Photo: railfan 44 · Public domainFort St. James: 23% of residents have an Indigenous identity, above 97% of Canadian towns
The share of residents who moved in within the year is 8.4%, against 11% across Canada’s towns. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 1,542 residents; the 2021 Census found 585 households. For Fort St. James, the census puts children under 15 at 19%. Half of the town’s residents are under 38.8, younger than in 71% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Fort St. James
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
23% of residents identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit, more than in 97% of Canadian towns; 18% are Registered or Treaty Indians. Identity & religion ↓
Fewer people than before
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses, Fort St. James went from 1,598 to 1,386 residents (−13%), slower growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Slower than most: −13% since 2016, behind 99% of Canadian towns
Every figure here comes from the 2021 Census unless it carries another date. Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
The median across Canada’s towns is +4%, and across British Columbia’s towns +6%. By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 11%.
Residents aged 65 and over: 16%, a lower share than 69% of Canadian towns
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
No age band is larger than 55–59: 7.6% of residents. As a yardstick, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24: 11%, near enough the figure across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Fort St. James sits above 68% of Canadian towns for one-person households (32%)
Private households by type and size.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
One in ten households are one-parent families, against 8.2% across Canada’s towns. Across Canada’s towns, one-person households come to 27%. There are 2.3 people in the average household.
In Fort St. James, 21% of residents 15 and over live common-law, more than in 85% of Canadian towns
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns, against 37% in Fort St. James. Common-law partners make up 11% across Canada’s towns.
Renter households make up 32% in Fort St. James, more than in 63% of Canadian towns
Occupied homes by type, by owners and renters, and by when they were built. 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
In Fort St. James, nearly three quarters of households live in a single-detached house, beside 64% across Canada’s towns. Elsewhere, a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. Newer homes outnumber old: 9.3% date from 2001 or later, 5.9% from before 1961.
A median household income of $91,000 a year
Census incomes cover 2020, when emergency benefits like CERB lifted many households’ totals. What households took in before tax, at the middle and across income groups.
Households by income · share of households
Fort St. James’s median household took in $91,000 before tax, 6% more than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The middle household across British Columbia’s towns has $87,000 before tax. 32% of income recipients received COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefits (typical: 28%).
11% of residents are immigrants
Immigrants, newcomers and movers.
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
The share of residents without Canadian citizenship is 3.4%, against 5.8% across Canada’s towns. Fort St. James has fewer immigrants than 62% of Canadian towns, at 11%. Most immigrants were born in Europe (28%) or in Asia (28%).
Fort St. James sits above 98% of Canadian towns for residents with no religion (64%)
Visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion, as residents answered the census.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Here 7.5% of residents belong to a visible minority, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 15%. Typically, 35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
89% have English as their mother tongue; 1.4% also speak French
Knowledge of the two official languages, first languages, and the language of home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
Compared with 7.5% across Canada’s towns, 1.4% of residents speak English and French here. 0.7% of residents have French as their mother tongue, a lower share than in 86% of Canadian towns.
Fort St. James sits below 81% of Canadian towns for degree holders aged 25 to 64 (15%)
From no certificate to a master’s: residents 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Holding no credential: 13% (typical 9.5%). By way of comparison, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
Employment: 58% of residents 15 and over had a job
May 2021 was still a pandemic month: the census’s work figures reflect that. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
About as many work here as in the typical town: 58%, against 58% across Canada’s towns.
Median age: 3 of the 4 towns around Fort St. James are older
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each links to its own page. No closer places have figures: these lie 5–63 km from Fort St. James.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort St. James | 1,542 | — | 38.8 | 16% | 11% |
| Electoral Area C, Bulkley-Nechako | 1,312 | 5.4 km | 50.4 | 22% | 5.8% |
| Vanderhoof | 4,545 | 50.4 km | 38.4 | 17% | 9.2% |
| Electoral Area F, Bulkley-Nechako | 3,643 | 59.6 km | 44 | 18% | 11% |
| Electoral Area D, Bulkley-Nechako | 1,772 | 62.8 km | 52.8 | 24% | 13% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- The census’s own words. The census takes “visible minority” from the Employment Equity Act: anyone other than Indigenous peoples who is non-white in colour or race. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are what residents reported, compared here with other towns and never used as 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 Fort St. James’s residents
What is the population of Fort St. James?
Fort St. James had about 1,542 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 1,386, 13% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Fort St. James?
A median age of 38.8. Children under 15 make up 19%, and people 65 and over 16%.
Is Fort St. James bilingual?
English and French: 1.4% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 98%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 0.7%.
How diverse is Fort St. James?
11% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 7.5% belong to a visible minority and 23% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Fort St. James?
30% are Christian and 64% have no religion; 6% follow another religion.
Is Fort St. James good for families?
Under 15: 19% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 49% of households. One-parent families: 10%. Schools near Fort St. James are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Fort St. James?
The median household in Fort St. James took in $91,000 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
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).