Photo: Leoboudv · CC BY-SA 3.0Above 92% of Canadian towns: 67% of residents belong to a visible minority
In Surrey, 20% of residents are not Canadian citizens, beside 5.8% across Canada’s towns. About 703,531 people lived locally in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates. The share of residents aged 15 to 24 stands at 14%. The city has fewer households in single-detached houses than just over four fifths of Canadian towns, at 33%.
What stands out about the people of Surrey
A mix of backgrounds
67% of residents belong to a visible minority, more than in 92% of Canadian towns; 45% are immigrants. Identity & religion ↓
More immigrants than most towns
45% of residents are immigrants, against 16% across British Columbia’s towns and 17% across Canada’s towns. Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (79%), then in Europe (9.1%); 31% of them arrived from 2011 to 2021. Immigrants & newcomers ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Surrey’s population changed by +10% since 2016, more than in 80% of Canadian towns
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
For comparison, the median is +4% across Canada’s towns and +6% across British Columbia’s towns. The July 2025 estimate adds another 24%.
Surrey is younger than 74% of Canadian towns: a median age of 38.4
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
Compared with 19% across Canada’s towns, 15% of residents are 65 or over here. No age band is larger than 20–24: 8% of residents, 1.5 times the share across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Larger households than 90% of Canadian towns: 3 people on average
Households by family type and by the number of people in them.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
One-person households: 20%, below 77% of Canadian towns. Nearly one in ten households are one-parent families.
4.9% of residents 15 and over live common-law, below 91% of Canadian towns
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
54% of residents 15 and over are married; across Canada’s towns the figure is 46%. Across Canada’s towns, common-law partners come to 11%.
Households in buildings of five or more storeys: 4.8%, a higher share than 73% of Canadian towns
Houses and apartments, owners and renters, older and newer homes. 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
44% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 4.3% built before 1961. In Surrey, 31% of households rent their home, beside 25% across Canada’s towns.
Median household income: $98,000 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Income per household, before tax, with the groups it falls into.
Households by income · share of households
The median across Canada’s towns is $86,000; Surrey’s, at $98,000, is 14% higher. Among British Columbia’s towns, the typical figure is $87,000. In 2020, 32% of income recipients drew a COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefit; the typical town had 28%.
Surrey: 45% of residents are immigrants, above 88% of Canadian towns
Immigrants by continent of birth and when they arrived, citizenship, and who moved in recently.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 55%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (79%), then in Europe (9.1%). Across Canada’s towns, immigrants come to 17%. More residents who moved in within the year than in 75% of Canadian towns: 14%. What’s more, 31% of immigrants arrived between 2011 and 2021, against 27% across Canada’s towns.
Fewer residents with no religion than 68% of Canadian towns: 29%
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Other faiths: Sikh (27%), Muslim (5.5%) and Hindu (5.4%). Across Canada’s towns, 35% of residents said they have no religion. There is little gap on Indigenous residents: 2.2%, about the same as across Canada’s towns.
Beyond English and French: 56% grew up with another language
English, French and the other languages people grew up with or speak at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
35% most often speak a language other than English or French at home, and 6.7% speak neither official language. Few places have so few bilingual residents: 3.9% here, fewer than in 87% of Canadian towns. Here 0.5% of residents have French as their mother tongue, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 1.5%.
A higher share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 62% of Canadian towns, at 34%
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
At the other end, 11% hold no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%. Typically, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
Employment: 60% of residents 15 and over had a job
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Employment runs above the middle of Canada’s towns (58%), at 60%.
From a median age of 35 in Aloha Estates to 53 in Semiahmoo Town Centre
The city’s 31 neighbourhoods, youngest first; each links its own page.
Semiahmoo Town Centre is the oldest area, with 33% aged 65 or over; Aloha Estates the youngest (median age 35). Immigrants are most common in Guildford (55% of residents). Whalley has the most renters: 53% of households.
A younger town than 3 of the 6 around it: Surrey
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surrey | 703,531 | — | 38.4 | 15% | 45% |
| Sullivan | 42,135 | 1.6 km | 35.6 | 11% | 48% |
| Fleetwood | 63,957 | 2.4 km | 39.5 | 17% | 51% |
| Newton | 51,222 | 2.6 km | 36.2 | 15% | 48% |
| Panorama Ridge | 36,473 | 3.9 km | 35.7 | 13% | 52% |
| Surrey Centre | 16,482 | 4.6 km | 39 | 15% | 28% |
| Johnston Heights | 30,971 | 4.9 km | 40.3 | 16% | 54% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. These are self-reported answers: Indigenous identity, immigrant status, religion. The census’s “visible minority” comes from the Employment Equity Act (non-white in colour or race, Indigenous peoples aside), and the page sets each beside other towns without labelling any.
- 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. For origins the charts stop at visible minority and Indigenous identity, and the Census Profile has nothing on unpaid care, cars or the internet, or on change by age since 2016.
Questions about Surrey’s residents
What is the median income in Surrey?
$98,000 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Surrey (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Surrey?
Statistics Canada estimates 703,531 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 568,322 in Surrey, 10% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Surrey?
38.4 is the median age. Under 15: 17%. 65 and over: 15%.
Is Surrey bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 3.9% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 89% speak only English and 0% only French; 0.5% grew up with French.
How diverse is Surrey?
Immigrants make up 45% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 67% are members of a visible minority, and 2.2% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Surrey?
Christian: 30%. No religion: 29%. Another religion: 41%.
Is Surrey good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 17%. 50% of households are couple families and 8.2% one-parent families. Schools near Surrey are on its Schools page.
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).