Photo: Shawn from Airdrie, Canada · CC BY-SA 2.0Household incomes in North Saanich are higher than in 97% of Canadian towns
North Saanich counted 85% of its 15-to-64s in jobs at the 2021 census, and the middle of Canadian towns sits at 73%. 30% of its workers worked at home on census day, against 21% in the middle of Canadian towns. For 2.2% of commuters in North Saanich, the trip to work lasts an hour or more; the average is 21.8 minutes.
What sets North Saanich apart on jobs and income
More people in work than most towns
Counting everyone 15 and over, 52% were in work at the 2021 census; among those aged 15 to 64 it was 85%, against 73% in the middle of Canadian towns. In work ↓
Less unemployment than most towns
The Labour Force Survey had the area at 4.8% in October 2026; on census day in 2021 the town’s own rate was 5.9%, where the middle of Canadian towns had 9.9%. Unemployment ↓
Higher incomes than most towns
At $120,700 before tax in 2020, the median household compares with $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns. Household income ↓
A local job centre
3,735 people work in North Saanich and 3,205 residents commute to a fixed workplace; the middle of Canadian towns has 0.8 jobs per working resident. The daily tide ↓
Shorter trips than most towns
Commutes take 21.8 minutes on average, against 26 in the middle of Canadian towns; 2.2% take an hour or more. The trip to work ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
Jobs and income in North Saanich earn A+
Better than almost every Canadian town on three measures together, #1 of 254 in British Columbia.
Its strongest measure is household income; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
In and out of work in North Saanich
Of the 15 other places of 2,500 people or more in the Capital census division, 14 have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
Take in all adults, retirees with them, and only 52% were working. For the wider area, the Labour Force Survey had 61% in work in October 2026. The participation rate, everyone 15 and over working or looking for work, was 55%. The census was taken on 11 May 2021, mid-pandemic, when lockdowns had pushed unemployment up and sent many to work from home.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
Household income in North Saanich: $120,700 at the median
North Saanich’s median is 39% above the middle of British Columbia’s towns ($86,900). One of the 15 other places of 2,500+ in the Capital census division has a higher median. Pandemic benefits paid in 2020 lifted the incomes at the bottom, and they are counted here.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
North Saanich fills up on a working day: 11% more workers
27% of residents who commute work inside the municipality, against 70% in the middle of Canadian towns.
People with no fixed workplace are in neither count.
How long the commute from North Saanich takes
Timed exactly, the average is 20 minutes (Statistics Canada). The middle of British Columbia’s towns averages 26.4 minutes. Trips under 15 minutes: 43%, more than the 39% in the middle of British Columbia’s towns.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: commuting duration in five bands; our average uses each band’s middle (75 minutes for an hour or more), so it runs about two minutes above Statistics Canada’s own.
2,866 people come into North Saanich to work, most from Saanich and Sidney
- Saanich790
- Sidney465
- Central Saanich450
- Victoria320
- Langford250
- Colwood140
- Esquimalt95
- Oak Bay60
- Sooke40
- East Saanich 240
- Sidney820
- Victoria455
- Central Saanich400
- Saanich375
- Esquimalt95
- Langford45
- View Royal35
- Oak Bay30
- East Saanich 220
- Toronto10
Of everyone working in North Saanich, 77% come in from elsewhere; 790 make the 22 km trip from Saanich. Outbound, Sidney takes the most: 820 people.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (98-10-0459): commuting flows between municipalities (census subdivisions), rounded to 5; linked names have their own pages.
Walk, cycle or ride transit: the choice of 7.7% of North Saanich’s commuters
Few ride transit: 2.4%, where the middle of Canadian towns has 3.5%. 90% drive to work, more than the 87% in the middle of British Columbia’s towns.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
In the Capital census division, 44% more people receive EI than in 2019
Over the year to August 2026, the count rose by 7%. January 2021 was the busiest month, with 15,570 people on EI, 3 times 2019’s average. That works out to around 3.2 beneficiaries per 100 people aged 15 to 64 across the division.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100). For EI beneficiaries, the only official count covers all of the Capital census division, North Saanich included.
How walkable North Saanich is: B
Better than 55% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #187 of 254 in British Columbia.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
Ranked on jobs and income, North Saanich is 1st among 601 Canadian towns of 9,100 to 17,500
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Saanich British Columbia | 12,986 | 85% | 5.9% | $121K | A+ |
| 2 | Sillery Quebec | 13,950 | 81% | 6.2% | $120K | A+ |
| 3 | Walsh Acres/Lakeridge/Garden Ridge Saskatchewan | 9,325 | 80% | 6.7% | $127K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 13 | Revelstoke British Columbia | 9,464 | 77% | 10% | $97K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 23 | Saltspring Island British Columbia | 12,429 | 84% | 5.5% | $77K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 25 | Terrace British Columbia | 13,648 | 77% | 6.5% | $91K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 601 | René-Goupil Quebec | 11,663 | 58% | 15% | $54K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of North Saanich, and others among British Columbia’s towns.
Around North Saanich: jobs, pay and the commute
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Saanich | 85% | 5.9% | $121K | 21.8 min | A+ | B |
| Sidney 2.4 km | 84% | 4.7% | $77K | 19.8 min | A | A+ |
| East Saanich 2 9.2 km | 72% | 12% | $58K | 20.9 min | C− | B |
| Electoral Area A, Cowichan Valley 9.5 km | 75% | 7% | $95K | 28.1 min | B− | C |
| Central Saanich 10.5 km | 85% | 4.9% | $103K | 21.7 min | A+ | A− |
| Cobble Hill 11.1 km | 83% | 5.9% | $91K | 30.1 min | B+ | B− |
| Highlands 15.7 km | 83% | 4.9% | $124K | 27.3 min | A | C− |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for North Saanich, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- Unemployment. Of everyone 15 or older who was working or job-hunting in the census week, the part still looking. Someone not seeking work isn’t in it at all.
- Household income. Half of households had more than this before tax in 2020, half less, counting every source of income. For a neighbourhood we estimate the median from the income brackets of its dissemination areas.
- Trip times. How long getting to work normally takes, averaged from the census’s time bands at their middles; expect it to read slightly high against the timed figure.
- Where people commute. Jobs count everyone whose usual workplace lies in the municipality, residents or commuters from elsewhere, from Statistics Canada’s home-by-workplace table.
- Employment Insurance. People receiving EI benefits each month, counted for the census division. It follows the local job market; it isn’t an unemployment rate.
- The Labour Force Survey. Monthly, and only for metro areas and economic regions. It is the up-to-date rate we set beside the census’s 2021 snapshot.
- In work. We divide the number of employed residents by the number aged 15 to 64. Workers past 64 still count on top, because the 2021 Census crosses work with age only for whole municipalities; in return, a retirement town’s pensioners don’t drag the rate down.
- Which towns we compare. The comparison pool is places of 2,500 people or more, towns or neighbourhoods inside cities, without whole cities or reserves, and we compare with its median.
Questions about work in North Saanich
Where do people in North Saanich work?
Only 27% work in North Saanich itself; the rest go first to Sidney (820) and Victoria (455).
How many jobs are there in North Saanich?
About 3,735 people had their usual place of work in North Saanich at the 2021 census, 1.2 for each working resident with a fixed workplace. In June 2026, 459 businesses with employees were on Statistics Canada’s count.
What is the unemployment rate in North Saanich?
The 2021 census found 5.9% unemployed, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns; the Labour Force Survey’s latest, for the Victoria metro area, is 4.8% (October 2026).
What is the average household income in North Saanich?
The census puts North Saanich at $120,700 for 2020, before tax and at the median, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in North Saanich get to work?
90% of commuters go by car, 2.4% take public transit, 3.2% walk and 2.1% cycle. On census day 30% of everyone in work stayed home to work.
How long is the commute from North Saanich?
On average 21.8 minutes; 43% take under 15 minutes and 2.2% take an hour or longer.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, tables 98-10-0458 and 98-10-0459 (commuting) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. 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).