Photo: Rod Lafond · CC BY 3.058% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 95% of Canadian towns
The figure for residents who moved in within the year is 17% in Sparwood and 11% across Canada’s towns. Residents aged 65 and over account for 14%. On children under 15, Sparwood sits higher than 84% of Canadian towns: 20%. About 4,486 people lived here in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates.
Since 2016, Sparwood has grown +10%, faster than 80% of Canadian towns
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. How the population moved between the last two censuses, and since.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns the median change is +4%; across British Columbia’s towns, +6%. Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 8% higher again.
Half of Sparwood is under 38.4, younger than 74% of Canadian towns
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
Compared with 11% across Canada’s towns, 9.2% of residents are aged 15 to 24 here. No age band is larger than 35–39: 8.6% of residents, 1.3 times the share across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Sparwood, 38.4. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 107 men for every 100 women.
A larger share of one-person households than 68% of Canadian towns: 32%
Household types, then household sizes.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
In Sparwood the average household is 2.3 people, beside 2.4 across Canada’s towns. Measured more widely, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns. Here, 7.2% of households are one-parent families.
Sparwood sits above 76% of Canadian towns for common-law partners (15%)
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Singles who have never married make up 23% of adults, beside a typical 27%. The wider picture: 11% of residents 15 and over live common-law across Canada’s towns.
Households in single-detached houses make up 55% in Sparwood, less than in 61% 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
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns. Across Sparwood, 28% of households rent their home. Typically, 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns.
Household income, middle of the range: $112,000 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
At $112,000, the middle household in Sparwood out-earned the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000) by 30%. Household incomes across British Columbia’s towns have a median of $87,000. Pandemic benefits reached 19% of residents with an income, against a typical 28%.
6.3% 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
Most recent wave: 29% of immigrants arrived in 2011–2021 (Canada’s towns: 27%). Sparwood has fewer immigrants than 76% of Canadian towns, at 6.3%. Here, 2.2% of residents are not Canadian citizens.
Indigenous residents: 10%, a higher share than 87% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
The figure for visible minority residents is 4% in Sparwood and 15% across Canada’s towns. Across the comparison, 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
93% have English as their mother tongue; 3.1% 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
Across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents is 7.5%; Sparwood has 3.1%. At home: English 98%, French 0.2%.
Degree holders aged 25 to 64: 13%, a lower share than 87% of Canadian towns
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
At the bottom of the ladder, 9.5% hold no certificate of any kind, against 9.5% in the typical town. By way of comparison, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
66% of adults were employed in May 2021
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Across Canada’s towns the typical rate is 58%, below this 66%.
Of 41 towns its size (4,398 to 4,572 people), the 12th youngest
Median age of the Canadian towns nearest in population; hover a dot.
Between Centennial (32.1) and Caraquet (54.4) lies the rest of the group. In age, Sparwood keeps company with Oxford (38.1), Vanderhoof (38.4), Vulcan County (39.2) and Montgomery (39.2).
Older than Sparwood: 2 of the 4 towns nearby
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. No closer places have figures: these lie 18–34 km from Sparwood.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparwood | 4,486 | — | 38.4 | 14% | 6.3% |
| Electoral Area A, East Kootenay | 2,092 | 17.9 km | 42.8 | 18% | 6.7% |
| Fernie | 7,086 | 28.6 km | 38 | 15% | 14% |
| Elkford | 3,030 | 31.4 km | 38.4 | 12% | 7.5% |
| Crowsnest Pass | 6,011 | 34.4 km | 52.8 | 28% | 9.1% |
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. Two medians frame each figure: one for British Columbia’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, one for all Canadian towns of that size, with whole cities and First Nations reserves left out. Percentiles rank the town within Canada.
Questions about Sparwood’s residents
What is the average age in Sparwood?
38.4 is the median age, younger than 74% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 20%. 65 and over: 14%.
Is Sparwood bilingual?
3.1% of residents can speak both English and French (typical across Canada’s towns: 7.5%); 0% speak French only and 97% English only. French is the mother tongue of 1.3%.
How diverse is Sparwood?
Immigrants make up 6.3% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 4% are members of a visible minority, and 10% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Sparwood?
Christian: 41%. No religion: 58%. Another religion: 1.2%.
Is Sparwood good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 20%. 55% of households are couple families and 7.2% one-parent families. Schools near Sparwood are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Sparwood?
$112,000 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Sparwood (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Sparwood?
Statistics Canada estimates 4,486 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 4,148 in Sparwood, 10% more 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).