East Saanich 2 is older than 99% of Canadian towns: a median age of 64
A First Nations reserve, East Saanich 2 is home to Tsawout First Nation. Here 6.9% of households rent their home, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 25%. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 1,962 residents; the 2021 Census found 940 households. In East Saanich 2, 7.8% of residents are under 15. At 46%, the share of residents with no religion is higher than in 80% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of East Saanich 2
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
An Indigenous identity is reported by 31% of residents, more than in 99% of Canadian towns, and 27% are Registered or Treaty Indians. Identity & religion ↓
Older than most towns
East Saanich 2’s median age is 64; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 47% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Many people living alone
One-person households make up 42%, more than in 91% of Canadian towns, and 47% of residents are 65 or over. Households ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A growing town: +6% since 2016, faster than 62% 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
Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across British Columbia’s towns, +6%. The July 2025 estimate adds another 10%.
A higher share of residents aged 65 and over than 99% of Canadian towns, at 47%
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
Set against 11% across Canada’s towns, 6.7% of residents are aged 15 to 24 in East Saanich 2. Across the comparison, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women.
In East Saanich 2, 42% of households are one person living alone, more than in 91% of Canadian towns
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.
The average household has 1.9 people, against 2.4 across Canada’s towns. Measured more widely, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns. Census figures put one-parent families at 5.8% in East Saanich 2.
East Saanich 2: 12% of residents 15 and over live common-law, above 64% of Canadian towns
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
44% of residents 15 and over are married, against 46% across Canada’s towns. Across Canada’s towns, the share of common-law partners is 11%.
Below 66% of Canadian towns: 52% of households live in a single-detached house
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
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns. As a reference point, 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns. 37% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 1.1% built before 1961.
Half of households earn more than $57,600 a year
Incomes are 2020’s, the census’s reference year, and include pandemic benefits such as CERB. What households took in before tax, at the middle and across income groups.
Households by income · share of households
Household incomes run lower in East Saanich 2: half had less than $57,600, 33% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Household incomes across British Columbia’s towns have a median of $87,000. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 16% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
East Saanich 2 ranks above 99% of Canadian towns on Indigenous residents: 31%
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
15% of residents belong to a visible minority across Canada’s towns, against 2.2% in East Saanich 2. Across Canada’s towns, the share of Indigenous residents is 2.8%.
English is the mother tongue of 92%, and 4.7% 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
Against a figure of 7.5% across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents in East Saanich 2 comes in at 4.7%. At home: English 99%, French 0.3%.
Only 14% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in East Saanich 2
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
At the other end, 16% hold no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%. For comparison, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
35% of adults were employed in May 2021
The census counted work in May 2021, mid-pandemic, so read these rates as a pandemic snapshot. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
At 35%, fewer residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns, and 47% are 65 or over.
Every nearby town is younger than East Saanich 2
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Saanich 2 | 1,962 | — | 64 | 47% | 0% |
| Central Saanich | 18,184 | 3.5 km | 49.6 | 27% | 16% |
| Sidney | 13,445 | 7.4 km | 62 | 45% | 23% |
| North Saanich | 12,986 | 9.2 km | 56.8 | 35% | 17% |
| Highlands | 2,753 | 11.0 km | 45.6 | 18% | 12% |
| Saanich | 126,011 | 12.8 km | 44.4 | 23% | 23% |
| Electoral Area A, Cowichan Valley | 5,156 | 13.8 km | 54 | 29% | 17% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- A First Nations reserve. Reserves are compared with Canada’s towns but aren’t counted among them: they have no overall grade and no place in ranked lists. Census figures for small reserves are rounded, and some are suppressed.
- What these tables don’t give. For origins the charts stop at visible minority and Indigenous identity, and the Census Profile has nothing on unpaid care, cars or the internet, or on change by age since 2016.
- 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 East Saanich 2’s residents
Is East Saanich 2 bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 4.7% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 95% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.7% grew up with French.
How diverse is East Saanich 2?
Indigenous identity: 31%. Visible minority: 2.2%. Statistics Canada publishes no immigration figures for East Saanich 2.
What religion are people in East Saanich 2?
Christian: 49%. No religion: 46%. Another religion: 5%.
Is East Saanich 2 good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 7.8%. 43% of households are couple families and 5.8% one-parent families. Schools near East Saanich 2 are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in East Saanich 2?
$57,600 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in East Saanich 2 (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of East Saanich 2?
Statistics Canada estimates 1,962 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 1,790 in East Saanich 2, 6% more than 2016.
What is the average age in East Saanich 2?
64 is the median age. Under 15: 7.8%. 65 and over: 47%.
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).