Photo: Doug Wortley · CC BY-SA 4.0A median age of 62: Parksville is older than 99% of Canadian towns
With residents aged 15 to 24 at 6.7%, Parksville is behind 97% of Canadian towns on that count. Some 15,371 people live in the town, by the estimate for July 2025. Residents with no religion: 52% of the total. At 35%, the share of one-person households is higher than in 77% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Parksville
Older than most towns
Parksville’s median age is 62; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 44% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Faster growth than 79% of Canadian towns: Parksville changed by +10% since 2016
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
The median across Canada’s towns is +4%, and across British Columbia’s towns +6%. Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 13% higher again.
44% of residents are 65 or over, a share 99% of Canadian towns don’t reach
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
The share of children under 15 is 9.2%, against 16% across Canada’s towns. By way of comparison, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Parksville, 62. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
55% women, 45% men
About 83 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
Households here average 2 people, below 90% 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.
Compared with 8.2% across Canada’s towns, 6.5% of households are one-parent families here.
51% of residents 15 and over are married, more than in 66% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Single and never married: 16% of adults, against a typical 27%. Common-law partners: a tenth of the total. Set beside that, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns.
A lower share of households in single-detached houses than 55% of Canadian towns, at 60%
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
The share of households in buildings of five or more storeys tops 61% of Canadian towns: 1%. Newer homes outnumber old: 32% date from 2001 or later, 5.6% from before 1961. The comparison figure for households in single-detached houses is 64% across Canada’s towns.
Household income at the median: $66,500 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. What households took in before tax, at the middle and across income groups.
Households by income · share of households
Household incomes run lower in Parksville: half had less than $66,500, 23% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). For British Columbia’s towns, the median household income is $87,000. COVID-19 benefits went to 19% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
Parksville: 15% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, above 79% of Canadian towns
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
Most immigrants were born in Europe (66%) or in Asia (16%). Fewer residents without Canadian citizenship than in just over three fifths of Canadian towns: 3.6%. To put it in context, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. Recent arrivals are 12% of immigrants (2011 to 2021), beside 27% across Canada’s towns.
More Indigenous residents than 62% of Canadian towns: 4%
Residents’ own answers on visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
5.6% of residents belong to a visible minority; across Canada’s towns the figure is 15%. Indigenous residents make up 2.8% across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 89%, and 5.9% 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
Against a figure of 7.5% across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents in Parksville comes in at 5.9%. At home: English 97%, French 0.2%.
Only 19% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in Parksville
The highest diploma or degree of adults of working age (25 to 64).
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Across Canada’s towns, 27% of 25- to 64-year-olds hold a degree; in Parksville, 19%, and 37% have a college or trades credential (typical: 29%). Those with no credential make up 8.9%, next to 9.5% in the typical town.
39% of residents 15 and over were in work
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Across Canada’s towns the typical rate is 58%, above this 39%; 44% of residents are 65 or over.
Among 41 towns of 15,050 to 15,691 people, the 1st oldest
The Canadian towns closest in population, from youngest to oldest.
The group spans Laurel, youngest at 31.2, to Parksville, oldest at 62. Next to Parksville on this scale come Sainte-Adèle (53.6) and Campbellford (55.2).
Parksville is younger than 1 of its 5 nearest neighbours
Places nearby, shaded by median age, each linked to its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parksville | 15,371 | — | 62 | 44% | 17% |
| Electoral Area G, Nanaimo | 8,412 | 3.5 km | 60.8 | 41% | 16% |
| Qualicum Beach | 9,640 | 8.6 km | 67.5 | 56% | 20% |
| Electoral Area F, Nanaimo | 8,810 | 8.9 km | 49.6 | 23% | 11% |
| Fairwinds | 7,125 | 11.7 km | 61.6 | 41% | 18% |
| Lantzville | 4,276 | 18.8 km | 50.8 | 26% | 13% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What these tables don’t give. The Census Profile has no unpaid care, cars or internet access, and no change by age since 2016; ethnic origins beyond visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
- The census’s own words. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are as residents answered them. “Visible minority” follows the Employment Equity Act, meaning people other than Indigenous peoples who are non-white in colour or race. We compare these figures across towns; none is a label for a town.
- Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns. A figure here is set beside two middles, the median across British Columbia’s places of 2,500 people or more and the median across all Canadian towns that size; reserves and entire cities are excluded from both.
Questions about Parksville’s residents
Is Parksville bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 5.9% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 94% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.3% grew up with French.
How diverse is Parksville?
Immigrants: 17% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 5.6%. Indigenous identity: 4%.
What religion are people in Parksville?
52% said they have no religion and 46% that they are Christian; 2.4% named another faith.
Is Parksville good for families?
9.2% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 52% of households and one-parent families 6.5%. Schools near Parksville are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Parksville?
Half of Parksville’s households had more than $66,500 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Parksville?
About 15,371, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 13,642 people in Parksville, 10% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Parksville?
The median age is 62, older than 99% of Canadian towns. 9.2% are under 15 and 44% 65 or older.
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).