Photo: Murray Foubister · CC BY-SA 2.093% of residents have an Indigenous identity, a share 99% of Canadian towns don’t reach
With renter households at 15%, Nisga'a is behind three quarters of Canadian towns on that count. The 2021 Census found 575 households in the town; by July 2025 the population was about 1,803. One-person households: 20% of the total. Half of the town’s residents are under 39.2, younger than in 69% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Nisga'a
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
93% of residents identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit, more than in 99% of Canadian towns; 75% are Registered or Treaty Indians, and 12% have an Indigenous mother tongue. Identity & religion ↓
A town of families
Children under 15 are 22% of residents, more than in 92% of Canadian towns. Households average 3.1 people, and 14% are one-parent families. Ages ↓
Fewer people than before
Nisga'a went from 1,880 people in 2016 to 1,794 in 2021, −5%: slower growth than in 96% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Nisga'a changed by −5% from 2016 to 2021, slower than 96% of Canadian towns
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. How the population moved between the last two censuses, and since.
Change, 2016 to 2021
For comparison, the median is +4% across Canada’s towns and +6% across British Columbia’s towns. The estimate for July 2025 is much the same as the census count.
Nisga'a: 22% of residents are under 15, above 92% of Canadian towns
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
Set against 19% across Canada’s towns, 17% of residents are 65 or over in Nisga'a. At 11%, the share of residents aged 15 to 24 is higher than in 60% of Canadian towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
About 115 men for every 100 women.
One-parent families make up 14% in Nisga'a, more than in 96% of Canadian towns
Who shares a home: household types and sizes.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
At 3.1 people, the average household compares with 2.4 across Canada’s towns. To put it in context, 8.2% of households are one-parent families across Canada’s towns.
Nisga'a sits above 84% of Canadian towns for common-law partners (20%)
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
33% of residents 15 and over are married, against 46% across Canada’s towns. The share of common-law partners across Canada’s towns is 11%.
Households in single-detached houses: 80%, a higher share than 73% of Canadian towns
The kinds of homes people live in, who owns and who rents, and how old the homes are. 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
35% of homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%. Elsewhere, 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns. Newer homes outnumber old: 19% date from 2001 or later, 1.8% from before 1961. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns.
Median gross household income: $81,000 a year
Census incomes are for 2020, the year before the census, when CERB and other pandemic benefits topped up many households. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
At $81,000, the middle household in Nisga'a earned 6% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The median across British Columbia’s towns is $87,000. Pandemic benefits reached 29% of residents with an income, against a typical 28%.
In Nisga'a, 26% of residents said they have no religion, fewer than in 75% of Canadian towns
Residents’ own answers on visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Against a figure of 15% across Canada’s towns, the share of visible minority residents in Nisga'a comes in at 1.1%. Elsewhere, 35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
80% have English as their mother tongue; 0.8% also speak French
Who can speak English and French, mother tongue, and the language spoken most at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
An Indigenous language is the mother tongue of 12%. Nisga'a has fewer bilingual residents than 99% of Canadian towns, at 0.8%. Residents whose mother tongue is French: 0.3% here and 1.5% across Canada’s towns.
Degree holders aged 25 to 64: 10%, a lower share than 96% of Canadian towns
The highest diploma or degree of adults of working age (25 to 64).
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Without any certificate: 23% of 25- to 64-year-olds (typical: 9.5%).
A job for 44% of residents aged 15 and over
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
44% of residents 15 and over have a job, against a typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 17% are 65 or more.
Median age: 4 of the 5 towns around Nisga'a are older
Places nearby, shaded by median age, each linked to its page. Nisga'a has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 82–115 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nisga'a | 1,803 | — | 39.2 | 17% | 0% |
| Electoral Area C (Part 1), Kitimat-Stikine | 3,189 | 81.7 km | 44.8 | 18% | 8.4% |
| Terrace | 13,648 | 85.8 km | 38 | 16% | 9.6% |
| Electoral Area E, Kitimat-Stikine | 4,153 | 88.9 km | 41.2 | 17% | 5.9% |
| Electoral Area B, Kitimat-Stikine | 1,617 | 105.9 km | 51.6 | 25% | 11% |
| Prince Rupert | 12,903 | 114.6 km | 39.6 | 16% | 13% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- What these tables don’t give. Unpaid care, car ownership and internet access aren’t in the Census Profile, nor is the change by age since 2016. Ethnic origins other than visible minority and Indigenous identity are left out of the charts.
- 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.
Questions about Nisga'a’s residents
What is the average age in Nisga'a?
A median age of 39.2. Children under 15 make up 22%, and people 65 and over 17%.
Is Nisga'a bilingual?
0.8% of residents can speak both English and French (typical across Canada’s towns: 7.5%); 0% speak French only and 99% English only. French is the mother tongue of 0.3%.
How diverse is Nisga'a?
1.1% of residents belong to a visible minority and 93% have an Indigenous identity; Statistics Canada suppresses the immigration figures for Nisga'a.
What religion are people in Nisga'a?
63% are Christian and 26% have no religion; 11% follow another religion.
Is Nisga'a good for families?
Under 15: 22% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 41% of households. One-parent families: 14%. Schools near Nisga'a are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Nisga'a?
The median household in Nisga'a took in $81,000 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Nisga'a?
Nisga'a had about 1,803 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 1,794, 5% fewer 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).