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
Above 66% of Canadian towns: 13% of residents lived at another address a year earlier
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 20%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Recent arrivals are 23% of immigrants (2011 to 2021), beside 27% across Canada’s towns. On average, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. The largest groups of immigrants were born in Europe (44%) and in Asia (33%).
Colwood sits above 69% of Canadian towns for Indigenous residents (4.9%)
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%; Colwood has 11%. To put it in context, 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 87%, and 8.3% 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
At home: English 94%, French 1%. On residents whose mother tongue is French, Colwood sits higher than 62% of Canadian towns: 2.1%.
Only 25% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in Colwood
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 Colwood, 25%, and 35% have a college or trades credential (typical: 29%). Those with no credential make up 6.2%, next to 9.5% in the typical town.
Employment: 62% of residents 15 and over had a job
Counted in May 2021, during COVID-19, these rates catch the job market before it had recovered. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Employment runs above the middle of Canada’s towns (58%), at 62%.
The 14th oldest of 41 towns of 22,076 to 23,515 people
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
Cité-Universitaire is the youngest of them at 32.5; Cobourg, at 54.8, the oldest. The towns whose median age is nearest to Colwood’s: Erindale (42.1), Renfrew-Collingwood (42.3), New Hamburg (42.8) and Bedford Park-Nortown (44).
Colwood is younger than 5 of its 6 nearest neighbours
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colwood | 22,794 | — | 42.4 | 19% | 13% |
| Langford | 59,664 | 3.2 km | 38.4 | 14% | 16% |
| View Royal | 12,795 | 5.3 km | 44.8 | 21% | 18% |
| New Songhees 1A | 2,052 | 5.7 km | 50 | 28% | 11% |
| Esquimalt | 19,512 | 6.3 km | 43.2 | 21% | 15% |
| Metchosin | 5,207 | 7.2 km | 50.8 | 26% | 14% |
| Victoria | 103,888 | 10.0 km | 42.8 | 23% | 20% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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. Each comparison is its own median: over British Columbia’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, and over all Canadian towns of that size (whole cities and First Nations reserves left out). Percentiles are within Canada only.
- What these tables don’t give. Some things the page can’t show: the Census Profile asks nothing about unpaid care, cars or internet access, and gives no change by age since 2016. Ethnic origins beyond visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted.
Questions about Colwood’s residents
What religion are people in Colwood?
Most often Christian (34%) or no religion (62%); other religions make up 3.7%.
Is Colwood good for families?
Children under 15 are 17% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 57% of households and one-parent families 7.9%. Schools near Colwood are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Colwood?
Median total household income in Colwood was $102,000 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Colwood?
The latest figure is an estimate: 22,794 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Colwood counted 18,961, 13% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Colwood?
Half the residents are older than 42.4 and half younger, older than 52% of Canadian towns; 17% are children under 15 and 19% are 65 or over.
Is Colwood bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 8.3% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 91% speak only English and 0.1% only French; 2.1% grew up with French.
How diverse is Colwood?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 13%. A visible minority makes up 11% and Indigenous residents 4.9%.
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).