Photo: K29328 · CC BY-SA 4.0Older than 97% of Canadian towns: half of Creston is over 57.6
A household here has 2 people on average; across Canada’s towns, 2.4. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 5,976 residents; the 2021 Census found 2,670 households. In Creston, half of residents said they have no religion. This British Columbia town has fewer children under 15 than 88% of Canadian towns, at 12%.
What stands out about the people of Creston
Older than most towns
The middle resident of Creston is 57.6; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 39% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A +4% change since 2016: faster than 50% of Canadian towns
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. 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 7% higher again.
Residents aged 65 and over make up 39% in Creston, more than in 99% of Canadian towns
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
8% of residents are aged 15 to 24 (Canada’s towns: 11%). For comparison, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Creston, 57.6. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
One-person households make up 37% in Creston, more than in 83% of Canadian towns
Private households by type and size.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The share of one-parent families stands at 7.3%. As a yardstick, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns.
In Creston, 9.3% of residents 15 and over live common-law, fewer than in 62% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Where 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns, Creston has 49%. Common-law partners: 11% across Canada’s towns, for comparison.
74% of households live in a single-detached house, 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
Here, nearly a quarter of households rent their home.
A median household income of $58,800 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
The median across Canada’s towns is $86,000; Creston’s, at $58,800, is 32% lower. Among British Columbia’s towns, the typical figure is $87,000. The pandemic’s benefits: 18% of income recipients, against 28% in the typical town.
12% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, a share 63% of Canadian towns don’t reach
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
Where 17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns, Creston has 12%. On average, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. Most immigrants were born in Europe (56%) or in the Americas (26%).
A larger share of Indigenous residents than 82% of Canadian towns: 7.9%
Visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion, as residents answered the census.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Visible minority residents make up 4.6%, against 15% across Canada’s towns. Measured more widely, 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 90%, and 4% speak French as well
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 97%, French 0.3%. Fewer bilingual residents than in 86% of Canadian towns: 4%. Residents whose mother tongue is French make up 1.5%, close to the figure across Canada’s towns.
Only 16% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in Creston
From no certificate to a master’s: residents 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
A job for 43% 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.
At 43%, fewer residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns, and 39% are 65 or over.
Among 41 towns of 5,862 to 6,093 people, the 2nd oldest
The Canadian towns closest in population, from youngest to oldest.
Median ages climb from 31.1 (University) to 62 (Nutana Urban Centre) across the group. In age, Creston keeps company with Lac-Mégantic (53.6), Mile 108 Recreational Ranch (56.8) and Nutana Urban Centre (62).
No nearby town is as old as Creston
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each links to its own page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creston | 5,976 | — | 57.6 | 39% | 12% |
| Electoral Area B, Central Kootenay | 5,243 | 2.8 km | 52 | 29% | 12% |
| Electoral Area C, Central Kootenay | 1,672 | 2.9 km | 56 | 33% | 12% |
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. Two medians frame each figure: one for British Columbia’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, one for all Canadian towns of that size, with whole cities and First Nations reserves left out. Percentiles rank the town within Canada.
- 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.
Questions about Creston’s residents
What is the average age in Creston?
57.6 is the median age, older than 97% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 12%. 65 and over: 39%.
Is Creston bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 4% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 96% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.5% grew up with French.
How diverse is Creston?
Immigrants make up 12% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 4.6% are members of a visible minority, and 7.9% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Creston?
Christian: 47%. No religion: 50%. Another religion: 3.2%.
Is Creston good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 12%. 48% of households are couple families and 7.3% one-parent families. Schools near Creston are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Creston?
$58,800 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Creston (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Creston?
Statistics Canada estimates 5,976 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 5,583 in Creston, 4% more than 2016.
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).